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According to The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agency (UNHCR) there are almost 71 million forcibly displaced people worldwide. Of that number around 26 million are refugees, and 3.5 million are asylum seekers. (UNHCR 2019) This is global issue that effects states worldwide and therefore requires a multilateral response of states taking responsibility and upholding their international obligations. The World Map created aims to provide a global overview of the events that have taken place between March and May 2020 in relation to Refugees and Asylum Seekers.

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The chronologically ordered timeline is a simple and straightforward method of presenting information and detailed analysis of events that have happened globally between March and May 2020 in relation to refugees and asylum seekers.

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Formatted using Harvard style referencing

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The presence of a global pandemic inevitably has a ripple effect on the consumption and reporting of news and current events. In relation to refugees and asylum seekers, information is circulating detailing the impact of coronavirus and other events, but it is difficult to ascertain the true repercussions as border closures, travel restrictions and lock down measures mean access to camps and remote areas is limited. Therefore it is important to recognise that there may be additional issues, situations and real life events that have not yet been reported during the pandemic.

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Refugee call centre fills gap amid Lebanon’s coronavirus shutdown

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Refugee call centre fills gap amid Lebanon’s coronavirus shutdown

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These call lines run by the United Nations are put in place to provide assistance to refugees at such a time of need. The pandemic of Covid-19 has caused a destruction for those in third world countries struggling with the resources required to live. These hotlines were later build to combat the traumatic situations faced by these individuals on a daily basis and to provide the help needed.

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In a large, open-plan office on the outskirts of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, telephone operators wearing headsets over blue surgical face masks sit separated from their colleagues by several empty cubicles. A country-wide lockdown is in place to slow the COVID-19 outbreak, but workers here are still fielding hundreds of calls each day.

These key workers are keeping the lines open at the region's largest and busiest call centre for refugees. Run jointly by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the World Food Programme, it provides increasingly vital assistance now that a number of face-to-face humanitarian activities must be carried out remotely to combat the virus.

"We received the first COVID-19-related call on 2 March, but since then ... the number is increasing every day," said Jerome Seregni, a UNHCR Communication with Communities Officer who oversees the centre. UNHCR has strengthened capacity at the call centre to ensure it can respond to increased demand from refugees at a time of growing anxiety.

"The call centre has a critical role now, because regular outreach activities have been limited by the restrictions on movement to fight the virus, but people still have access to phones and social media," he added.

Established in 2015, the centre receives almost a million enquiries per year from refugees about protection services and assistance, with around 60 per cent of the country's refugees having used the service.

"The call centre has a critical role now."

With some 910,000 registered Syrian refugees, plus more than 200,000 Palestinians, it hosts more refugees per capita than any other country. Even before the pandemic emerged, a worsening economic crisis was already putting more pressure on vulnerable Lebanese and refugee communities.

Since mid-March, all of the country's inhabitants - including refugees - have had to strictly limit their movement to limit the risk of infection. As a result, UNHCR has had to temporarily suspend activities at its network of reception and community centres throughout the country due to the gatherings they prompted and the necessity to respect physical distancing as a preventive measure.

Alternative mechanisms have been introduced to maintain humanitarian operations, including strengthening remote assistance mechanisms such as the call centre.

Priority is being given to the COVID-19 response, with measures including distributions of soap and other sanitation materials to refugees, construction of isolation areas in or near informal refugee settlements, and cooperation with partners and the authorities to expand the capacity of Lebanon's health system for those requiring hospitalization or intensive care.

While there have so far been no confirmed cases of the virus among refugees in Lebanon, Seregni says the centre is fielding an increasing number of calls from refugees seeking advice about prevention or help dealing with the financial impact of the restrictions on movement.

"Most of the calls are about health, food, cash, sanitizers, soap and other assistance that has been affected by the crisis, especially for refugees who cannot travel around and do the work they used to do before the restrictions," he explained.

Seregni recounted several recent calls to the centre from refugees unable to work because of the crisis who said they could no longer afford to buy enough food to feed their families.

With the current restrictions on movement compounding the country's economic crisis, the dire situation faced by many refugees was confirmed by Jamal Zhaim, one of around 20 Lebanese telephone operators still working at the centre, with special authorization, during the crisis.

"Refugees say they are unable to provide a living for their families because of the restrictions," he said. "This is a very serious message."

"I feel like I am helping people."

In response, Zhaim offers callers details of the types of assistance available, directs them to more expert information and advice, and shares official guidance on how to protect themselves from infection. He also refers cases that require specialized assistance such as protection and mental health support for follow-up by UNHCR and its partners.

Asked whether he had any reservations about continuing to go to work while many in the country were staying at home for their own protection, Zhaim said he had confidence in the new health protocols put in place and was glad to be able to play a role in the COVID-19 response.

"I still go to the centre because it has taken measures to protect us from the virus, such as social distancing, masks, gloves and hygiene kits. I come alone and in my own car," he said.

"I feel like I am helping people to reach the services they need and take the necessary measures to protect themselves from the virus, and also protect people around them and the community," Zhaim added.

"This is our role, and I feel I have a duty to deliver the refugees' queries in this time to those who can help."

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United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

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Refugee call centre fills gap amid Lebanon's coronavirus shutdown

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These key workers are keeping the lines open at the region's largest and busiest call centre for refugees. Run jointly by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the World Food Programme, it provides increasingly vital assistance now that a number of face-to-face humanitarian activities must be carried out remotely to combat the virus.

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Purple tabs:
Articles in relation to Covid-19 and its effects on asylum seekers and refugees.

Blue tabs:
Articles related to the UNHCR reports .

Orange tabs:
Visual presentations of information and ideas related to asylum seekers and refugees.

Grey tabs:
General articles providing asylum seeker and refugee updates.

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COVID-19: Issues for asylum seekers and refugees in Australia

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COVID-19: Issues for asylum seekers and refugees in Australia

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This article highlights the specific issues facing asylum seekers and refugees in the age of COVID-19, and the dramatic changes in society that are specifically targeting them. This article mentions Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), and the factors that contribute to these issues. This article moreover highlights how SHEV holders cannot sponsor members of their family unit, such as a spouse or dependent child, to join them in Australia. The hope of getting a new type of visa through the SHEV escape clause is one of the few hopes faced by these refugees, and with COVID-19, the ability to sponsor any close family looks further away and even less likely. Moreover, certain issues that join this, are only going to be exacerbated by COVID-19.

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Moved by refugee crisis, Tajinder starts distributing food and water to migrants walking back home

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Moved by refugee crisis, Tajinder starts distributing food and water to migrants walking back home

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Deeply moved by the plight of migrant workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Kings XI Punjab all-rounder Tajinder Singh Dhillon has started distributing food and water to over 10000 refugees walking back to their villages.

The coronavirus-forced lockdown has triggered a migrant refugee crisis in the country with lakhs of people trying to walk back home battling extreme heat and hunger.

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Deeply moved by the plight of migrant workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Kings XI Punjab all-rounder Tajinder Singh Dhillon has started distributing food and water to over 10000 refugees walking back to their villages.

The coronavirus-forced lockdown has triggered a migrant refugee crisis in the country with lakhs of people trying to walk back home battling extreme heat and hunger.

The gravity of the situation hit Tajinder hard when he happened to tune in to a news channel one evening a week ago.

The 27-year-old from Rajasthan soon sprang into action and arranged for food and water for the poor migrants who were taking the highway near his house.

"The main highway towards Kanpur is about 100 metres from my house, and the people on the news spoke about that route being used by migrant workers who are moving out of Delhi," Tajinder was quote as saying by KXIP website.

"I told my family members that all of us should collectively help these migrant workers, many of whom were walking without chappals (slippers). I then called my friends who live in the vicinity and we planned out on how to distribute food to the migrants."

Tajinder also reached out to others, who joined the noble cause, providing potatoes and flour to make vegetable and chapattis for the migrants.

"A gentleman in our locality has a vegetable business so I requested him to give me potatoes in bulk for making the sabzi (vegetable)," Tajinder said.

