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Taking stock of the new asylum procedure in Greece: The selective application of new asylum law in Greece

The reform of the Greek Asylum Procedure was welcomed by Europe in the beginning of 2011. We ask: Is it really an improvement?

As far as one can observe until now the new asylum law is only selectively being applied. Additionally, the new procedures confront severe practical obstacles. We have not seen any improvement for refugees in Greece only a worsening of the situation. Migration and asylum policy are the very heart of the civil society and the state. Can we afford to look the other way and ignore severe human rights abuses of the most vulnerable parts of our society? There is a great importance in denouncing the continuance of human rights violations and, thus, in fighting against a European propaganda that will soon enough again beautify and mask the tragic reality of refugee life in Greece in order to protect the Dublin II regulation and start again the returns/ deportations of refugees back to Greece.

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Mass Readmission of 81 refugees from Italy to Patras / Greece – 20.04.2011

Berlusconi is “cleaning his backyard”
As far as we know, Italy readmitted for the first time refugees via the sea way and in a great number from the inland of the country to Greece. 81 sans-papiers from war torn countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq, women, minors and other vulnerable persons were arrested on their way through Italy and towards the European “golden” North, deported by ship to Patras and from there transferred to Athens.
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Hungary systematically arrests asylum seekers – including minors!

Refugees from Germany nevertheless to be further deported to Hungary

“No refugees in orbit“ was a central slogan of the so called Dublin II-agreement, meant to regulate the proceedings of asylum applications. But the real effect is exactly the opposite: more and more refugees – including minors – are straying through Europe, fleeing from being deported to the countries of first arrival. They spend months or even years in various EU nations in the search for a country that will recognise their rights, and offer them a decent chance to experience a normal human life. Their first registration via fingerprint in the eastern and southern EU nations often leads to their doom. What at the beginning of the year was suspended for refugees, who entered Europe in Greece, is an ongoing problem with Italy, Malta or also Hungary, despite similar unsustainable conditions: constantly there is a threat of deportation to these nations of first registration when refugees continue their journey.

“Europe wide we are observing a horrifying phenomenon: young refugees have to continue to flee. And this is due to fear of deportation to European countries in which their human rights as children are being trampled. Nobody feels responsible for these teenagers, who are displaced from one country to another,“

said Niels Espenhorst, speaker of the Federal Association for Unaccompanied Minor Refugees.
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minors in hungary 2011

Dublin II means they play football with us, shooting us from one country to another, playing with us and wasting our time…


Five stories of young afghan refugees who have one experience in common: they have been detained in Hungary. Some of them have been already deported to Hungary because of Dublin. Some are threatened by deportation…

Milad* (17) from Afghanistan is living in a facility for minor refugees in Frankfurt, Germany since October 2010. For almost two years he has been on an Odyssey across Europe.
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freedom

I stayed six months in detention in Evros. Not once we were allowed to go outside in the yard. My only chance was to beg the officers of the ‘good’ shifts to carry out the garbage. Only then I could see the sky for one minute, breath the air of freedom.

under the sky – unaccompanied minors in Greece

We were just released from the prison in Evros, where we stayed for more than one month. We were in one cell with more than 30 adult men, some of them penal detainees. It was very hard. We had to argue with them to be allowed to sleep inside. The first days we were sleeping outside. Just one of us stayed in the yard in the end. He could not sleep inside, because of the smell, the dirt and the noise so he preferred the cold. We were released an brought to a reception centre for minors. We only stayed there for 2 days. We didn’t come to Greece in order to stay here. So we came to Athens 2 days ago. We just know the park. Where can we get something to eat. We didn’t eat since yesterday. I don’t know any place here.
In this park there are many people sleeping. Also families. Every night we sleep in some other corner. Most people don’t sleep in the night, but they walk up and down and smoke all the time. It is scary to sleep here in the night. Better to sleep when the sun comes out! We have nothing. Only the clothes on our body. It is ok. Actually it is not ok. It is cold in the night, but what can we do?
In some days we will try to leave Greece. Inshallah!

letters from the prisons of Evros

To whom it may concern

This is to inform the authority of UN that the female prison of Alexandra police Ferix (Ferres) need freedom, because most people here are due to be free. Most of them are three months and two months plus. And the environment we are is not good, example, the toilette and bathroom are attached to the room where we are sleeping, so when the water stopps running and there is no water to clean the toilette, it becomes impossible to sleep the room. In that case we all go outside to sleep.
We desire to know the reason why we black Africans are not released on time, while the white Africans are been released on time.
So therefore we have decided not to eat, because we need freedom, if they don’t free us, something terrible will happen. But all the same, we need freedom.
May god bless you. Amen.

