Movement restrictions
Shortly after the new prison-like camp was opened, it turned into a de facto prison for many asylum seekers, and the European Commission is clearly aware of that. Since mid-November 2021, newly registered asylum seekers as well as people whose asylum claim has been rejected are denied their freedom of movement because they don’t have a valid asylum seeker ID-cards to pass the strict entry controls of the closed camp facilities. People affected by this arbitrary detention are prevented from accessing basic services provided in the city and are locked up behind barbed-wire fences.
Access to health care
In addition, access to health care is very restricted since there is no doctor operating inside the camp since the end of February this year. A doctor from another island was sent to Samos for only three days in the last week but this is not a sustainable long-term solution. Not only does the lack of doctors prevent people from accessing health care, it also denies their right to a fair vulnerability assessment that could enable individuals in need of specific care to be transferred to the mainland.
Pushbacks
In the last years, pushbacks have become a common practice in the Aegean. In March 2022, 45 pushback cases were reported by the Aegean Boat Report, which corresponds in total to 947 people being illegal returned back to Turkey and violating their right to ask for asylum in Europe.
To get more information about pushbacks, you can read:
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