"We also got 50 kilos of wheat flour which we distributed equally to a lot of households in my colony so that they can make the bread. By the end, we had about 1400 bread ready for distribution."

While the policemen helped organise the crowd, Tajinder and his friends distributed the food to the migrants.
"The first day we fed around 1000 migrants, the next couple of days that number rose to 5000, which included so many young children. Alongside feeding them 'aloo-puri', we also gave them milk and 'meetha paani' (sherbet)," he said.

"We have been distributing food for five straight days now. There were fewer people on the road today, so we gave the food to the buses that were ferrying the migrants back to their home towns."

The health crisis has so far claimed over 3000 lives and infected more than 1 lakh people in the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Moved by refugee crisis, Tajinder starts distributing food and water to migrants walking back home

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Read more about Moved by refugee crisis, Tajinder starts distributing food and water to migrants walking back home on Business Standard.

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The following article published on the 2nd of May details the pleas made by Catholic leaders around the country to the federal government, urging the P.M to release asylum seekers from detention due to coronavirus fears.

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Catholic leaders urged PM to provide safety net

Catholic leaders from across the country have called on the Federal Government to provide urgent support to temporary visa holders and the release of asylum seekers from detention, saying they are at unacceptable risk during the coronavirus pandemic.

On 28 April they made public the concerns they raised in a private letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and other relevant decision-makers on 7 April as the Government's response was "not substantial".

The 44 signatories included four bishops, leaders of religious institutes, health care providers, charities and refugee advocates.

They included Catholic Religious Australia and more than a dozen heads of religious orders, Bishops Vincent Long OFM Conv, Terry Brady, Greg O'Kelly and Charles Gauci, the Jesuit Refugee Service, and the chief executive officers of Catholic Health Australia, St Vincent's Health and Cabrini Health, Caritas Australia and the St Vincent de Paul Society.

The letter thanks the Morrison Government for "showing leadership and agency in the face of this global pandemic". However, two groups of people remain on the margins of our community and vulnerable to both the predations of the COVID-19 virus and the despair that comes with such vulnerability," it read.

"Two groups of people remain...vulnerable to the predations of the virus"

The move comes amid rising concern about the more than 1.5 million temporary visa holders in the Australian community who cannot return home but have no access financial safety nets, Medicare or a variety of support services. The Australian Society for Infectious Disease and the Australian College of Infection Prevention are also urging the Government to release asylum seekers from detention.

Charities, hampered by dwindling numbers of volunteers due to self-isolation requirements, have seen "a surge in homelessness and destitution...a concomitant growth in people who find they cannot meet social distancing and social isolation requirements, and an increase of already sick individuals who without Medicare who are unable to seek timely health care," the letter read.

In addition, people currently being held in detention in hotels and detention centres around the country are unable to practice social distancing and are vulnerable to contracting the virus.

Bishop Long, chairman of the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, commended the Tasmanian Government for giving $3 million to support migrant workers in their state. "This is not just welcome financial support, it is an act of compassion and solidarity that recognises the vulnerability of these workers and the need to protect all people affected by COVID 19 for public health reasons," Bishop Long said.

Justice and Peace promoter for the Archdiocese of Sydney Fr Peter Smith said that temporary visa holders are members of Australian communities and congregations who have been "abandoned to their fate".

"We need to look to Singapore to see what can happen when a wealthy, sophisticated nation cares only for their own citizens and tries to ignore all those in their country," he said.

"This virus doesn't recognise passport status, it devastates everyone equally."

Director of Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Australia, Carolina Gottardo, said it had delivered emergency food packages to more than 500 refugees, people seeking asylum and vulnerable migrants in the previous fortnight.

"The demand for JRS's services including emergency relief has also increased twofold. The situation is desperate," she said.
Related articles:
Post-pandemic resolutions: Changing normal for the better
Students walk a mile in refugees' shoes
Jesuits warn on refugee cuts

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Catholic leaders urged PM to provide safety net Catholic leaders from across the country have called on the Federal Government to provide urgent support to temporary visa holders and the release of asylum seekers from detention, saying they are at unacceptable risk during the coronavirus pandemic.

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Impact of COVID-19 on refugees and asylum seekers 

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Impact of COVID-19 on refugees and asylum seekers 

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Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic is causing unprecedented levels of disruption and suffering, while disproportionately harming the most vulnerable in society. Of those most adversely affected. refugees and asylum seekers remain uniquely at risk. The following article published on the April 21st highlights the idea that refugees and asylum seekers currently in Nauru and Papua New Guinea are particularly vulnerable because of their living arrangements, the limits on their ability to take proactive preventive measures to protect their own health, their status as non-citizens, and their limited access to medical care.

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A chronically ill refugee held in immigration detention in Australia - and at serious risk of contracting Covid-19 - has launched a case in the high court seeking his release into the community to protect him from infection.

His challenge, lodged in Melbourne late Tuesday by the Human Rights Law Centre, is being seen as a test case for other women and men living in close confines in immigration detention and at risk of a Covid-19 outbreak. Guardian Australia understands his case is likely to be "the first of many".

Infectious diseases experts, peak medical bodies, and the Australian Human Rights Commissioner have separately called for the numbers of people held in detention to be urgently reduced, with some warning detention centres risk spreading Covid-19 like cruise ships, and pose a risk to the broader community.

The government's own Department of Health identifies people held in detention as among those " most at risk " of contracting Covid-19, and those with chronic illnesses at highest risk of serious illness if they are infected.

The refugee who has launched the high court action arrived in Australia seeking asylum in 2013, and was sent to Manus Island. His well-founded fear of persecution was recognised and he is legally owed protection.

He was brought from Papua New Guinea to Australia for medical treatment in early 2019, and has been detained ever since.

The man, who is middle-aged, has multiple and complex medical conditions - including diabetes, asthma and high blood pressure - that doctors argue put him at greater risk of serious illness or death if he is infected by the coronavirus.

He is challenging his detention on the grounds that the Australian government is breaching its duty of care to him by failing to establish conditions that allow him to comply with public health guidelines to practice social distancing and protect himself from Covid-19.

Nearly 1,400 women and men are currently held in immigration detention centres in Australia, or "alternative places of detention", usually hotels commandeered by the Department of Home Affairs.

People in detention eat in crowded food halls, share bathrooms and communal spaces and are sleeping in rooms with up to six people.

They are also exposed to a wider circle of people by guards and other staff who come in and out of the centres daily.

Protests are being held daily at places of detention.

The case has been lodged in the high court because the man's detention falls under the Migration Act, but the court may choose to have the case transferred to the federal court for adjudication.

Guardian Australia understands there are several further legal challenges being prepared on similar grounds. The man's case may act as a test for others currently held in detention.

David Burke, the legal director at the Human Rights Law Centre, said home affairs minister Peter Dutton had a legal duty to protect the people in the government's care in immigration detention.

"Instead, he is choosing to hold men and women in crammed detention centres that make it impossible to practice physical distancing."

Burke said medical experts had been consistent that people held in detention, especially those with underlying health issues, were at severe risk from Covid-19.

"We are asking minister Dutton to listen to the medical experts - just like the government is asking all of us to do - in response to this public health crisis. He can avoid placing lives at risk by simply releasing people into safe housing where they can socially isolate."

Lawyers will argue that putting detainees into solitary confinement is an inappropriate solution and inhumane. Many of those in detention have histories of torture and trauma and solitary confinement would be damaging to their mental health.

Many held in immigration detention have families living in the Australian community. Supporters, friends and advocates have offered to house others.

Other countries, including the UK, Belgium, and Spain, have significantly reduced the number of people held in immigration detention out of concerns over potential Covid-19 outbreaks.

Fears have previously been raised about a Covid-19 outbreak in detention after a guard at a Brisbane hotel being used to hold detainees tested positive for the illness.

A spokesman for the Department of Home Affairs said there were no confirmed cases of Covid-19 within the detained populations of the broader detention network. He said Australian Border Force was focused on the health and safety of detainees and staff.

"If clinically indicated, detainees will be isolated and tested in line with advice from the Department of Health and the broader commonwealth response," he said.

"A range of measures have been introduced to keep detainees and staff informed of preventive measures and plans have been established to manage any suspected cases of Covid-19."

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Refugee brings court case over threat of Covid-19 in Australian detention

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A chronically ill refugee held in immigration detention in Australia - and at serious risk of contracting Covid-19 - has launched a case in the high court seeking his release into the community to protect him from infection.

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Australian Refugees and Coronavirus Fears

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Australian Refugees and Coronavirus Fears

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This article was published on the 24th of April and details the battle between Australian Human Rights Lawyers and the Federal Government. The case highlights the duty of care that the Federal Government has towards the multitude of refugees situated in detention centres, and how the duty of care is currently not being met. Social distancing is allegedly near impossible, and the transmission of the disease could be fatal due to the proximity of all of the refugees. There are additional concerns for refugees that are held in offshore detention centres, which are still managed by Australian jurisdiction, such as Nauru and Papa New Guinea, that have seen sudden spikes in Coronavirus cases.

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Pressure is growing to release people from immigration detention, with lawyers from Australia's Human Rights Law Centre mounting a court case on behalf of a refugee seeking protection from COVID-19. They argue the federal government has a duty of care to refugees, which cannot be met in immigration detention due to the crowded conditions there.

This test case illustrates the urgency of the need to release people from detention.

The forgotten people

The social distancing measures adopted across Australia appear to be halting the spread of the coronavirus in the general community. But the Australian government continues to fail to provide proper protections for many groups who are most at risk. They include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in remote communities, people in prisons and youth detention centres, and those who are forced to remain in sites of immigration detention.

This leaves them, and the rest of us, at serious risk of infection.

Read more: We need to consider granting bail to unsentenced prisoners to stop the spread of coronavirus

The British Home Office has begun releasing people from immigration detention to stem a potential escalation of their public health crisis. Some 400 people have been released to date.

In the US, rates of infection in immigration and prison sites have dramatically increased in recent weeks. One prison in Ohio reported 73% of inmates have tested positive to coronavirus.

To stall the spread of infection, several US courts have ordered the release from immigration prisons of people who are at particular risk of COVID-19 infection. One judge found US immigration officials had:

likely exhibited callous indifference to the safety and well-being of the [detained immigrants at risk]. The evidence suggests system-wide inaction that goes beyond a mere 'difference of medical opinion or negligence'.

The Australian government can no longer ignore calls throughout Australia to take similar action to protect people in detention and the broader community. In February this year, the Commonwealth Ombudsman's report on monitoring places of detention had already flagged the need for stronger protections for people who have been deprived of their liberty.

The situation in Singapore shows what can happen when measures are not taken to protect everyone. The pandemic escalated there through its rapid spread in migrant worker dormitories. They had been overlooked in Singapore's "gold standard" response to COVID-19.

Public health experts around the world, including the World Health Organisation, have established that confined sites like detention centres provide ideal conditions for infections to spread rapidly.

The impossibility of social distancing in detention

About 1,400 people are in immigration detention in Australia. This includes Alternative Places of Detention (APODs), where many refugees have been detained for prolonged periods, including in confined hotel settings.

People held in the crowded detention centres and APODs in Australia have highlighted the impossibility of social distancing. They are using daily protests and social media to call for their urgent release into safe accommodation.

There is also widespread concern in the Australian community about the lack of protection being provided to people in immigration detention. Over 1,000 academics, doctors and health professionals signed an open letter, initiated by Academics for Refugees, Doctors for Refugees and Librarians for Refugees, calling for the release of people from onshore and offshore immigration detention.

What are the risks?

Transmission of COVID-19 occurs mainly through respiratory droplets, as well as through contact with skin and other surfaces. It is highly contagious and spreads quickly in closed spaces.

Reports received from inside immigration detention sites indicate staff have adopted limited or no protective measures. Those detained have limited or no access to hand sanitiser.

There are serious risks due to overcrowding and people are often transferred from one immigration detention centre to another. These factors magnify the risks and are in conflict with government guidelines to control the virus.

These concerns also apply to APODs such as hotels. Here refugees are detained in small, confined spaces with limited or no ventilation. These conditions are even more likely to promote the spread of viruses and disease.

COVID-19 infection is a particular threat for those whose health is already compromised or who have underlying medical conditions, as they are at higher risk of developing serious complications. This includes people detained in Australia who have compromised immune systems as a result of inadequate access to medical care over a number of years.

There are also concerns for the health of those held in offshore detention. Refugees and asylum seekers currently in Nauru and Papua New Guinea are particularly vulnerable because of their living arrangements, the limits on their ability to take proactive preventive measures to protect their own health, their status as non-citizens, and their limited access to medical care.

Recent reports indicate a spike in infections in Papua New Guinea. Should an outbreak occur that is beyond the capacity of the country to respond, the impact for refugees living there would be disastrous.

Read more: Explainer: how will the emergency release of NSW prisoners due to coronavirus work?

As most detainees have varying contact with people outside detention, the risk extends to the broader community. Failure to prevent and control the spread of COVID-19 among detainees will not only expose these groups to unacceptable risk, it will inevitably have a detrimental impact on the community at large.

What action is urgently required from the government?

Immediate government action is required to prevent and control the spread of COVID-19 among people forced to remain in immigration detention.

These measures must include:

immediately using alternatives to detention to provide those who are in immigration detention with appropriate accommodation in the community

ensuring those who remain in detention are informed in a language they understand about the risks of COVID-19, the availability of testing and measures they can take to prevent the spread of infection

enforcing best-practice sanitation measures and social distancing in immigration detention to maintain the health and safety of detainees and staff

applying enhanced testing procedures in places of immigration detention and ensuring all staff are appropriately screened - similar procedures should apply for Nauru and PNG

ensuring all people on bridging visas have access to appropriate medical care that matches Australian community standards

ensuring asylum seekers and refugees with a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 in Nauru and PNG are assessed and treated in accordance with Australian standards. If necessary, they should be transported to Australia for medical care.

They need the government's protection as much as the rest of us.
We thank Mary Anne Kenny, Madeline Gleeson and Angeline Ferdinand for their advice.

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Refugees need protection from coronavirus too, and must be released

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Pressure is growing to release people from immigration detention, with lawyers from Australia's Human Rights Law Centre mounting a court case on behalf of a refugee seeking protection from COVID-19. They argue the federal government has a duty of care to refugees, which cannot be met in immigration detention due to the crowded conditions there.

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Issues for Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Australia 

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Issues for Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Australia 

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This article was published on the 17th of April in response to Australia's conduct and actions towards asylum seekers and refugees during COVID-19. It highlights the changes in treatment of asylum seekers and refugee cases, particularly how their protection cases are being conducted unjustly. This article also recognises the increased risk that they are facing in terms of detention centres due to social distancing restriction. As a result of COVID-19 the chances of having their bridging visas being cancelled, and facing immigration detention are much higher. The treatment of asylum seekers and refugees prior to COVID-19 was already an area of concern, however, now its impact is far worse with lasting consequences for the future beyond this pandemic.

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Impact of Coronavirus on Refugees and Asylum Seekers

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Impact of Coronavirus on Refugees and Asylum Seekers

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This article published on March 16 2020 by the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network, highlights the importance of including and acknowledging the immense threat the coronavirus pandemic will have on refugees and asylum seekers alike. The article urges States to look beyond the legal status of refugees and asylum seekers, and instead to see them as human beings susceptible to the deadly virus. In a post-covid world what will the implications for those seeking asylum be? Will states be more protective of their state sovereignty due to the health risks and implications of opening their borders? Or will states be more understanding and empathetic towards people fleeing war and persecution now that they themselves have experienced a different type of fear within their borders? From an international relations perspective, it would certainly be beneficial if the latter occurred.

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For the full PDF version of the statement please click here.

The Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) is calling upon local, national, and international COVID-19 response actors to ensure refugees and other migrants are substantively considered in their preparedness and response plans as a matter of urgency.

