Many asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos, Greece, were sent back to the Turkish sea by Greek police officers after confiscating their documents, money, and cellphones.
Turkish Coast Guard officials have described Greece’s authorities’ latest move as a “clear case of illegal pushbacks.”
This is not the first time that both countries’ governments’ address accusations to each other regarding the increased number of asylum seekers that both countries continuously register.
Thousands of migrants continuously attempt to reach European countries by crossing the sea from Turkey to the Greek islands, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Last year, authorities in Greece accused Turkey of shepherding many migrants to the Greek border after claiming that satellite photographs showed an influx of migrants heading to the border.
Back then, a spokesperson of the Greek government stressed that satellites spotted thousands of people being moved to the Greek border from within the Turkish interior.
Both countries have continuously attempted to find new ways to deal with the increased number of migrants since a mutual agreement broke down last year.
Since the 2015 migrant crisis, Europe’s border with Asia at the Turkish border has been the main point of entry to the EU for many persons who attempted to enter European countries.
For more than a year, authorities in Turkey have turned a blind eye to the migrants, permitting them to cross the sea in order to reach Greece.
On the other hand, Greece is also removing all persons seeking international protection in the latter who have reached its islands, towing them into Turkish waters.
Many European organizations and officials have continuously denounced such pushbacks, which are considered violations of international law of fundamental European values.
However, authorities in Greece have denied such accusations addressed to them.
Many cases have been investigated in this regard, including by the European Union authorities. Last week, the Minister for Migration and Asylum in Greece, Notis Mitarachi, stressed that “reports have found no evidence of any breach of EU fundamental rights.”
The head of the United Nations refugee agency in Turkey, Philippe Leclerc, said his office had presented evidence, including “accounts of violence and family separations” to the Greek Ombudsman, requesting the cases be investigated, without result.
Previously, Greece’s government announced that it would permit secondary movement for migrants, permitting them to travel across the EU Member States freely.
The secondary movement means that migrants are permitted to continue to travel to other EU countries after initially arriving in another country, which for migrants coming to the EU often is Greece.
In addition, the Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, previously offered support to Lithuania in order to combat migration issues at external borders with Belarus, as the latter is receiving an increased number of migrants from Belarus.
Over 11,100 people attempted to reach European countries unlawfully through its external borders last month, marking a 69 per cent increase compared to the same period the previous year figures, based on the recent report of the European Union Protection Border Agency Frontex.
SOURCE: Schengen Visa Info
