(Athens, March 24, 2020) – Greece’s
government should immediately reduce congestion in the islands’ Reception and
Identification Centers (RICs) for asylum seekers and migrants to avert a public
health crisis amid the coronavirus pandemic, 21 human rights and humanitarian
organizations said today.
Thousands of people, including older people, those with
chronic diseases, children – including very young and unaccompanied children –,
pregnant women, new mothers, and people with disabilities, are trapped in
dangerously overcrowded, deplorable conditions on the islands amid the COVID-19
pandemic. Forcing asylum seekers to remain in conditions that violate their
rights and are harmful to their well-being, health, and dignity cannot be
justified on grounds of public health, the organizations said.
International human rights law requires that the health needs of asylum seekers and migrants be addressed
and, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, any restrictions on rights
for reasons of public health or national emergency be lawful, necessary, and
proportionate as well as nondiscriminatory.
On March 17, 2020, Greece’s government announced
measures to prevent a coronavirus outbreak in RICs on the islands, the
so-called “hotspots,” that essentially put the camps on lockdown, trapping
thousands of asylum seekers and migrants. The measures include suspending
all special activities and facilities in the camps, including non-formal schools, while no
visitors, including members of aid organizations and agencies providing
essential services, will be allowed into the RICs for at least two weeks, the
Migration and Asylum Ministry said. Camp residents will be prevented through
strict controls from venturing outside the facilities, even to get supplies,
but also from circulating within them without good reason.
On March 22, Greece’s prime minister announced
a nationwide lockdown banning “all unnecessary movement by citizens.”
As of March 22, the population
of the hotspots on Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Kos, and Leros was almost 31,400
over capacity, with 37,427 people in facilities with a total capacity of just
6,095. Conditions in the centers cannot be characterized as suitable for
dignified, humane living, the groups said. Extremely limited access to running
water, toilets, and showers, as well as hours-long lines for food distribution
and insufficient medical and nursing personnel, make it impossible to abide by
the guidelines for protection from the coronavirus, putting people at
significantly heightened risk in the face of the growing threat of widespread COVID-19
transmission.
Greece’s government should adopt measures to prevent an outbreak and prepare a
response plan to be enacted immediately once the first case of COVID-19 in a reception
center is detected. In the event of an outbreak, a quarantine that would trap tens
of thousands of healthy people together with people infected by COVID-19 in the
overcrowded camps, accompanied by a lack of adequate and appropriate medical
preparedness and response, would almost certainly lead to preventable deaths of
numerous people, the organizations said.
Greece’s government should take the measures outlined below, which will reduce
the risk of COVID-19 infections among the population living in these centers
and generally help protect public health:
- Move people out of the reception centers to appropriate, small-scale centers on the mainland, such as hotels and apartments, taking necessary precautions for safe transport. This will enable the government to carry out the guidelines against the spread of the coronavirus. Priority should be given to older people, people with chronic diseases and serious underlying medical conditions, people with disabilities, pregnant women, new mothers and their children, and children, including those who are unaccompanied. Accommodation for people with disabilities should be reasonably adapted as needed, taking individual needs into account. Suitable shelters for unaccompanied children should be established immediately.
- Adopt special measures to guarantee universal and unhampered free access to healthcare in the public system for asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants alike without discrimination, including testing and treatment for COVID-19. These groups should also have access to any preventive measures put in place in Greece in response to COVID-19, as do people in the rest of Greece. Asylum seekers should receive without delay their Provisional Insurance and Health Care Number (PAAYPA), as mandated by Common Ministerial Decision 717.2020.
- Supply the reception centers with adequate sanitary and hygiene products and ensure continuous running water so that residents can follow the guidelines of the National Public Health Organization and the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding protection from COVID-19. Ensure frequent disinfection of common areas, bathrooms, and toilets, as well as timely collection and removal of waste.
- Provide information to all residents of the reception centers about (a) how to prevent COVID-19 and (b) what to do and how to get help if they experience symptoms of COVID-19 in a wide range of languages, including ones that are less frequently used. People with disabilities should be provided with information in accessible formats, such as sign language, captioning, text, and easy-to-read messages. Ensure necessary responsive measures are available such as self-isolation and quarantine areas, and medical personnel with adequate training and protective gear.
- Urgently address the situation and special needs of people living in the informal settlements adjacent to the camps, as these groups may face additional challenges due to inadequate access to water and sanitation, hygiene products, and garbage collection.
- Ensure, until the reception centers are decongested, that they have adequate numbers of medical and nursing personnel, as well as mental health support services. Where possible, these services could be provided remotely.
The following quotes may be attributed to members of the groups involved:
“Restricting thousands of women, men, and children in severely
overcrowded camps, where living conditions are unacceptable, makes it
impossible to isolate people exposed to COVID-19 or
to comply with minimum preventive and protective measures, even hand washing
and social-distancing,” said Eva Cossé, Greece
researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Greek government urgently needs to move
people to mainland Greece.”
