Letters to the Editor: EU’s policy on refugees killing hope

Greece has been overwhelmed by the number of people seeking asylum and the country has harshened its stance on refugees. 

For the last few weeks, I have been involved in a joint research report with the Greek Council for Refugees. The report, Tipping the Scales: the Role of Responsibility and Solidarity Sharing in the Situation on the Greek Islands, assesses EU member states’ solidarity programmes and how failure to meet commitments has contributed to pressure on the Greek Islands, spawning abysmal conditions, and systemic human rights abuses.

The report also looks at the EU’s newly proposed asylum laws, with particular focus on the proposals for responsibility-sharing and solidarity mechanisms. We found that, despite promises of starting anew, the policies on the table fail to address the flaws that led to the overcrowded and inhospitable conditions in EU camps that we continue to see today.