Tag Archive for 'letter'

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Letter to the World from Moria (No. 2)

copyright: Salinia Stroux

Author: A migratory girl

The way from Afghanistan to Greece; stories of unsafe border crossings

The reasons for my people of escaping their home are different according to their individual stories, their families, jobs and the situation in their villages / towns or origin, but the main factor is the internal and cross-border war – not just for us Afghans but for most of the refugees.

When forced to leave and choosing to come this way, we are risking our lives in order to survive in the end. Even after considering all dangers and the possibility of death, still this is the better choice among only bad alternatives.

All refugees from Afghanistan have to cross several borders to arrive here. Even though some may start with different possibilities, with or without Afghan passports, with or without residence permits from Iran/Paksitan, valid and invalid ones, we all suffer hundred dangers on the way. Some start their escape route in Afghanistan, others have been already living for years as refugees or people without papers in Iran and Pakistan, some were even born as refugees.

We ride on motor-bikes, pick-ups, trucks with too many others driving through stony deserts. We walk many klimoetres over mountains and through rivers. We cross fences and seas. We find ourselves confronted with police, soldiers, smugglers and thieves. We spend nights outside without knowing where we are, without blankets in the cold, rain or snow and without food and water. They shoot on us, we get robbed, kidnapped, threatened, raped. We see dead people along the road. Many of us are kids or minors, many escape with their families, with their grandmothers and grandfathers or sick relatives.

Do you think, this is a simple choice to take this route to freedom?

On the way out of Afghanistan to Europe, there are places controlled by thieves where even the smugglers and soldiers are afraid of. I heard the story of family whom thieves stoped to rob all their belongings. They threatened them, that if they wouldn’t give them what they wanted, they would sexually abuse their women. They survived the attack but were left with nothing but their lives and the clothes on their bodies. İn another case five minors were robbed, beaten and taken hostage for two nights, where they wouldn’t get more than a small piece if dry bread a day. They added that they felt horrible, as there were also two girls in hostage who got both raped and murdered. İn another case a family told me, how they crossed the desert with their four kids and two other families. There was no shadow, no shelter. They were without water and their kids dehydrated. They struggled: Either peace or death.

When we arrive to Iran, we face a country full of racism against Afghan refugees, who build the majority of immigrants there. The country likewise our home, is full of racism against the atheists, ethnic or religious minorities, political opponents. It is a country, where refugees cannot attend formal education or get the nationality even if born there. It is a country where violence against women, strangers and even their own people is often silenced and remains unpunished. A country where you cannot speak freely. A country where citizenship is sold for the price of death as a soldier in war.

After crossing the rocky mountains, we reach Turkey. A family expressed it like this: “We were stuck for two nights on a snowy mountain. When our small baby started crying the polices came and arrested us. They deported us all the way back to Afghanistan. So we had to pass again Pakistan’s border and then İran’s border.

The sea between Turkey and Greece is a black water full of deaths and corpses. People died because the priority in Europe is to control borders and not saving lives.

Do you think these parents are ready to put their children lives in danger?

No one, no one, no one… chooses this without having a bigger danger behind his/her back. These mothers and fathers are afraid in every moment. They decide to risk death just to give their kids the hope of peace.

We refugees walk on a path of fire, from which we try to escape. When we see another way, one without fire, we will chose it without thinking a second, without knowing if there will be other dangers. We have to choose the other way anyway, so that we won’t burn. This other way, the one without fire, is where Europe put barbed wire, where war ships stop us from reaching, where our dreams for peace get lost in the sea and the “lucky” ones end up in the hell of Moria.

Do you really think we arrived here easily?

Parwana

Letter to the world from Moria hotspot (No. 1)

Author: A migratory girl

Put yourself in our shoes! We are not safe in Moria. We didn’t escape from our homelands to stay hidden and trapped. We didn’t pass the borders and played with our lifes to live in fear and danger.

