I was originally paid for this article to appear on the now defunct Outloud Magazine website.
The first thing to address in this article is the title. For weeks leading up to this, some parts of the media have been using the term ‘migrant crisis’, which suggests that these people are voluntarily leaving their homes to find safe passage to Europe. This isn’t the case. It’s a matter of life and death. People (and it’s important to remember that, beneath terms like ‘migrant’ and ‘refugee’ we are talking about human beings like you or me) are being forced to flee their countries, their homes and their livelihoods. These people are refugees.
There is a crisis because of the vast influx refugees coming to Europe after recent developments in the Middle East and North Africa. The imperative need to leave their native countries is causing refugees to take incredible risks to reach Europe, and this has resulted in many refugees losing their lives in the process. Many have drowned attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea.
Each country in the European Union is taking a different stance, accepting a different amount of refugees under different conditions. Germany are currently leading the way – accepting any refugees who can make their way there.
Where are they coming
from?
These are people fleeing gang warfare, civil war and religious extremism in countries across the Middle East and North Africa.
Syria – The civil war has forced over four million people to seek asylum in foreign countries. In 2011, civil war began when the people of Syria protested President Assad’s regime’s killing of young pro-democracy demonstrators. The Syrian government indiscriminately killed many of their own citizens and both sides of the conflict have been accused of human rights abuses. Islamist extremist groups such as IS have now taken control of parts of the country and continue to fight opposing jihadist groups, Kurdish forces, and the government.
Afghanistan – The war has been ongoing since 2001 and the government continue to fight Taliban and Islamic State insurgents. Tens of thousands have died in the conflict.
Eritrea – The dictatorship in Eritrea have committed innumerable human rights abuses and reportedly run the country like ‘one massive prison camp.’ Those that manage to escape are still afraid of the regime’s informers finding them.
Others come from war ravaged countries and those split by Islamic State or the anarchy that has developed since the Arab Spring. They include those from Iraq, Kosovo, Serbia, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Yemen.
Where are they going?
Many refugees’ journeys are only just beginning when they get out of their native countries. They make their way through neighbouring countries and across the Mediterranean to European countries such as Italy, Spain and Greece. They are then journeying to whichever European countries will grant them asylum. As previously mentioned, there is much debate over which countries should let in certain amounts of refugees and some are stipulating that they will only accept Christians, or that refugees must be stamped with ID numbers. At the moment, many refugees are being put in holding camps while waiting to be granted asylum.
What next?
This is an ongoing situation that is constantly changing. It is hoped that the EU will soon reach an agreement on assigning each member state a compulsory refugee quota. None of the conflicts the refugees are fleeing show any signs of drawing to a close, with fresh reports of Islamic State’s barbarism hitting the headlines every other day. The refugee crisis is far from over.
Sources:
The Independent:
The BBC:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34131911
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-26116868
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24583286
Human Rights Watch:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/eritrea
France24:
http://www.france24.com/en/20150626-eritrea-migrants-europe-france-libya-asylum
The Huffington Post: