Bericht des Flüchtlingshilfswerks UNHCR, 1.7.2015 (engl. Originalfassung)
Europe is living through a maritime refugee crisis of historic proportions. Its evolving response has become one of the continent’s defining challenges of the early 21st century, with long-lasting implications for humanitarian practice, regional stability and international public opinion.
In the first six months of this year, 137,000 refugees and migrants crossed the Mediterranean Sea, travelling in terrible conditions upon unsafe boats and dinghies.
Many more tried, but didn’t make it. In mid-April 2015, 800 people died in the largest refugee shipwreck on record, highlighting a staggering increase in refugees and migrants dying or missing at sea. This tragedy thrust the crisis into headlines around the world, and the EU launched a series of emergency meetings to establish a more effective joint response.
These events raise profound questions. Who are the people arriving on Europe’s southern shores, where are they coming from, and why? How can Europe best help them, both to alleviate the suffering that drives them further from their homes, and to address its root causes?
Six major findings of this report:
1. The majority of those taking the sea route to Europe are refugees, and their numbers continue to rise rapidly. Most people arriving by sea are fleeing from war, conflict or persecution at home, as well as deteriorating conditions in many refugee-hosting countries. EU States have a clear responsibility to offer them protection, and an obligation along with others to rescue people in danger at sea.
2. The number of deaths at sea rose to record levels in April 2015, then dropped significantly in May and June. While many factors contributed to the recent decline, improved European-led search-and-rescue operations beginning in May have had an immediate and positive impact. Yet the peak months still lie ahead.
3. There has been a major increase in refugees and migrants taking the ‘eastern Mediterranean route’ from Turkey to Greece. More than 85 per cent of those arriving in Greece are from countries experiencing war and conflict, principally Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia. From Greece, most move onwards across the Balkans to western and northern Europe. Italy remains the primary destination for Eritreans, Somalis and other people from sub-Saharan Africa.
4. As arrivals increase, reception capacity and conditions remain seriously inadequate. While conditions of reception in Italy vary a great deal, serious systemic gaps remain in Greece. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia collectively offer fewer than 3,000 places of reception, significantly below the levels of arrivals (19,000 arrivals in the first weeks of June alone). This impacts people with special needs, including unaccompanied and separated children, increasing their vulnerability and risk of exploitation. This is an emergency situation, which requires urgent attention and far greater support for efforts to handle new arrivals. If this situation remains unaddressed, onward movement of refugees and migrants is likely to continue on a significant scale.
5. The number of refugees and migrants entering the western Balkans from Greece has already dramatically increased since the beginning of June, with over 1,000 people entering every day, as opposed to 200 just a few weeks ago. They face serious humanitarian and protection challenges linked to the hardship of the journey, the abuses of smugglers and criminal gangs, and the increasing tightening of the borders.
6. Countries of origin and the international community at large need to do better at preventing and resolving conflicts. Transit countries need to develop their asylum systems, including reception arrangements and identification processes.
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