Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Refugees: EU and Turkey reach deal to ease crisis

Main points of proposal, which needs formal approval by EU leaders, announced after long negotiations in Brussels.

08 Mar 2016 03:11 GMT | Politics, Turkey, European Union, Refugees, Syrian Refugees

The case for additional money was reportedly made by Davutoglu, left, during Monday's meeting with EU leaders [EPA]

Turkey and the European Union have reached agreement on the main points of a proposal to tackle the influx of refugees into Europe, according to statements by officials.

The next step involves the presentation of the proposal to EU leaders at a key European Council meeting due to be held on March 17 and 18.

Donald Tusk, European Council president, said the leaders had made a "breakthrough", and he was hopeful of sealing a deal at the next meeting.

He said the progress sent "a very clear message that the days of irregular migration to Europeare over".

The announcement came at the end of a long day of meetings in Brussels, during which Turkey is known to have asked for an additional $3.3bn in return for checking the flow of refugees across the Aegean Sea.

Turkey is due to receive $3.3bn until the end of 2018 to cover the costs of dealing with refugees, but it reportedly asked for double the amount during Monday's talks.

Martin Schulz, head of the European Parliament, confirmed that the request for additional money came at the summit between Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey's prime minister, and EU leaders.

After protracted negotiations, Martin Selmayr, spokesperson for Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission (EC), said on Twitter: "Deal. Breakthrough with Turkey."

Another statement, from the Twitter account of Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg's prime minister, said: "President of #EUCO will take forward the proposals and work out the details with the Turkish side before the March #EUCO."

Grand bargain

The agreement could see Turkey and the EU cooperate to end the flow of irregular refugees to Greek islands and start resettling Syrian refugees directly from Turkey to the EU.

In exchange for readmitting refugees from Greece to Turkey, Brussels is expected to grant Turkish citizens the right to travel to the EU's Schengen zone without a visa latest by end of June 2016.

The Turkish government is also trying to secure the country's EU membership.

"Turkey is ready to work with the EU, and Turkey is ready to be a member of the EU as well," Davutoglu said before the summit.

Turkey is a temporary home to an estimated 2.75 million refugees, many from the conflict in Syria.

It is also a transit country for waves of people heading to Europe from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.

"We are not sending them. They are going [to Greece] by sea and many of them are dying," Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's president, said, criticising the EU for its reluctance to take in more refugees as well as its demands on Turkey to halt the flow of people.

"We have rescued close to 100,000 from the sea. Others are puncturing their boats and causing their deaths."

On Sunday, at least 25 people drowned off the Turkish coast while trying to reach Greece.

The Greek coastguard launched a search-and-rescue mission for people believed to be missing from the accident near the Turkish town of Didim.

At least 15 people were rescued and brought to land in the care of emergency aid workers.

About 13,000 people are living in precarious conditions in Greece as they wait for authorities to let them into Macedonia so they can move towards Western Europe.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says a humanitarian crisis is quickly unfolding at the border, with refugees living in makeshift camps and in the open, as authorities allow only 250 a day to pass through.

More than one million asylum seekers have arrived in Europe since the start of 2015 - the majority fleeing the war in Syria - with nearly 4,000 dying while crossing the Mediterranean.

The current refugee situation is a crisis on a massive scale. Countries bordering Syria are starting to overflow with an influx of refugees fleeing the war that has torn their nation apart. All attempts in the past year to remedy the problem has so far failed until this moment. Now the EU and Turkey has come up with a solution to combat and diminish the seemingly in exhaustive stream of refugees seeking asylum. Once this situation is under control, these homeless peoples will soon be treated and given the necessities required for a decent living, including citizenship, homes, jobs and a salary. In my opinion, this plan should have been put into effect over a year ago, thereby preventing the problem to escalate out of control. Yet this is a hopeful idea that, should it work, will help improve and save the lives of thousands.

"Aljazeera." 8 March 2016. Aljazeera Media Network. 8 March 2016. <http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/03/refugee-crisis-eu-turkey-agree-proposal-160308021149403.html>.

