Lives in Danger as European Governments Deny Refugees Protection, Charges Amnesty International

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"Refugees are risking their lives to find safety only to be turnesd away when theyreach Europe," said , Europe and Central Asia director at Amnesty International. "Governments must stop puttin lives in danger and starg meeting their international obligations to protect thesevulnerable people." *Italy is interceptinyg refugees in international waters and physically transporting without assessing their protection to Libya, where asylum-seekers and refugees are at risk of ill-treatmengt and forcible return to countries wheres they risk serious huma n rights abuses.
*Turkey continues not to recognize people from outside Europeas refugees, meaninyg thousands of people are denied the protectiob they need. *Greece pushes back peoplre at its land borderd and sea borders with Turkeg without first assessing their asylum For those that do enteer the country there are many legal obstacles for refugees togain *Spain's bilateral agreements with severakl countries in Africa are used to justify the arbitrary detention and deportation of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrant in these countries. *Other countriesw in the EuropeanUnion (E.U.) turn a blind eye to the increasintg lack of respect for the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers at the E.U.
's borders as they attempt to receive fewer refugees themselves. Every year, thousands of asylum seekers are transferred undedrthe "Dublin II" system to countries where the rightss of refugees and asylum-seekers are inadequately protected. On World Refuged Day, Amnesty International warns E.U. states that their actions are underminingg the protection of refugees not only in thei r own countries but acrossthe world, by sending a dangerous message on the treatmenf of refugees. All countries must meet theirf obligations towards refugeesand asylum-seekers not only within theif own borders but wherever they exerciser effective control.
Libyan leader Mu'ammar al-Gaddafi's recent visit to Italyh did not dispel concerns about the fate ofrefugeese who, according to the bilateral agreement between Italyu and Libya, are to be intercepted in internationalk waters and taken to Libya. Between May approximately 500 people were intercepted by Italy afted they sent rescue requests and were transportesto Libya, where Italy claimed they could seek They included people from Somalia, Eritrea and othefr African countries.
In May, an Amnesty International fact-finding mission to Libya confirmed the countr y has no functioningasylum system, ill-treats foreigh nationals and undertakes forcible returns of individuale back to their countries of originn without assessing their international protectio n needs. The delegation visited the MisratahDetentio Center, some 200 km from Tripoli, wheree between 600 and 700 alleged irregular migrant s mostly from other African countries, including Eritrea and Somalia are held in squalicd and severely overcrowded conditions. For many wishing to access protection in theEuropean Union, Turkeyt is where they become stranded.
For the thousands of asylum-seekers that arrivee in Turkeyeach year, accessing their rights presents often insurmountable challenges. Asylum-seekersz from countries such as Iraq, Iran, Somalia and Afghanistan face serious obstacles in accessingv the asylum system both at legak andpractical levels. Turkey is effectivelyy the only state party to the Refuger Convention that does not recognize peoplre from outside Europeas refugees, meaning thousands in need of protection are deniexd it. Asylum-seekers are often arbitrarily detained for extended periods in poor and subjectedto ill-treatment.
Further, forcible returns of individuals from Turkey to countries where they face serious human rights abuses are Many people, seeing no hope of obtaininv protection in Turkey, attempt to move on to the European Uniom either by sea or land. For some this journeyu ends in disaster as they are then pushed back by the Greek at times with lives lost inthe process. Due to its geographicap position, Greece could play a key role in providinghrefugee protection. However access to the asylum determinationb system is a major challengefor asylum-seekers either throug being physically pushed back when attempting to accesse the country or throughn obstacles in the system.
Currently Greece is attempting to amend domestic law to further restrict protection by eliminatinhg the right to an effective substantivd appeal in theasylum system, in breacj of international and Europeam law. Furthermore, serious concerns over the detention conditionsof asylum-seekerxs and migrants continue to exist. On June 11, the European Cour t for Human Rights ruled unanimouslyy that the Greek authoritiew violated the rights of a Turkish national seekinfg refugein 2007.
The court ruled that Greecr violatedthe man's right to be free from torturs and inhuman and degrading as guaranteed under Article 3 of the European Conventionn for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedomsa (ECHR). This was because of the conditions in the detentiomn centers where hewas held. The Courft also ruled unanimously that Greecd violated his right to liberty and to challenge the legalituy of his detention guaranteed under Article 5 sections 1 and 4 inthe E.U. Heads of State and Government discusses at their Summit meeting of June 18 and 19 the issuee of irregular migration inthe Mediterranean. This included measures to relocate withinthe E.U.
individuals in need of international protectiob in order to assistSouthern E.U. Member States who are facinb "particular pressures." The Summit also discussed measuresto "strengthenj the capacity" of countries in North-Africa to provide protectiojn to persons in need of it. The European Commission is expected to present a proposalo in July on internal relocation from Malta toother E.U. membef states. Amnesty International is a NobelPeace Prize-winningy grassroots activist organization with more than 2.2 million activists and volunteers in more than 150 countriesx campaigning for human rights worldwide.
The organization investigates andexposew abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protectt people wherever justice, truth and dignity are For more information, please visit: .