UNHCR head thanks Greece, frontline islands, for improved response to continuing arrivals
UNHCR chief António Guterres witnesses improved humanitarian response mounted by Greek local authorities and civil society
LESVOS, Greece (UNHCR) - In a weekend mission to the main EU entry point for nearly 450,000 refugees and migrants so far this year, UNHCR chief António Guterres witnessed the improved humanitarian response mounted by Greek local authorities and civil society while lamenting the continued lack of a large-scale and effective European response.
Assessing conditions on the Greek island of Lesvos, the main landing spot for tens of thousands of people taking smuggler boats from the nearby Turkish coast, Guterres said European governments had yet to match the "gigantic effort" that the island and its people had made in trying to cope with the huge influx.
"It is amazing that on a small island, you are managing, whereas in a big Europe, with half a billion people, they are finding it so difficult," Guterres told Lesvos Mayor Spyros Galinos and other Greek officials. "We are always saying this crisis is manageable at the European level, but to be manageable, it needs to be much better managed."
Without a Europe-wide approach and an effective strategy in dealing with the influx, Guterres warned, criminal networks would continue to thrive. "When states are not able to organize the orderly movement of refugees, smugglers take charge, exploiting people further and adding to their suffering," he added.
Describing his island as frontline, Mayor Galinos said: "the main issue is not the numbers, but the lack of a European policy to respond." Nevertheless, he said, Greeks would continue to do whatever they could to address the crisis and combat smugglers, "who not only exploit the people, but who put their lives at continuous risk."
"Above all, we are all human beings," the Mayor added. "We must all recognize the position of these people because we might all find ourselves in this situation one day."
UNHCR has deployed an emergency team to Greece and now has some 120 staff in the country to support the government in its effort to address the continuing crisis. The island of Lesvos, which according to the last census in 2011, had a population of 85,000 people, but is probably several thousand higher now, has received over 220,000 people in nine months. UNHCR figures put the number of arrivals in September alone at 160,000, while the Greek coast guard records show 110,000 people.
The majority of the refugees and migrants arriving on Lesvos are from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. The rest, about five per cent, are migrants and refugees from 21 countries as varied as India, Bangladesh, Togo, Niger, Columbia, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The Greek Coast Guard on Lesvos receives between five to 10 distress calls a day and then sets out to rescue people in overcrowded boats.
Deputy Harbour Master, Antonio Sofiadellis, a leader in the Greek Coast Guard effort that has saved between 240-400 refugee and migrant lives every day, said that more people are being packed onto the flimsy boats these days - around 60 when 50 used to be the limit.
"The engines are very cheap and the smugglers don't care that they don't know how to operate the boats. This is something no country in Europe has faced. If we weren't there to rescue them, half or more than half would drown. The boats capsize, some fold, when the floor breaks."
Guterres also visited the north of Lesvos, where most refugee boats land. The beaches were strewn with hundreds of bright orange life jackets and deflated rubber boats, soaked shoes and pieces of clothing. Some 1,050 people had arrived overnight and volunteers helped them to an assembly point nearby, where they found food and a warm place to sleep in a large UNHCR shelter.
Some Syrian refugees he met told him they had fled directly from Aleppo, Damascus or Homs. Other Syrians said they could no longer make ends meet in neighbouring countries amid cuts in humanitarian aid and restrictions on work. Most people said they felt now was their chance to find safety in European countries where refugees were welcome.
By Melissa Fleming, Lesvos, Greece
Related news and stories
Ukraine's refugees find long-term support in Europe's host countries
Women-run businesses in Afghanistan dealt a blow by deepening restrictions
Earthquake survivors in Türkiye count the devastating toll
Twelve years on, Syrian refugees face deepening debt and hunger
Twelve years on, Syrian refugees face deepening debt and hunger
UNHCR launches new appeal for Afghan refugees and hosts, urging partners to stay the course
Your search for « syria » matched 4302 results. Only the first 1,000 results are displayed. Displaying page 9 of 112 pages.
-
Third International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria, Remarks by António Guterres, UNHCR, Kuwait City, 31 March 2015
31 Mar 2015 ... It is clear that the world's response to the crisis in Syria cannot be business as usual. The ... Iraq, on the other hand, has become completely engulfed in the Syria conflict, and hosts Syrian ...... -
Once blossoming Syrian town now scarred by war
3 Mar 2017 ... QARA, Syria – In times of peace, residents of this remote mountain town in Syria lived from the productive cherry orchards that blossom on the outskirts. Now, nearly six years into a devastating ...... -
UN Secretary General says more help needed for Syrian refugees
30 Mar 2016 ... conference in Geneva on refugees from Syria, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon ... The March 30 conference was one of several key events in 2016 to do with Syria's refugees. It ...... -
Donors pledge more than US$6 billion for Syrians
4 Feb 2016 ... in need of humanitarian assistance both inside Syria and across the region in 2016. In addition, ... them since 2011. Five years of brutal war in Syria have forced half of the Syrian population out ...... -
UNHCR: 1 in 10 Syrian refugees will need resettling
29 Mar 2016 ... from Syria and the need for generating a substantial increase in resettlement and other answers for their plight. The conference is one of several key events in 2016 to do with Syria's refugees. ...... -
"End of Syria as we know it" if no peace deal, Guterres says
22 Dec 2015 ... in Syria is not found, the country may cease to exist, António Guterres, outgoing head of the UN Refugee Agency has warned. "If the conflict does not end quickly, this might be the end of Syria as ...... -
Syria and Jordan still wait for help despite pledges made at Iraq meeting
6 Jul 2007 ... of thousands of Iraqi refugees and said Syria and Jordan were still waiting for help despite ... Main host countries Syria and Jordan, with an estimated 2 million Iraqi refugees between them, are ...... -
Inside Syria, millions face destitution after a decade of pain
15 Mar 2021 ... ... See also: A decade on, Syrian refugees mired in ‘silent war’ for survival Syria is also ... I couldn't afford to buy anything if I didn't leave my kids alone to go and work.” Syria. millions ...... -
UNHCR and host countries to push for greater international help on Syrian refugees
4 Sep 2013 ... These four countries are hosting most of the refugees who have fled Syria since March 2011. The ... A further 4.25 million are displaced within Syria, according to UN figures. More than 97 per cent of ......