Regardless of their legal status, refugees and other migrants are human. They are susceptible to increased vulnerabilities relating to access to healthcare, testing, and prevention measures, and are often confined to restricted spaces without adequate access to life-saving supports. COVID-19 responses must reinforce essential efforts by humanitarian organisations and refugees themselves to prepare refugee camps, reception centres, detention centres, and settlements for the arrival of COVID-19, including ensuring real access to national medical infrastructure.

World Health Organisation instructions for limiting the spread of COVID-19 include avoiding contact with people who are infected, regularly washing hands with soap, stocking up on essential items, and visiting a medical professional at the onset of any symptoms. Cramped conditions, lack of suitable sanitation infrastructure, limited clean water, and already overburdened health facilities put millions of refugees and other migrants at risk of contracting the virus and frustrating global efforts to slow its expansion and contain its effects.

Social distancing is difficult in Kutupalong Camp in Bangladesh, for example, where over 600,000 people live in an area of just 13 square kilometres, with space as low as 8 square meters per person in some areas. Refugees and other migrants held in immigration detention centres often are confined to cramped cells with dozens of others, with limited or no access to healthcare, sanitary facilities, or fresh air.

Immigration authorities must grant temporary leave rights to detained or otherwise restricted populations in order to access healthcare if sufficient services are not already provided. Authorities must also act to suspend the 'criminalisation' of refugee and migrant presence in urban settings, as fear of detention and deportation will discourage these populations from seeking necessary help, compounding challenges posed by their limited access to healthcare, insecure work and housing, and little disposable income, and increasing general risk. Refugees and migrants without national health insurance or documented status must not be excluded from preventative measures, including mask distribution schemes. Such action exposes them to risk and undermines efforts to control the spread of the virus. Similarly, these populations must be guaranteed non-penalisation for attending health services without proper documentation. The Korean government, for example, is bearing the full cost of treatment of patients, regardless of their nationality and legal status, has exempted public officials from their obligation to report violations of immigration laws, and is trying to ensure that affected communities are aware. The Korean government, which has received much praise in their handling of COVID-19, has recognised that legal status must not become yet another obstacle to battling this virus.

Refugees are the primary actors when it comes to their own health and maintenance. COVID-19 response efforts must recognise the vital role of including them alongside hosting communities in planning and implementing support strategies. APRRN applauds the efforts seen to date that provide accurate information to refugee communities in languages they understand, as well as to press the international community to take seriously the risks posed by COVID-19 to these communities. In this regard, we applaud Bangladeshi efforts to develop a multi-sector response plan to manage risks, including the provision of specialised training to hundreds of health workers and establishing isolation chambers.

However, COVID-19 does not recognise borders, and Bangladesh must not be left to act alone. Nationalist, isolationist approaches, including those that shut borders and vilify migrant populations, are bound towards failure, with potentially catastrophic consequences affecting our most vulnerable populations. Similarly, we must not give up hard fought fundamental human rights enshrined in international law, such as the right to seek asylum from persecution and the right to healthcare, in the name of 'preventative action', by closing borders and restricting the distribution of care.

More than ever, now is the time for the international community to meaningfully support refugees' preparedness for infectious diseases and not to vilify, scapegoat, or otherwise augment their exposure to risk. The closing of borders should not prevent those fleeing persecution from seeking asylum; legal status must not be a barometer for life-saving care; and fear of the virus must not feed nationalist political agendas augmenting xenophobia.

While APRRN statements are prepared in consultation with APRRN members they do not necessarily reflect the views of all APRRN members.

-END-
The Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) is a network of 400+ civil society organisations and individuals from 28 countries committed to advancing the rights of refugees in the Asia Pacific region. APRRN aims to advance the rights of refugees and other people in need of protection through joint advocacy, capacity strengthening, resource sharing and outreach.
Media Contact:
Janeen Sawatzky, Programme Coordinator, APRRN
Tel: +66 (0) 98 252 5102 Email: janeen@aprrn.info Fax: +66 2 234 2679
Themba Lewis, Secretary General, APRRN
Tel: +66 (0) 99 481 1595 Email: themba@aprrn.info Fax: +66 2 234 2679

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Urgent Statement: Refugees Must Be Included in COVID-19 Response, Not Vilified or Ignored

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For the full PDF version of the statement please click here . The Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) is calling upon local, national, and international COVID-19 response actors to ensure refugees and other migrants are substantively considered in their preparedness and response plans as a matter of urgency.

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Protesters demanding release of asylum seekers, due to the conditions of COVID-19

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Protesters demanding release of asylum seekers, due to the conditions of COVID-19

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This article reports a group of protesters climbed to the roof of a Melbourne hotel on May 12th, and others barricaded themselves inside, to demand the release of Medieval asylum seekers, as they deem that “detenion is ‘unsafe’ during the coronavirus pandemic for the 65 asylum seekers from Manus Island and Nauru.

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A group of protesters climbed to the roof of a Melbourne hotel and others barricaded themselves inside to demand the release of asylum seekers held in the property on Tuesday.

In a live video posted on Facebook, about six protesters are seen climbing to the roof of the Mantra Hotel in Preston, in Melbourne's northern suburbs.

It is believed protesters occupied the hotel about 7.30am on Tuesday, holding banners and speaking on a megaphone, demanding the release of the more than 65 asylum seekers held at the site.

Victoria police have officers at the scene.
Behrouz Boochani: Jacinda Ardern lashes 'offensive' claim refugee won political favours
In a statement posted on Facebook on Tuesday morning, the Whistleblowers, Activists and Communities Alliance (Waca) said the protest ended on Tuesday afternoon after demonstrators were escorted from the hotel by police.

The protesters said they barricaded themselves inside "in an act of solidarity with the people transferred under Medevac legislation from Manus Island and Nauru who are detained on the third floor of the hotel".

WACA (@akaWACA)
The police have removed all 8 refugee supporters occupying the roof and hotel rooms. Please call the below numbers and demand the release of all refugees and asylum seekers being held in #Mantra and other detention centres especially during #COVID19Aus #GameOver #EndDetention pic.twitter.com/yPpY4INFKb

WACA (@akaWACA)
Photo of refugee supporters on the roof of #Mantra hotel calling for the release of asylum seekers and refugees being held in Mantra and all onshore and offshore detention. This is a human rights and a public health issue #GameOver #Justice4Refugees #COVID19AUS #auspol #Manus pic.twitter.com/vvbj89K9MN

The laws, which saw close to 180 people brought to Australia, were repealed in December.

"Why are such vulnerable people being held under unsafe conditions during the Covid-19 crisis?" Waca said.

Images posted on social media show the protesters on the roof of the hotel and inside what appears to be a hotel room holding signs such as "End Detention" and "Let them Out".

The protesters who had barricaded themselves inside the hotel reportedly paid for a night's accommodation, according to the Herald Sun.

The Guardian reported in December that the men are being detained on whole floors of the hotel, under guard, and were unable to interact with other hotel patrons.

Farhad Bandesh, who said he was transferred from the Mantra to the Melbourne Immigration and Transit Accomodation centre, said the men were transferred to Australia for medical treatment.

"We are locked up at hotels and detention centres," he said in a video on Facebook posted by the protesters.

"This is not fair to treat those people who are sick, mentally and physically ... we need to release [them] from these cages."

The protest is the latest demonstration against the detention of asylum seekers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Activists have been fined for breaching lockout laws in previous protests, including a recent car convoy in Melbourne which saw police fine 30 protesters about $50,000.

On Monday, protesters held a picnic outside the Kangaroo Point Central Hotel and Apartments in Brisbane where 120 asylum seekers are being held following an easing of Covid-19 restrictions that allowed people to gather outside in small groups.

Six protesters were reportedly fined $1,334 each and others were detained, the Refugee Solidarity Meanjin group said.

* Australian Associated Press contributed to this report
Topics

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Protesters demanding release of Medevac asylum seekers barricade themselves inside Melbourne hotel

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A group of protesters climbed to the roof of a Melbourne hotel and others barricaded themselves inside to demand the release of asylum seekers held in the property on Tuesday. In a live video posted on Facebook, about six protesters are seen climbing to the roof of the Mantra Hotel in Preston, in Melbourne's northern suburbs.

