Petition from Researchers Regarding the Fires in Moria, Lesvos
2020-09-14
Following the fires that have burnt the Moria camp in Lesvos to the ground, we want to express our deepest concern with the developments in the Greek Aegean Islands over the past couple of years. We would also like to point out that the fires in Moria should be seen not as an isolated incident but rather as a direct consequence of the EU’s migration and border policies.
The so-called ”Hotspots approach”, in combination with the EU’s other policies and initiatives, has created an unsustainable situation in the Aegean Islands – where people are forced to live under both undignified and uncertain conditions. A number of research reports have shown how people live for protracted periods in camps that lack the most basic of necessities and sanitary facilities – but also how the asylum process is characterized by legal insecurity and inefficiency. For a long time, human rights organizations and humanitarian actors have warned that the situation in Lesvos – and in particular in the Moria camp – will inevitably lead to a disaster. This disaster is now a fact.
The entire Petition can be read here