The ‘Human Rights Watch’ reports that Greece is processing this week a draft law relevant to the reduce of migrants’ arrival in the country from Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq. Many ‘’alarms’’ are being emerged about the possible attenuation of asylum seekers’ protection.
Eva Cosse, a Greece researcher at Human Rights Watch, pointed out that this action, as an outcome of a migration deal with Turkey, contradicts with the aim of solving the humanitarian crisis, as it poses strict provisions.
Even UNCHR ‘’condemned’’ this parliament’s initiative stating the importance of international cooperation and protection.
Numbers are quite important because they reveal the truth. In 2018, 42,010 people have reached Greece asking for asylum in comparison with the beginning of 2019, when the number has been increased into 53,462.
The difficulty of the situation is even more apparent as the asylum process in Greece may need years. There are not enough facilities and their unhealthy conditions sometimes mean the lack of intrinsic services, like water.
More specifically about the bill, it increases the duration of their detention (until 18 months) according to the EU law, stipulates that the processes about children (unaccompanied) are more rushed (causing a fear of not protecting them efficiently) placing them under the ‘’protective policy’’ regime (strictly rejected by the ECtHR).
All this situation can be harmful to children, both psychologically and psychically.
Severe provisions for vulnerable people, insufficient protection, the uncertainty of the provision about the list of ‘’safe countries’’, police officers’ interviews, demanding criteria for asylum, are some of the huge problematic issues of the draft law.