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Monsoon season and COVID-19 – Rohingya refugees face double threat of disaster and disease

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Monsoon season and COVID-19 – Rohingya refugees face double threat of disaster and disease

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This article discusses how COVID-19 is threatening to Rohingya refugees, as they face threat of disease. This article further discusses the spreading of the virus across Europe. Oxfam Ireland has expressed serious concern for the welfare of the women, children and men living in overcrowded camps. Oxfam urges for public donations.

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Monsoon season and COVID-19 - Rohingya refugees face double threat of disaster and disease

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Oxfam is providing vital aid, including clean water and latrines, to hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees on both sides of the border. It is also working to improve camp infrastructure by installing flood-proof wells, better toilets and improved roads and has contingency plans in place to restore water supplies and distribute essential aid if needed once the monsoons strike.

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The number of refugees have reached an all-time high

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The number of refugees have reached an all-time high

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UNHCR regularly publishes statistics on forcibly displaced populations to provide information to governments and other organisations that could facilitate long-term solutions for refugees and enhance global advocacy efforts. This article highlights that the global migrant crisis pushed the number of refugees and displaced people to an all-time high, with over two-thirds of those refugees coming from just five countries: Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia.

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un refugee report finds record number of displaced people  - cnn

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One in every 108 people has been displaced, says UN Refugee Agency

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More than 70 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to violence or persecution, the United Nations has said, as the global migrant crisis pushed the number of refugees and displaced people to an all-time high.

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UNHCR and humanitarian agencies strengthen health response in Kenya refugee camps

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UNHCR and humanitarian agencies strengthen health response in Kenya refugee camps

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This article updates the current conditions and solutions facing the health crisis in Kenya Refugee camps. The UNHCR, UN Refugee Agency, humanitarian agencies and the Government of Kenya are working on fixing the current health crisis due to COVID-19, after two individuals were tested positive in the Dadaab refugee camps. Over 217,000 refugees and 320,000 host communities live in the camp. Positive progress has been made, and calls upon communities to support the vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers in Kenya.

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Nairobi/Geneva - UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, humanitarian agencies and the Government of Kenya are strengthening their COVID-19 response, after it was confirmed by the Government that two individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in the Dadaab refugee camps.

In line with the Government of Kenya's directives, the two individuals were placed in quarantine and then moved to isolation centres after positive results were received. The Ministry of Health's Disease Surveillance and Response team has initiated contact tracing.

The crowded conditions in the Dadaab refugee camps, where health services are already under pressure, raise serious concerns about the vulnerability of over 217,000 refugees and 320,000 host communities living in the camp and its surrounding areas.

UNHCR, partners and other UN sister agencies have been supporting the Government-led countrywide response plan to mitigate risks and prevent further spread of the virus in the refugee camps.

In Dadaab, health facilities have been enhanced, with the construction of isolation and quarantine centres providing beds for an additional 955 people. An additional 125 hand-washing stations have been installed at food distribution sites, schools and markets.

Health centres have been provided with 68 personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline staff, 450 pairs of gloves, 45,000 surgical masks and four oxygen concentrators. Refugee-led groups have produced more than 150,000 cloth masks which will be ready for distribution in the coming days. All health workers have been trained on COVID-19 prevention and response. There are currently 18 medical doctors, 150 nurses, 52 clinicians, 11 lab technicians and 336 community health volunteers working in the Dadaab refugee camps.

Hygiene awareness campaigns on COVID19 prevention have reached more than 200,000 refugees, including through local radio, posters, leaflets, WhatsApp messages, social media and dedicated websites in Somali, Oromo, Dinka, Swahili, Nuer, French and English.

UNHCR, World Food Programme (WFP) and partners have provided double rations of food and hygiene products such as soap and jerrycans, to minimise the need for large gatherings and queues.

Refugee community leaders and outreach workers have received training and are regularly sharing key messages with the refugee population in the camp. UNHCR and partners have also enhanced psycho-social support structures and strengthened existing dedicated helplines to ensure that refugees and asylum-seekers have access to information and guidance on available assistance.

UNHCR's Global COVID-19 Response Appeal has so far received 31 per cent of the US$745 million needed to assist refugees impacted by COVID19. UNHCR is calling on the international community to continue and step up its support in order to ensure that vulnerable refugees, asylum-seekers and host communities in Kenya have access to adequate health services and care.
For more information on this topic, please contact:

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United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

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UNHCR and humanitarian agencies strengthen health response in Kenya refugee camps

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Nairobi/Geneva - UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, humanitarian agencies and the Government of Kenya are strengthening their COVID-19 response, after it was confirmed by the Government that two individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in the Dadaab refugee camps.

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Due to the spread of COVID-19 within communities and refugees, on the 25th of March 2020 the UNHCR initiated an appeal to create funds to support its emergency response plan in order to properly prepare for preserving the health needs of refugees during this pandemic. With over 5 nations contributing donations the UNHCR’s initial target of USD225 million was achieved

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The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting almost every country across the globe, and creating a multitude of challenges for the entire world community. Refugees and people seeking asylum face particular vulnerabilities. Specific concerns include: maintaining safety measures in overcrowded camps and detention centres; lack of access to countries of asylum or resettlement due to border closures; and lack of income support for those who have lost their jobs.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that 131 refugee-hosting countries have experienced community transmission of COVID-19. While there have not yet been any major outbreaks reported in refugee populations, this remains an ongoing concern, and efforts are focused on improving hygiene, sanitation and medical care capacity in refugee camps and refugee-hosting communities.

UNHCR launched an appeal for funding on 25 March to support its to boost preparedness, prevention and response activities in addressing the health needs of refugees and host communities affected by the spread of COVID-19. This appeal is part of a wider United Nations emergency response plan seeking USD2.01 billion in donor funding. COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan

As at , pledged donations had reached UNHCR's initial target of USD225 million. The largest donations have come from the US (USD64 million), Germany (USD38 million), the European Union (USD28.7 million), the United Kingdom (USD24.8 million) and Japan (USD23.9 million). Australia . contributed around USD0.8 million (AUD1.25 million)

COVID-19 affects asylum seekers at the most fundamental level-their ability to seek protection in another country. The global refugee system is built around people's ability to leave their country and seek asylum elsewhere-a person cannot be recognised as a refugee until they have crossed an international border. On 1 May 2020, UNHCR estimated that 167 countries have partially or fully closed their borders to contain the spread of COVID-19, and 57 of these are not making exceptions for people seeking asylum. Even where borders remain open, or exceptions are made for asylum seekers, there are limited commercial transport options.

Border closures and flight cancellations have also affected the movement of refugees for resettlement. On 17 March 2020, UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced they would temporarily suspend resettlement travel for refugees for 'as long as it remains essential'. A Refugee Council of Australia briefing summary on the outcomes of a 28 April meeting between UNHCR, IOM and resettlement countries notes that departures to resettlement countries of refugees referred by UNHCR were down 36 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the same quarter last year, and UNHCR will not meet its goal of resettling 70,000 refugees in 2020.

Asylum seekers and refugees in Australia

Many of the issues facing refugees and asylum seekers globally also apply to those in, or wishing to come to, Australia. With Australia's border closed to everyone other than Australian citizens and permanent residents (and their immediate family members), pathways for asylum seekers to travel to Australia and apply for protection are effectively closed. The Refugee Council of Australia reported Department of Home Affairs (DoHA) advice that the granting of offshore humanitarian visas was suspended on 19 March 2020. Resettlement of refugees already granted a visa under the offshore humanitarian program has been largely suspended, in line with the UNHCR and IOM suspension of resettlement travel. People who are outside Australia and have already been granted a Global Special Humanitarian (subclass 202) visa are still permitted to enter Australia, as they are permanent visa holders. However, they must arrange their own travel, options for which are currently very limited.

For asylum seekers and refugees already in Australia, advocates have identified two main issues.

