Faced with the influx of refugees, Cyprus calls for help Brussels
Three Somali refugees at the Limnes camp in Cyprus on December 15, 2021. AFP - IAKOVOS HATZISTAVROU
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
Located only a few tens of kilometers from the Syrian and Lebanese coasts, the country has suffered for several months a very large influx of exiles.
This Wednesday, officials from Frontex, the European Union's border police, are meeting with the Cypriot government to try to resolve this crisis.
The small island has very few reception facilities, the camps are overcrowded and the authorities are no longer able to cope.
Advertising
Read more
With our special correspondent on Cyprus,
Noé Pignède
In Nicosia, hundreds of exiles roam the streets of the city.
Jean-Marc is originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In Cyprus, this 50-year-old thought he would find a gateway to the European Union.
But the island is not part of the Schengen area.
“
I thought that by coming here, I could see my brother in Europe.
It should normally be like this.
Does the European Union really know the realities of refugees and migrants?
I don't want to stay here.
»
For two months, Jean-Marc has been stranded with tens of thousands of people, Syrians, Eritreans, or even Afghans, all living in extremely difficult conditions.
“
We meet people who have not eaten for several days.
They live on the streets because they can't pay rent.
And they are harassed by the local authorities.
There is institutional racism.
The message sent is:
“go home. If you stay here, you will suffer”, explains Doros Polykarpou, director of the NGO Kisa.
For its part, the Conservative government claims not to have the means to welcome so many people, and speaks of “
migratory submersion
”.
“
Cyprus is in an emergency situation.
It is one of the first entry points for migrants from the European Union.
We call on the other states of the Union for help, to relieve us of this burden
,” said Michael Loizos, Chief of Staff to the Minister of the Interior.
The Cypriot government is asking that Frontex block the arrival of new migrants on its island, and that some of those already there be sent to other countries of the Union.
1,300 asylum seekers have landed since the beginning of the year.
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_EN
Cyprus
Immigration
European Union