EU Urges Greece to Respect Refugees' Right to Asylum
The European Union on Tuesday called on Greece to review its asylum policies, especially for Syrians fleeing "atrocities" in their country.
European Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmstroem told a news conference after talks with Greek leaders that the number of people gaining asylum in Greece "continues to be very low, and I am particularly worried about this situation, especially about the Syrians.
"Every day we hear atrocities about their country," she added.
Malmstroem, who arrived in Greece on Monday, said Syrian asylum seekers were "100 percent" protected in other European countries, while protection was "close to zero percent" in Greece.
"This must obviously change (and) the Greek minister told me that it will," she said after talks with Nikos Dendias, who is in charge of public order in the country struggling with a sixth year of continuous recession.
Malmstroem said Greece had made some progress in granting migrants and refugees the rights to which they are entitled, but "many migrants and asylum seekers are not treated with dignity and are being detained in unacceptable conditions".
Some infamous detention centres had also been closed but "conditions (in others) remain unacceptable", and do not comply with European standards.
The European Union and non-governmental organisations have repeatedly criticised Greece for violating migrants' and refugees' rights as they pass through the southeastern country on their way to western Europe.
Malmstroem said 400,000 people had been arrested in the European Union last year for failing to present proper immigration papers, including 72,000 in Greece, 65,000 in Germany and about 50,000 in Spain.
She also expressed "serious concern" about a surge in racist attacks in Greece after the far-right Golden Dawn party entered parliament, and called on legislators to rapidly adopt a draft law making racism a crime.
Golden Dawn was elected to parliament in June, winning nearly seven percent of the vote and 18 seats out of an overall 300.
The party has benefitted from a rise in social tensions as Greece experiences a fourth year of strict austerity policies.
Many Golden Dawn supporters have been implicated in violent assaults against immigrants and the party is known for its anti-Semitic and xenophobic discourse.
The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner Nils Muiznieks wrote in a report published last month after a visit to Greece that the government had failed to take proper action over the rise in hate crimes, particularly targeting migrants.
Source: Agence France Presse
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