The World Health Organisation identifies places of detention , including immigration detention facilities, as being particularly vulnerable to potential outbreaks of COVID-19. The Australian similarly identifies people in detention centres among the categories of increased risk. As at , there were 1,373 people in immigration detention facilities in Australia, of whom 512 were 'Illegal Maritime Arrivals'. DoHA that there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the immigration detention network in Australia. However, refugee and have raised concerns about the possibility of physical distancing in detention centres given the shared nature of sleeping, eating and other facilities , and examples of overseas countries releasing people from immigration detention centres in response to the COVID-19 threat. At least one court case seeking release of a refugee from immigration detention due to the risks of COVID-19 has . A healthcare professionals , on behalf of 13 men in immigration detention who claim that the inability to practice distancing in a detention environment places them at serious risk of harm in the event of an outbreak. been lodged in Australia complaint has also been lodged with the Commonwealth Ombudsman

The second concern is the economic impacts of COVID-19 on asylum seekers and refugees. Refugees on permanent visas (those granted visas under the offshore humanitarian program or asylum seekers who have been granted permanent protection visas) are able to access the full range of government support available to people facing economic hardship. However, asylum seekers living in the community on bridging visas while they await processing of their claim, and refugees who have been granted temporary protection visas, are (like other temporary visa holders) not eligible for income support, such as the and payments. Charities that support refugees and asylum seekers have in need of assistance due to the pandemic. Some state and territory governments (for example, and the reported significant increases in demand from asylum seekers ) are assisting charities in supporting asylum seekers and temporary migrants who have lost their income due to COVID-19, but these measures are relatively small and do not extend nation-wide. Accordingly, refugee advocates, human rights groups and charities have to extend the full range of income support measures to refugees and asylum seekers on temporary and bridging visas. called on the federal government

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COVID-19 - impacts on refugees and asylum seekers - Parliament of Australia

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The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting almost every country across the globe, and creating a multitude of challenges for the entire world community. Refugees and people seeking asylum face particular vulnerabilities. Specific concerns include: maintaining safety measures in overcrowded camps and detention centres; lack of access to countries of asylum or resettlement due to border closures; and lack of income support for those who have lost their jobs.

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The UNHCR also known as, United Nations Refugee Agency, is a United Nations agency that was established during the beginning of World War II. It was established as a way to maintain peace across countries by supporting the less fortunate. The UNHCR helps to combat the basic rights that have been stripped from citizens of third world countries such as education, healthcare and employment.

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United Nations Refugee Agency Refugee Brief 

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United Nations Refugee Agency Refugee Brief 

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The spread of COVID-19 and the impacts it has on refugees in different counties. The plans the UNHCR has on how to deal with the situation and how it will support the refugees in this crisis.

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The UN Refugee Agency’s weekly news digest

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Monsoon season hits Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh

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“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”  — Albert Einstein

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“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”  — Albert Einstein

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“A refugee is someone who survived and who can create the future.”                                  – Amela Koluder

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“A refugee is someone who survived and who can create the future.”                                  – Amela Koluder

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This quote highlights how strong and courageous refugees actually are. They are our future and each and every single one of them belong in this world.

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In the image portrayed, the quote highlights how powerful and courageous refuges are. Many refugees go through horrific and traumatising events such as being forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster. Many refugees are also victims of long-term mental health conditions, including chronic post traumatic stress disorder, depression and risk of suicide. Accentuated though this photo, it portrays how refugees are valiant, and ultimately are “a badge of strength, courage, and victory…”, as many find the strength to overcome their hardships and challenges faced.

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The difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker: Video

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The difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker: Video

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In this video I created, the difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker is distinguished. However, it is supported by real life videos of asylum seekers and refugees; to further visualise the distinction, as well as the hardships that both groups face.

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The difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker

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The difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker

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In this poster created, the difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker is distinguished; defined by Amnesty International, and supported by images. Mainly, the famous image taken by Nilufer Demir, of a three- year-old Syrian boy named Alan Kurdi.

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This article highlight the high criminal activities in refugee camps in the island of Lesvos and how it has increased in the past few months due to overpopulation. It also provides information on the difficulties of the locals and how the situation has effected them.

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A journey through the refugee crisis on the Greece-Turkey border

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A journey through the refugee crisis on the Greece-Turkey border

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Refugees and asylum seekers share their stories on their experiences and struggles that they have faced trying to cross the greek Turkish borders. They share their struggle to get to the Greek/Turkish borders and how they seek freedom and a new start in Europe.

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Evros, Greece - Witnesses told reporters the bullet that killed 42-year-old Muhammad Gulzar came from the Greek side of the border, but whether a soldier, a police officer or a carbine-toting vigilante had pulled the trigger, no one could say for certain.

It was March 4, and clashes had erupted in the no man's land spanning the border between Turkey and Greece. Here in Kastanies, the border crossing was closed to civilians. Every now and then, an olive truck full of soldiers bounced down the crater-pocked road leading into the restricted military area on the frontier. Greek riot police officers and soldiers formed columns across the field. On the other side of the border fence, behind an ominous barrier adorned with curls of concertina wire, thousands of refugees and migrants had amassed. Their hopes of entering Europe were dashed by the tear gas, water cannon and flashbangs that greeted them.

Grey clouds formed above like clenched fists in the skies. "Freedom," the refugees and migrants chanted, gripping the fence's chain links. Greek riot police fired tear gas over the fence, streaks of chemical smoke briefly scarring the air and then dissolving. A tear gas canister would occasionally land on the Greek side, either returned by a protester or fired by Turkish police. A police vehicle lurched forward, showering the protesters with powerful streams of water. A helicopter buzzed above, and what sounded like a burst of gunfire echoed in the fields.

Along with a few dozen reporters, I stood atop the railway tracks on a hilltop that overlooks the borderlands. Some scribbled in their notepads, a few did live broadcasts on camera, and others jostled for the best spot to snap photos. There, we watched the clashes unfurl a few hundred metres away, a cat-and-mouse game that groaned on well into the afternoon.

Mulling around among the reporters was Argyris Papastathis, deputy head of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis's press office. He would not grant interviews, but he insisted that Greek forces were not firing live ammunition, dismissing the reports as "fake news". Meanwhile, images of apparent gunshot victims were cropping up all over the internet. Papastathis led us into the closed military area, allowing us to stand some 100 metres (328 feet) behind the last row of riot police and soldiers. "Look how they are calm now that journalists are here," he said. "That's because they want you to think they are refugees."

'Four years of friendship'

Later that night, 920km (572 miles) away in Athens, Qaiser Rizvi was sitting at home with his cousin, Irfan Zaidi, when he received a message from Muhammad Gulzar's Facebook account. Sent by Gulzar's wife, it was a link to a Sky News television report about live gunfire on the Greek-Turkish border. The segment showed a crowd of refugees and migrants carrying a body shrouded in sheets. Then the frame switched to a woman crying on a curb outside a hospital in Turkey. "She is the wife of a man called Gulzar," the reporter said. "He was the one hit in the chest."

Thirty-three-year-old Rizvi and Zaidi, 35, had met Gulzar four years earlier at the Pakistani embassy in Athens. The three later lived together at City Plaza, a now-shuttered squat that provided housing to hundreds of refugees and migrants at a time. At night, the cousins would often go to Gulzar's room, number 611, where they would trade jokes and watch videos on their phones. Unlike most of the asylum seekers at the squatted hotel, Gulzar had already lived in Greece for several years, working odd jobs in home renovation, welding and automotive repair, among other things, Rizvi told me a week later in Athens.

Gulzar worked long hours, spoke Greek fluently and was very funny, his friends said. Sometimes, though, he would chide Rizvi and Zaidi, urging them to go out and search for work rather than pass time in the squat, the pair said. Gulzar was trying to fix his residency documents late last year when he travelled back to Pakistan to visit his parents, who were ageing and ill. While in Pakistan, he married. Along with his new wife, he travelled back to Turkey with the hope of re-entering Greece.

As Rizvi and Zaidi watched the video and the pieces came together, they both broke down in tears. All week long, Rizvi had been exchanging Facebook messages with Gulzar. "I couldn't believe Gulzar was dead," he told me, lifting his telephone to show pictures of gunshot wounds on Gulzar's chest and knee. "We had four years of friendship."