I am talking as one of the detainees of this prison:

1. There is no freedom of speech here
2. We can not sleep in silence and safety
3. There is not enough food for all
4. There is no clean place to pray.
5. We want food that respects our religious restrictions on eating pork
6. The toilettes and shower are not clean, no humans can use them
7. The police officers does not respect religions in fascists way both muslim and christian and they don’t allow us to pray
8. There is no doctor and proper farmacy to take care of the sick
9. The cells are dirty, it smells, we are all sick. We all have skin problems and psychological problems

We all demand from the government to free us, to let us go to work in Europe.
We all came to Europe for work. We didn’t come here to cause trouble. We all left our countries because we were poor and hungry; there was no democracy in our home. We left because of the fascism we faced in our countries.

Please see our problems with a human eye and with mercy

In the name of god

Everybody knows that the reason why all the young people leave from their home countries is that they cannot live without freedom and justice.
This is why we chose this road.
This is why we are suffering. We regret our choice. The reason? Here in prison we are not fine. They violate our rights; there cannot be human rights within four walls. I don’t know what to think. We have been injured and our wounds teach us to flee to Greece – for the freedom. They teach us to live and claim our rights. But it is worse than we thought. I don’t know what to think; I don’t know which other road to follow. I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know where I will be.
Return, Europe or prison.
We had smiles and hope, but Greece embraced us with racism and with hate. A bitter hate and anger. My asylum is no sin. Why do we have to be here? The prison has burned our minds. I am sorry that I cannot describe all my life to you, but only I can write a small letter. Because I hate myself so much, I cannot even speak. Thank you for your co-operation, your help and for reading this letter.

From the detainees

Friday, 8th October: Protest against fascists in Attiki and police beating of Dublin II returnee

Demonstration of solidary people and Afghan refugees in Attiki

This is one of the seldom afternoons that the afghans reconquerεδ the square. A group of 1000 people, among them many Afghan refugees, women and children gathered in the afternoon in Attiki Square to protest against the fascist movement that is occupying the place since the end of September 2010 and that already has expulsed all forms of human life from the St. Panteleimon Church.

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“The police tried to frighten us!”, M. from Afghanistan (13)

The 13 year old unaccompanied minors M. from Afghanistan spent more than 80 days in the detention centre of Fylakio / Evros upon arrival in Greece. He was arrested in the end of 2010 and released in January 2011. We meet shortly before his departure to Patras.

I want to go to Sweden,

he says. The shy boy is horrified by his experiences in Greece.

We were more than 90 children in one cell. It was so crowded that we were sleeping two persons in one bed and we were constantly falling out of the loft beds because there wasn’t enough space. We could not understand why they did not let us go. For 30 days they did not release any of us, so we started to protest. I think the police did not like that. They took 7 of us into the room with the telephones. From outside they threw petrol onto the floor of the room and lit fire. They wanted us to be afraid so that we stop protesting but we were not afraid! They also beat us with brooms.

I am from Bamyan state in Afghanistan but I grew up in Qum, Iran. I was working in a manufactory where we were producing slippers.

Where is your family?

“I don’t have so much family,” he says in a silent voice so I don’t ask any further questions.

Hungary imprisons minors after Dublin II deportation

Interview with Fardin (17) in Zalaergerszeg detention prison, 26th of October 2010

The following interview was taken under difficult circumstances, on the phone of the prison. We had never seen each other before – it was a friend of a friend who brought us in contact. Fardin was not in a good mood – but he said that he wants to give testimony what happens in Hungary to the deported. He hopes that maybe, if the authorities knew what happens, they might stop the Dublin-system.
He says:

For me it’s to late now, but maybe all the others, they should not experience the same!”

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