Put yourself in our shoes! Can you live in a place , that you can not walk alone even when you just want to go the toilette. Can you live in a place, where there are hundreds of unaccompanied minors that no one can stop attempting suicides. That no one stops them from drinking.

No one can go out after 9:00 pm because the thieves will steal anything you have and if you don’t give them what they want, they will hurt you. We should go to the police? We went alot and they just tell that we should find the thief by ourselves. They say: ‘We can not do anything for you.’ In a camp of 14.000 refugees you won’t see anyone to protect us anywhere even at midnight. Two days ago there was a big fight, but util it finished no one came for help. Many tents burned. When the people went to complain, no one cared and and even the police told us: ‘This is your own problem.’

In this situation the first thing that comes to my mind to tell you is, we didn’t come here to Europe for money, and not for becoming a European citizen. It was just to breathe a day in peace.

Instead, hundreds of minors here became addicted, but no one cares.

Five human beings burned, but no one cares.

Thousands of children didn’t undergo vaccination, but no one cares.

I am writing to you to share and I am hoping for change…”

Parwana

Letter by the last 9 refugees staying in Oraiokastro Camp

Dear Authorities,

We the last remaining nine residents of Oraikastro Refugee Camp are PROTESTING against the moving of us to yet another military camp. We understand you have to close the camp.

But we do not want to be moved to another camp. The camps Veria and Alexandria that you are suggesting is too far away. We have friends and family in Thessaloniki. Some of us have been split up from our siblings as we are not considered to be part of their family. We may not even be relocated to the same country as them. We may not get the opportunity to see them for many years. Please don’t rob us of this last opportunity to stay near our friends and family before relocation.

We stayed in Idomeni camp and now Oraikastro in very poor inhumane conditions. We don’t want to move to another camp and be unsettled again. No matter how good the other camps may be, camp conditions are not good for us. It takes time to become used to a new camp and every move has always led to new problems. None of these camps are suitable for human beings to live in.

Some of us have also had our second interviews and we were promised to be moved into an apartment or hotel after the second interview.

Today the families were moved to a hotel. We understand that families with children should be priority and we are happy they will be living in better conditions now. BUT WHAT ABOUT US??

We simply asked for our right to stay in a better condition also and we were refused. Unfortunately one of the ministry professionals who attended today was rude to us. We are sorry that some of us shouted and became angry. We are sorry that one of us pushed a member of staff over. We have suffered a lot in our countries that sometimes we can’t control our emotions. We are sorry if we disrespected or hurt anyone. WE ARE SORRY.

We fled war. Our family members and loved ones died. We are split up from our families. We lost homes, our education and our dignity. We are traumatised and although we may seem like strong young men some of us are vulnerable too. WHAT ABOUT US??

We have been told that if we don’t move then the Greek ministry will send police to evacuate us by force. We know what that means and we have seen it before. THEY WILL HURT US.

We the last nine remaining residents of Oraikastro Refugee Camp are appealing to UNHCR and Norwegian Refugee Council to please help us. We don’t want to fight and we don’t want them to force and hurt us either.
We promise to be calm and we promise to peacefully protest but we don’t want to move to another camp.

Norwegian Refugee Council and UNHCR please give us back our dignity and keep us safe from the harsh nature of the military police who maybe coming for us. Please protect us. Give us our right to at least a standard living condition. There is nine people left and we request three rooms for nine of us to share. That is all.

Abdo Alrajab, Raed Anbtawy, Mustafa Aldeider, Shas Alkasem, Basel Yatakan, Abdelilah Alhamoud, Loay Ammar, Mahamoud Bayer AND Belal Mustafa

Larissa: Letter from Afghan refugees in former Roca factory to the authorities and the UN

prosfyges-roka-larisaAbout 400 refugees from Syria and Afghanistan are currently hosted in the tent camp near the former Roca factory in Larissa half of which are children. Now refugees sent a letter demanding for better conditions.

