Monday, October 12, 2015
UN High Commissioner for Refugees,
Antonio Guterres paid a visit on Saturday (10.8) to Lesvos Island, which has received the bulk of all refugee and
migration flows to the EU since the beginning of the year. Guterres said
that European governments had yet to match the "gigantic effort"
that the island and its people had made in trying to cope with the huge influx.
“Lesvos is a small island and since the beginning of the year
has received more than 250,000 refugees and migrants”, noted Guterres, adding
that "for this reason," the international community owes gratitude to
the people of this island. "It
is the appropriate time for an appeal to the European Union that must finally
cooperate in order give an answer to this crisis. Because this crisis is not
only a problem of Lesvos, it is not only a problem of Greece, it is European problem," he underlined.
Migration
Minister Announces ‘Hotspots’
Speaking on the same subject, in an interview with Reuters, Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas noted
that the EU must put an end to the practice of member-countries cherry-picking
which refugees they accept from the relocation programme, otherwise it will turn into a shameful
"human market". "Views such as 'we want them tall, blonde, with
blue eyes and three children,' are insulting to the personality and freedom of
refugees," Mouzalas told Reuters. "Europe must be categorically
against that."
Mouzalas
also announced that the five hotspots to register and identify arrivals on
the preferred entry points - Lesbos, Kos, Chios, Leros and Samos - would start
operating within a month, ahead of schedule. Greece hopes to relocate about 10,000
people every two months, or 70,000 in a year and it has also committed to
creating two centres for accommodating 8-10,000 people in total. The migration
minister called on the EU to treat Turkey generously and offer it
"incentives and rewards", including financial support, to accommodate
refugees there, and said the two countries would consider closer cooperation
between their coastguards.
See more on the civil
society response networks in Lesvos: NGO Agalia; The village of “All Together”; Help for Refugees in Molyvos; Lesvos Volunteers