"He spoke Greek very well, and he knew everything here," said Zaidi, whose asylum application was rejected two days before his friend was killed.

'Invasion'

Already hosting close to 4.1 million refugees, Turkey ordered its border guards to stand down on February 27, as the country braced for another wave of refugees expected to be displaced by the ongoing battle in Idlib, a flashpoint city in neighbouring Syria.

The Greek government has decried the bottlenecking of refugees and migrants as an "invasion" and suspended asylum applications for a month. On March 3, Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis said his country faced an "asymmetrical threat" as the last line on the European Union's southeastern periphery. "This is no longer a refugee problem," he told a news conference while touring the border region with European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen, and European Parliament head David Sassoli. "This is a blatant attempt by Turkey to use desperate people to promote its geopolitical agenda and to divert attention from the horrible situation in Syria."

On that trip, von der Leyen thanked Greece for its tough stance on the EU's external border and described the country as Europe's "shield". Frontex, the EU's border agency, said it would send more officers and equipment to reinforce Greek security forces on the border.

Meanwhile, Greece has deployed more soldiers and police officers to the border, where it hopes to sever the flow of refugees and migrants into the country. As arrests and pushbacks swell, people continue to risk the journey.

Driving down the road that connects a string of border villages to a national highway, we spotted two young men walking on the grassy shoulder. Shortly after we reached the end of the road and turned around, a group of soldiers and police officers appeared. Blue-and-red lights flashed. The two asylum seekers sat on their knees in the yellow, hip-high grass, their hands behind their heads. A police officer turned our way and scowled. "No photos," she shouted.

For its part, Turkey has announced plans to prepare a case against Greece in the European Court of Human Rights and has called on EU leaders to update the March 2016 migration accord, a deal which allocated billions of Euros in funding to Turkey in exchange for preventing refugees and migrants from embarking for Europe. "It is not only about keeping migrants in return for more money," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told the state-run Anadolu news agency on Tuesday, reiterating his government's demand that the EU grant Turkish citizens visa-free access and update the customs union between Turkey and the EU.

'Racist and violent behaviour'

In 2015, Greece was still entangled in a brutal economic crisis and the left-wing Syriza party surged in January legislative elections on promises to abolish European-backed austerity measures and, among other drastic changes, introduce more humane migration policies. During the summer of that year, however, the refugee crisis exploded in the Mediterranean Sea, bringing hundreds of thousands of people to the country. Fleeing war and poverty, most new arrivals continued onward to Western Europe.

The Syriza-led government struggled to manage the flow, despite billions in European funding. In early 2016, governments around Europe sealed their borders, and in March of that year, the EU and Turkey reached the deal designed to hinder the flow of new arrivals to the continent. Arrivals slowed down for a time, but desperate people continued to brave land borders and board flimsy dinghies bound for Greek islands. With Greece situated on Europe's external border, tens of thousands of people wound up stranded in the country.

Over the years that followed, Greek voters grew increasingly frustrated with the Syriza-led government's migration policies, including a measure that prevented asylum seekers from leaving the islands hosting refugee camps until their applications were processed. In snap elections last July, the right-wing New Democracy party removed Syriza after campaigning on a platform that included promises to enact a heavy-handed crackdown on migration to the Mediterranean country.

The New Democracy government made plans to escalate deportations and gutted asylum seekers' rights, but new arrivals climbed again in late 2019. By the end of the year, more than 74,000 people had reached Greece, according to the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), bringing the total number of migrants and refugees in the country to an estimated 112,000.

Even as police beefed up border security, attempted to transfer more asylum seekers from the islands to the mainland, and evicted refugee squats in Athens, locals in communities around the country grew increasingly frustrated. Vigilante violence and anti-refugee protests surged. On several islands, local mayors and other municipal officials led mobs of residents that blocked boats from unloading refugees on their shores. In late October, locals in the northern village of Vrasna blockaded the street and prevented buses carrying hundreds of refugees from entering the community.

Deputy Migration Minister Giorgos Koumoutsakos insisted that the government is examining "all possible measures" to clamp down on new arrivals. "For the government, managing of borders and securing borders is a top priority," he told me.

Last month, the government announced plans to build closed detention centres on five Aegean islands - Chios, Kos, Leros, Lesbos and Kos - and islanders rebelled. On Chios and Lesbos, locals stormed construction sites, rioted and clashed with hordes of riot police that the government had shipped to the islands. In the weeks that followed, attacks on asylum seekers, humanitarians and reporters mounted.

The plan's announcement followed revelations that the government would build a floating border wall in the Aegean Sea, a 2.7km (1.7 miles) barrier intended to prevent refugee boats from reaching Lesbos.

As misery deepens and the clampdown grows more severe, surveys suggest that Greek public opinion has shifted: in a recent poll, 92 percent of respondents told the diaNEOsis Research and Policy Institute that too many migrants were in the country, while only one-in-five believed that migrants should be integrated into the society.

Vice President of the European Parliament Dimitrios Papadimoulis, a member of Syriza, blamed the government for the anti-refugee uproar. "Greeks were always inspired by the values of solidarity, empathy and compassion for the weak," he told me, but "lately, the rhetoric legitimised by different members of the government ... has justified several incidents of racist and violent behaviour against immigrants and NGO [workers]."

I n Evros, the region that abuts the country's land border with Turkey, locals were not immune from the wave of vigilantism washing over Greece. Since the crisis on the land border flared up, civilian patrols - among them armed groups, including those led by acolytes of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party - fell into the spotlight.

'Locals started to feel edgy'

Home to an estimated 150,000 people, the Evros regional unit includes five municipalities and spills across some 4,240 square kilometres (1637 square miles) of mostly flat land touching Greece's borders with Bulgaria and Turkey. For most of its length, the Greek-Turkish border traces the Evros River down to the delta that delivers its waters into the Aegean Sea.

Nowadays, if you drive up and down any of the roads near the border with Turkey for long enough, you will spot refugees and migrants trudging across patches of open field, lugging knapsacks and weighed down by the mud accumulating on their shoes like an anchor. In the predawn hours, before the sun has fully ascended, they appear like apparitions on the hilltops, shrouded in the morning fog that affords them a modicum of anonymity. When a rickety police van or bulky army vehicle lurks past, the asylum seekers tear off for the trees or dive into the bushes.

After the clashes in Kastanies died down on March 4, we drove to Pythio, a decaying village crawling up a hillside on the border. Sitting just a few kilometres from Evros River, which separates Greek from Turkish territory, the village is home to a few hundred people. They live between the ruins of a pre-Byzantine castle, a scatter of shops that are rarely open, and a handful of cafes shedding paint and bearing faded signs.

There, we found Antonis Polisakis playing cards in a coffee shop where he holds court all day. A pair of men sat in the corner, smoking, while an action movie played on a television fixed to the wall. Polisakis farms cotton and sunflower on land that huddles up to the borderline. At 51, he has lived his entire life in Pythio, a village he says struggles to keep its youth from leaving in search of work and opportunities elsewhere. Locals recently elected Polisakis president of the village, a largely symbolic, part-time job that he manages between farming and passing his days in the cafe.

Four nights before we met, Polisakis opened Facebook and found a post that announced that a group of refugees and migrants had entered the village. Altogether, there were some 400 asylum seekers, he told me. Police rounded up about half of them at the local church and transferred them to holding centres, but the rest managed to escape under the cloak of darkness. "It was nothing new," he said, "but the numbers were alarming. Of course, when we saw the constant flow of people locals started to feel edgy."

For years, locals have hoped that the Greek authorities would eventually assert greater control of the border, he said, but little has changed through successive left-wing and right-wing governments. Worried by the recent build-up on the Turkish side, Polisakis and other locals recently obtained permission to carry out civilian patrols they say will support Greek security forces that are stretched thin along the frontier. "If they [the Greek government] wanted to solve this whole problem, they would let the hunters and farmers protect their own lands," he said, "but they don't even let them access their own lands [on the border]."