15/3/2016

To: Representatives of United Nations, the Mayor of Larissa city and his assistants, the Head of Police of Larissa and the representative of volunteers people of Larissa

We – Afghans refugees – resided in Pireaus port of Athens city under Mr. Satery’s management. After a few days responsibles of the camp promised us that we would be transfered to a camp in some building in Larissa city which has sanitary facilities like bathrooms, showers and so on but unfortunately, they lied to us. That’s why refugees don’t believe responsibles and top brass of Greece goverment. Continue reading ‘Larissa: Letter from Afghan refugees in former Roca factory to the authorities and the UN’

Hunger strike against 18+ detention in Corinth detention centre

On June 9th, 2014 refugees detained in Corinth detention centre began a hunger strike to protest against indefinite detention. In February 2014, the Greek authorities had announced a policy of indefinite detention until repatriation, based on an opinion of the Legal Council of the Greek State. Only recently Athens court considered in an appeal-case of an Afghan refugee that the detention of more than 18 months is against national and European legislation and asked for it to be revoked.

Letter from the detainees:

Many undocumented refugees were arrested by the Greek authorities since a year and a half (August 2012). The massive controls and arrests were realised in a very racist and cruel way. People were brought in detention centres all around Greece. Without going into a lot of details about the bad situation that we, all these refugees, went through, our only fault was that we didn’t have a piece of paper.

When the detention centres were opened the Greek government published a law where the maximum detention period of a refugee was 6 months. Then they increased the detention period to a 1 year, then to 1 1/2 years and this is the maximum period that the Greek law allows today.

But then suddenly some weeks ago they even increased the detention duration to open end periods!!!!! This step was a racist decision. It is injustice. The aim of this is only to stop us refugees from coming to Greece, us whom we left our countries due to our suffering. Now we are forced to suffer in Greece.

With the systematic and open end detention the Greek government is massacring us. They are wasting our lives and killing our dreams and hopes inside the prisons. All of that while none of us has committed any crime.

Most of us are having severe health problems: both physical and
psychological. Specially those who stayed already more that 18 months are in a devastating state and desperately need support.

Today on 9.6.2014 we people detained in the detention centre of Corinth have started a hunger strike. We feel an immense pressure due to our unknown destinies. We protest against the illegal extension of the detention duration to more than 18 months! Continue reading ‘Hunger strike against 18+ detention in Corinth detention centre’

Minister urged to stop detention of migrants beyond 18 months

Nikos Dendias’ decision is a ‘clear violation’ of EU directives, organisations assisting refugees say
Two migrants have already been told that if they don’t agree to their ‘voluntary’ return by an 18-month deadline, the will remain in detention until they do
(comment by infomobile: any more than two migrants have already received this paper!!!)

Author: Damian Mac Con Uladh in ENET (in english)

The public order minister has been urged to “immediately withdraw” a decision he signed in February that empowers the authorities to prolong the detention of migrants indefinitely, beyond the 18-month limit set down in European Union directives, if they don’t agree to their “voluntary departure” from Greece.
Continue reading ‘Minister urged to stop detention of migrants beyond 18 months’

ECRE, GCR and ATIMA urge European Commission to call for a immediate withdrawal of the decision on more than 18 months detention

