7. Refugees that have landed on European Borders constitute
less
than 2.5% of total refugee population around the world
8. • Turkey-2
Million
• Lebanon- 1.15
Million
• Pakistan- 1.51
Million
• Iran- 0.98
Million
Top Refugee-Hosting
Countries in the World
9. 86% of World’s Refugees are hosted by Developing
Countries
10. But Wait
Do Not Hate Europe
Yet
Gulf
Cooperation
Council
Kuwait
Bahrai
n
Qatar
Oman
Saudi
Arabi
a
UAE
As of now, GCC countries haven’t taken in a single
refugee. They are not signatories to UN Refugee
Conventions
(1951; 1967)
13. More than 475,000 refugees and migrants have crossed Mediterranean so far, this year
At 3000 people each day, more than 200,000 have landed on the shores of Europe
since July
That’s more than the number of people that arrived in entire 2014
15. Desperate Refugees often try to cross the Mediterranean by getting in
touch with highly exploitative and dangerous smuggling networks
Various networks operating across Eastern Europe, Turkey & North-
Africa charge as high as $10,000 to smuggle the refugees into Western
Europe
Women, Children and men often fall prey to human traffickers, who
subject these vulnerable people to forced labor, prostitution and other
forms of servitude
On several occasions, smugglers sexually abuse the refugees, both
women and men, in the course of transit and threaten them with
violence or abandonment if they do not heed to the smugglers’
demands
Smuggling
16. Due to a fair probability of interception and detention by EU’s border-patrol agencies,smugglers
often use low-quality boats and, to maximize their profits, overload them, causing
shipwrecks that result in the loss of hundreds of lives
The coffins contain bodies of refugees who died when their boat sank off
the Italian coast of Lampedusa in October 2013
It’s extremely hard for the emergency crews to detect the locations of boats in distress because
the nature of travel is stealthy
17. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime (UNODC), “each year,
migrant smuggling from East, North and West Africa into
Europe generates about
USD 150 million in revenue for criminals”
(UNODC, 2014).
The Mint of Refugee Smuggling
Abu Hamda, a smuggler from Syria earned around 2 million
USD during the last half
of 2014. Hamda smuggles refugees from Egypt to Italy.
Some of his clients were on a
ship that sank near the coast of Malta in September 2014.
300 people lost their life in
that disaster (Guardian- January,2015)
So far this year, moving refugees and migrants across
Mediterranean has earned
smugglers more than 30 Million USD
(AlJazeera)
20. Also, there is not enough food, space and opportunities for
refugees in their previous host countries like Jordan, Turkey,
Lebanon, Egypt and Libya
22. Dumping the Refugees
Governments of Southern & Eastern-European states seem to be in a hurry to get “rid” of refugees. One country hurriedly
dumps them into
another country and so on
23. Role of EU’s Border Patrol Agency - Frontex
Frontex has dedicated Operation Triton for the rescue of refugees and migrants from
Mediterranean during disasters or shipwrecks. It also intercepts refugee-smuggling
boats, crossing EU waters and detains the people and smugglers onboard
However, Triton Operates at one-third of the resources that Itlay used to spend on its, now
suspended, Operation Mare-Nostrum. Under Triton, the patrol-squads don’t proactively look
for the sinking boats .They only respond to distress signals
25. Germany has largely adopted an open-door policy towards refugees
German interior ministry expects that around 800,000 refugees will
enter its borders till the end of 2015
26. Germany has also suspended the Dublin Regulation for Syrian Refugees
Under this regulation, asylum seekers can only apply for asylum in the first
EU country they enter. This discriminatory rule can prevent many refugees from
reuniting with their families who have already taken refuge or settled in various EU
countries
27. Revised Resettlement Plan put forward by European Commission on 14th September in
Luxemborg
Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia vehemently opposed this proposal
28. But, sadly, this response only came after Alan Kurdi’s
Body washed onto the Turkish coast of Bodrum. Alan,
alongwith his mother Rehana and Brother Ghalib
drowned while trying to reach the greek island of kos
As soon as the picture of Alan’s lifeless body circulated around the internet, it created an
international outpour, compelling EU to act
29. Hungary, alongwith Czech Republic and Slovakia, are at the forefront of
anti-refugee rhetoric and act with hostility towards refugees
Hungary recently built 2 barb-wired fences to keep out refugess. A 175
Kilometer long fence along its border with Serbia and a 40 Kilometer
long fence along its border with Croatia
30. Here is what Right-Wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Obran said at a
recent press conference
31. Possible Solutions
Addressing the root causes that lead people to dispossession from their indigenous lands –
Wars, Conflicts, Occupations and Environmental Degradation
More countries should come forward to help the existing hosts like Turkey, Lebanon and
Jordan, more in terms of resettlement than finance
Multiplying safer channels for refugees to enter EU
Not create unnecessary impediments in accepting asylum applications so desperate
people don’t turn to smugglers and put their lives in danger
Treating refugees with empathy when they land on
European shores. Not treating them as aliens, Not Stereotyping
Non-Refoulement