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Refugee crisis: France clears part of Calais 'Jungle'

French police fire tear gas canisters at protesters as demolition workers pull down shacks in makeshift refugee camp.

01 Mar 2016 05:13 GMT | Human Rights, Humanitarian crises, Europe, United Kingdom, France

Clashes have erupted between French riot police and refugees and migrants as authorities began destroying makeshift shelters in the makeshift camp on the edge of Calais known as the "Jungle".

On Monday night, police lobbed tear gas canisters at residents of the camp who protested against the raid as about 20 demolition workers moved in to start pulling down the shacks by hand.

As night fell about 150 of the camp's inhabitants threw rocks and struck vehicles heading for England on a port road which runs next to the sprawling camp, as some were wielding iron bars, an AFP news agency reporter said.

Police also fired tear gas in clashes with activists who had formed a security cordon to protect the tear-down operation.

While there were no reports of injuries, authorities said at least three people were arrested.

Earlier, around 20 makeshift huts went up in flames in an angry backlash as workers, guarded by scores of French police, began pulling down tents and shelters, while clashes continued throughout the afternoon.

"You can see that the protesters didn't hesitate to set fire to tents and shelters or to throw stones at police," Etienne Desplanques, a regional government cabinet director, told Al Jazeera.

"It's not acceptable, and it's normal that we're going to restore security," Desplanques said.

Several lorries and cars were blocked by the camp's residents on the stretch of road overlooking a piece of ground which had previously been part of the camp.

'Infinitely sad'

The demolition of the southern half of the camp began after a court petition by charities to stop it was rejected last week.

"It's infinitely sad to see the waste of so much work that we've done in the past months," said Maya Konforti of the Auberge des Migrants (Migrants' Hostel) charity.

Volunteers and aid workers have spent months trying to improve conditions in the camp, built on a former toxic waste dump on the outskirts of Calais.

Local authorities, who have promised that no one will be evacuated by force, say 3,700 people live in the camp, and that between 800 and 1,000 will be affected by the eviction.

But charities say a recent census they conducted counted at least 3,450 people in the southern part alone, including an estimated 300 unaccompanied children.

"There are hundreds of children living here who are unaccompanied," Ginny Howells of Save The Children told Al Jazeera, explaining that there is concern the children may end up in worse camps or "go missing" after the eviction.

The evicted refugees and migrants have been offered heated accommodation in refitted containers set up next door to the camp, but many are reluctant to move there because they lack communal spaces and movement is restricted.

They have also been offered places in some 100 reception centres dotted around France.

But the refugees and migrants do not want to give up their hopes of Britain. Many of them try to reach Britain daily by sneaking aboard lorries and ferries crossing the Channel.

"These people want to reach Britain and won't leave. They will end up in even more hardship, particularly in winter," Konforti said.

EU discussions

The demolition of the camp comes ahead of talks on Thursday between French President Francois Hollande and British Prime Minister David Cameron.

Britain has put substantial pressure on France to stem the flow of refugees and migrants getting across the Channel, and has funded a huge increase in security measures around the port and tunnel in Calais.

The Jungle has played into fraught discussions about Britain's possible exit from the European Union (EU).

Some opponents of "Brexit" say that if Britain were to leave the EU, the British government would lose the ability to call on France to stop the refugees from trying to make their way across the Channel.

The government of France is currently in the process of tearing down refugee tents in order to free up more land. My opinion on the subject is that the actions on the behalf of the EU are wrong and unjustified. These governments, who have offered IDPs haven, are now beginning to turn their backs on these people and evicting them from one of the only places that they can call safe. The author of this article shows what the situation looks like from both sides, while seeming a bit biased towards France by focusing more on how the refugee crisis looks from their perspective. All across Europe thousands of refugees are seeking solitude, and many governments are turning their backs towards these people who are without a home.

"Aljazeera." 1 March 2016. Aljazeera Media Network. 1 March 2016. <http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/03/refugee-crisis-france-clears-part-calais-jungle-160301035416219.html>.

The JLA