On 20 March 2014, Legal Opinion 44/2014 of the State Legal Council of 11 February 2014 was published, which concerns persons who are already in detention on the basis of a return order, and whose removal cannot be carried out because of their lack of cooperation. The Legal Opinion allows for those persons to be asked, shortly before the expiry of the maximum period of 18 months of detention, to depart voluntarily to the country of return. If the person fails to cooperate and there is a risk of absconding, the authorities can issue a new detention order without a specified time limit. Thus, the person will be required to stay in the detention centre until the moment he or she cooperates with his or her return.1 Although not public, a Ministerial Decision of 28 February 2014 seems to endorse the Legal Opinion as it is explicitly referred to in the first individual decisions applying such continued detention beyond 18 months (…)
Such practice, as well as the Ministerial decision, as far as it endorses the Legal Opinion is in clear violation of Article 15(6) of the EU Returns Directive as interpreted by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU – C-357/09, PPU Said Shamilovich Kadzoev (Huchbarov)).
The Court’s ruling is clear and allows no exceptions to the maximum duration of detention for the purpose of removal under any circumstances. Any contrary interpretation, opinion or ministerial decision is a direct infringement of EU law and the national law transposing it. (…)
ECRE, GCR and Aitima strongly urge the Commission to raise these concerns with Greece; to call for the immediate withdrawal of the Ministerial Decision insofar as it endorses the illegal practice of detention beyond the maximum period of 18 months as well as any individual decisions taken in violation of the EU Return Directive; and launch an infringement procedure should no immediate action be taken by Greece to stop such breaches of EU law.

Read the whole letter to Cecilia Malmström here (in English)

Letter by the Greens to Mr. Dendias and video showing Amigdaleza and minors detention centre

letter by the Greens to Citizen Protection Minister Dendias

Dear Minister Dendias,

We are writing to you as a follow up to our recent visit to Amygdaleza detention center in Attica, Greece, which took place November 10 and a recording of which can be found here. We hope with this letter to present you with a brief overview of our position and concerns relating to issues falling within your sphere of competence, and to commence a fruitful dialogue.
Continue reading ‘Letter by the Greens to Mr. Dendias and video showing Amigdaleza and minors detention centre’

Joint Letter to UN Special Rapporteur on Health

Human Rights of Immigrants and Sex Workers in Greece
MAY 9, 2012

To: Anand Grover
UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health
OHCHR – Palais Wilson
United Nations Office at Geneva
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland

Dear Mr. Grover:

We are writing to call your attention to two issues of urgent and serious concern in Greece: (1) the administrative detention and compulsory medical testing of immigrants and asylum seekers based on health status and (2) the arrest, criminal prosecution and compulsory HIV testing of sex workers.
Continue reading ‘Joint Letter to UN Special Rapporteur on Health’

Terror and Fear in the Open Sea near Zakynthos – Letter by the Afghan Commission of Political Refugees

Athens, 28th of September 2011

Terror and Fear in the Open Sea

In the open sea close to Zakynthos a group of 65 Afghan and Iraqi-Kurdish refugees experienced days of terror and fear when they were trying to reach the Italian shore. They were in serious danger of death by drowning and starvation when their boat went into distress. Among them were many children and families. One of them lost his life, while trying to save himself by swimming. Two others took their last breaths in the hospital, following their rescue after 11 days on the open sea.

refugees in an overcrowded boat trying to find a safe haven


The tragic story of refugees and migrants who are forced to leave behind their home due to war, poverty and persecution takes no end. Among the refugees in the boat many had already lost relatives on the sea and land borders on their way from Afghanistan and Iraq through other countries and until here. Their tragic stories continue in Greece, a country, which in the name of crisis and a repressive migration policy of Fortress Europe denies providing refugees with their basic rights, with a functioning reception infrastructure and integrating them into social and economical life. This gives the extreme-right a leeway to target them both ideologically and in practice on the streets and to use them as scapegoats of a policy of poverty and misery. It leads the refugees and migrants to a further quest for a safe life in another country – whatever it may cost.

This incident is not rare but it is a tough reality with many victims. Many boats in distress, many deaths at the borders – and the European governments are well aware of it.
Following this tragedy some of the survivors returned to Athens, among them a single father with his two small kids (4-6 years old) in his arms, searching for some corner on the squares and streets of Athens. In their hands the deportation order, which the police authorities gave them without asking where they will go or what they will eat. Nobody asked them if they need protection or if they want to claim asylum.

Respectfully,

The Commission of Afghan Political Refugees