In a village whose population is largely made up of ageing farmers and pensioners, locals fear the government could eventually build the type of closed detention centres authorities are currently erecting in other parts of the country. "If the village has 300 [refugees] here, how will they feed them?" Polisakis asked. Although not hopeful, he insisted that other European countries should take a larger share of the asylum seekers, a point of contention also regularly voiced by the Greek government. "Europe needs to open the borders and let them pass through."

'So much hate'

About 9:30pm on March 2, CNN Greece journalist Kostas Pliakos hopped in his rental car and started the drive from Didymoteicho to Feres, a 65-kilometre (40 miles) trek down the border. About halfway there, he spotted three men on the side of the road and pulled over. He introduced himself and asked where they were from. Syria, they told him. As he chatted with them, a pick-up truck skidded to an abrupt stop.

When two men and a woman hopped out, Pliakos noticed one was carrying a rifle. Pliakos asked what they were doing there, and they said they lived in nearby villages and patrolled the fields for refugees and migrants. Then two more pickups pulled up, and more armed men appeared in front of him.

Understanding that they stood face-to-face with vigilantes, the Syrians took off in a sprint, Pliakos told me. One man fired the rifle into the air, the sharp crack of the gunshot rippling out in the night. Two of the Syrians escaped, but the vigilantes caught the third, tossed him to the ground, and punched and kicked him. Standing some 10 metres away, Pliakos watched the violence unfold until one of the vigilantes accused him of filming the attack on his phone. He admitted that he was a reporter, but insisted that he was not filming. It was no use: the men snatched his telephone and threw it on the ground.

Even as he watched his phone shatter into pieces, Pliakos assumed he was safe - until the first fist slammed into his face. He tried to defend himself, but tumbled. As the three or four men punched him, kicked him, and struck his body with a wooden stick, no cars passed. "You f***ing journalist," one shouted. "We are trying to defend our communities and you do this stuff here."

By the time the beating ended, Pliakos had a black eye and his arms and legs were blanketed with bruises and scrapes. Two days before, a mob had set upon a German journalist, Michael Trammer, at the Thermi port on Lesbos Island's northern shore. They knocked him to the ground, beat him, and threw his equipment into the sea. Throughout the week leading up to that incident, similar groups on Lesbos beat freelance reporters, busted up their cars, and told them to leave the island. Although attacks on the press are not new in Greece, the recent uptick left him stunned. "I don't remember in my career so much hate against journalists," he said.

'You can't be here'

On the morning of March 5, the day after Gulzar died on the border, Greek media reports said the refugee build-up was moving further south, towards Ipsala - the same area where Turkish authorities claimed a Greek bullet killed a Syrian man called Mohammad Yaarub a few days earlier. As in the case of Gulzar, Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas had dismissed those reports as "fake news" and Turkish propaganda. However, videos captured on the day the 22-year-old Syrian died appeared to show Greek soldiers firing live ammunition across the border.

We drove along the highway heading south. Army vehicles drifted to the shoulder and let us pass, soldiers crammed in the open-faced cargo area. About 2km (1.2 miles) before the exit to Soufli, a town situated in the Evros Valley and once famous for its silk production, we passed an army truck parked on the side of the highway. Two soldiers stood staring out into a vast field.

We pulled over and walked to the edge of the hill overlooking the field. Several hundred metres away, walking along the rows of trees on the perimeter of the field were about three dozen refugees and migrants. A police vehicle rolled down the farm road on one side of the field, an army truck on the other side. As the vehicles got closer, most of the asylum seekers took a seat on the dirt and waited to be detained, but a handful broke away, running through the field. Carrying a rifle, a soldier followed them in a sprint. As we watched, a soldier approached us. "You know you can't be here," he said.

We packed up, continued south to Tychero, a 4,000-person town located a few kilometres from the border. The Greek side of the Kastanies border crossing had been closed for days, and the Turkish side of the Kipoi crossing had been closed on and off throughout the previous 24 hours. In an empty lot between a souvlaki restaurant and a few homes, volunteers from the Greek Red Cross sat in a tent and stared at their mobile phones. With the army and police deployed in huge numbers along the border, they had no asylum seekers to treat.

Soldiers popped into the restaurant every few minutes, grabbing bags of takeaway before heading back to the restricted access area near the border. At around lunchtime, local firefighter Christos Zak and Ioannas Zapartas, who breeds sheep on his family land, sat down at a table and kicked back several beers. Both are 48 and have lived in Tychero for their entire lives. As far as Zapartas sees it, the recent build-up is a political game played by Greece and Turkey. "They are humans, too," he told me of the refugees, "but they [Turkey] told them the borders are open. They were blackmailed."

Although Zak insists that no one wants to see the asylum seekers harmed, he recently started patrolling the narrow streets that weave through Tychero on his motorbike, carrying a large stick. "Before all this erupted, you could see people passing by and nobody would do anything," Zak told me, "but now people call the police when they see someone."

Back in Athens, Rizvi and Zaidi showed me Gulzar's final photos, which his wife had sent them after he died. His last selfie showed him smiling with a group of refugees and migrants sitting in the no man's land on the border. "What can we do?" Zaidi said, exasperation sketched across his face.

Rizvi added, "Whoever God wants, God takes."

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A journey through the refugee crisis on the Greece-Turkey border

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Evros, Greece - Witnesses told reporters the bullet that killed 42-year-old Muhammad Gulzar came from the Greek side of the border, but whether a soldier, a police officer or a carbine-toting vigilante had pulled the trigger, no one could say for certain.

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Turkey will invade Greece with another wave of illegal migrants after the pandemic. 

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Turkey will invade Greece with another wave of illegal migrants after the pandemic. 

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has announced after the COVID-19 crisis refugees and asylum seekers will be illegally making their way to Greece regardless of the fact Greece is closing their borders and taking on other precautions to keep the illegal migrants out of the country.

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Ankara is again openly threatening to try and attempt to asymmetrically invade Greece with illegal immigrants, almost two months after their initial failure.

In an interview with DIM TV in Turkey, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu referred to the migrant issue and argued that after the end of the pandemic, there will be another wave of illegal immigration to Greece.

"There were refugees in the camps who went to the border with Greece. Due to the pandemic, this stopped. I am not saying this as a threat, but after the pandemic, the refugees will definitely want to leave and go there," he said.

Çavuşoğlu said the refugee issue was a common issue with the EU, adding that the customs union agreement should be updated, the visa requirement for Turkish citizens released, and called for more co-operation in the fight against terrorism.

"We have sent the following message that on the occasion of the pandemic, if you say that we do not need Turkey, then you should know that the pandemic will end, but the refugee issue will continue for many years. Then please don't knock on our door. Our goal is good cooperation and of course a cooperation that everyone will keep their promises."

The representative of the Turkish Foreign Ministry also took the baton.

"Turkey will not allow Greece to unilaterally redraw the borders with accomplished events, but bilateral technical talks," a Turkish official said on Saturday.

"After Greece announced to the Turkish Foreign Ministry on April 15 that it was building a fence on their common land borders, the ministry responded on May 11 by asking Athens to give the exact location of the fence and convene a bilateral commission to ensure the border is not violated," said Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy.

"The issue can be resolved if the meetings we have proposed between the technical delegations of the two countries take place. An accomplished event on our borders will in no case be tolerated," he added.

Tags: Ankara, Athens, coronavirus, coronavirus greece, coronavirus pandemic, coronavirus tests, covid-19, EU, European Union, greece, Greece's Ministry for Health, Greek news, greek news gr, greek news in english, greek news now, greek news on demand, greek news today, Greek newspaper, immigrants, immigration, migrant crisis, migrants, refugee crisis, refugees, Turkey, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu

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Turkey announces it will start another migrant crisis with Greece after coronavirus - Greek City Times

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Ankara is again openly threatening to try and attempt to asymmetrically invade Greece with illegal immigrants, almost two months after their initial failure. In an interview with DIM TV in Turkey, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu referred to the migrant issue and argued that after the end of the pandemic, there will be another wave of illegal immigration to Greece.