“The government must take the necessary steps in order to ensure that the
thousands of asylum seekers and migrants living in claustrophobically congested
RICs are protected,” said Vassilis Kerasiotis, HIAS Greece country director. “They
should be relocated to otherwise empty hotels and apartments where they can practice
social distancing. In these hard times, no one should be left behind. It is not
only a moral but also a prudent thing to do, since the fates of asylum seekers
as well as those of the locals are inevitably bound together in the face of the
pandemic.”
“Asylum seekers
and migrants residing in RICs should have equal
access to protection and medical assistance as
the rest of the Greek population, ” said Dimitra Kalogeropoulou, head of IRC
Greece. “The most
effective way to curb the spread of COVID-19 is by ensuring that everyone can
take meaningful measures to protect themselves, including adequate access to
sanitation, space, and healthcare. ”
“Given current conditions in the hotspots,
containing any outbreak would be impossible and could potentially put thousands
of lives in danger,” said Antigone Lyberaki, general manager at SolidarityNow.
“There is a window of opportunity to address this issue while the situation is
still manageable, but we fear this window may be closing fast.”“When the virus hits overcrowded camps in Greece, the consequences
will be devastating,” said Fotini Kokkinaki with HumanRights360. “That will be
a nightmare within an existing nightmare since the public health system has
collapsed during the previous years of economic depression. We must act now
before it is too late.”
For more information, please contact:
In Athens, for
Human Rights Watch, Eva Cossé (Greek, French, English): +30-693-47-90-865; +1-718-406-3160
(mobile); or cossee@hrw.org. Twitter:
@Eva_Cosse
In Athens, for HIAS
Greece, Levani Talakhadze (Greek, English): +30 699-43-20-730; or Levani.Talakhadze@Hias.org
In Athens, for Action Aid Hellas, Sissy Gkournelou (Greek, English,
Spanish): +30 -693-71-61-028; or Sissy.Gkournelou@actionaid.org
In Athens, for Amnesty International – Greek section, Eirini Gaitanou (Greek,
English): +30-697-23-91-300; or campaigns@amnesty.org.gr
In Athens, for Defence for Children International Greece, Nantina Tsekeri (Greek, English):
+30 211-4136664; +30-690 470 8385 (mobile); or info@defenceforchildren.gr
In Athens, for the Greek Forum of Refugees, George Stefanopoulos (Greek, English,
Spanish): +30-693-43-00-253; or advocacy@refugees.gr
In Athens, for Help
Refugees / Choose Love, Nick van der Steenhoven (English, Dutch):
+30-694-42-77-748;
or nick@helprefugees.org. Twitter/Instagram: @chooselove
In Athens, for
HumanRights360, Fotini Kokkinaki (Greek, English, Spanish): +30 6970280150; or fotini.kokkinaki@humarights360.org.
Twitter: f_kokkinaki
In Athens, for the
International Rescue Committee, Dimitra Kalogeropoulou (Greek, English) through
Nancy Dent (English): +44 7946139182; or nancy.dent@rescue-uk.org
In Athens, for JRS Greece, Anastasia Michalatou (Greek,
English): +30 2108237835(office landline); +30 6979427550 (mobile); or anastasia.michalato@jrs.net
In Athens, for Legal Centre
Lesvos, Natasha
Dailiani (Greek, English, German): +30-694-42-51-704; or natasha@legalcentrelesvos.org
In Athens, for
MdM-Greece, Elli Xenou (Greek, English): +30-6946-142103 (mobile); or advocacy@mdmgreece.gr
In Athens, for Network
for Children’s Rights, Nikolopoulos Pelopidas (Greek, English):
+30-2108846590; or p.nikolopoulos@ddp.gr
In Athens, for Praksis,
Chrysoula Patsou (Greek, English): +30-694-771-9678; or ch.patsou@praksis.gr
In Athens, for Refugee Legal Support, Lucy Alper (English): +30-694-066-2583;
or coordinator@refugeelegalsupport.org.
Twitter: @RLSAthens
In London, for Refugee Rights Europe, Marta Welander (English, French):
+447880230979; or marta.welander@refugee-rights.eu.
Twitter: @Refugee_RE
In Chios, for Refugee
Support Aegean, Natassa Strachini,(Greek, English): +30-693-67-68-175 (mobile);
or n.strachini@rsaegean.org
In Athens, for Solidarity Now, Valia Savvidou (Greek and English): +30 6970
417260 (mobile); or valias@solidaritynow.org
In Athens, for Terre des hommes Hellas, Melina Spathari (Greek, English,
Spanish, French): +30 6972070223 (mobile); or melina.spathari@tdh.ch. Twitter:
@tdh_greece
Organizations signing
the news release:
Action Aid Hellas
Amnesty International
ARSIS – Association for the Social Support of Youth
Defence for Children
International Greece
ELIX NGO
Greek Forum of Refugees
Help Refugees / Choose Love
HIAS Greece
HumanRights360
Human Rights Watch
International Rescue Committee
Jesuit Refugee Service Greece (JRS Greece)
Legal Centre Lesvos
Médecins du Monde – Greece (MdM-Greece)
Network for Children’s Rights
Praksis
Refugee Legal Support
Refugee Rights Europe
Refugee Support Aegean
Solidarity Now
Terre des hommes Hellas
Download the announcement from here.
