![]() ![]() We have collected testimonies alleging systematic abuses and brutal treatment at the hands of police, border guards and other officials, including accounts of people being stripped of their clothes in freezing temperatures and having cold water poured over them, attacks by dogs, beatings and robbery.Įven when people have decided to try and stay, they are regularly being denied access to processes for claiming asylum and to proper information. Lack of space in government accommodation facilities, coercion by smugglers and fear of deportation by authorities have pushed people in inhumane and degrading conditions. Violence and intimidation are used to illegally push them back and deny them access to asylum procedures, even though such actions are strictly prohibited under international human rights law. A new NGO report reveals that migrants and refugees in Serbia, Macedonia, Croatia, Hungary and Bulgaria are being routinely mistreated by law enforcement officials. Rather than being places of safety, those countries have failed to offer protection to many new arrivals. Yet, every day, people attempt to make the border crossing, driven by the desire to continue their journey to find a better life in Europe, despite a lack of access to asylum procedures and fear of mistreatment in the Balkans countries. In Serbia, most refugees and migrants are living in derelict warehouses behind Belgrade’s main railway station. European borders have been militarized with aggressive controls, fences and border patrols, with little consideration for human dignity. In March 2016, the shutdown of the Western Balkans route to Europe has left thousands of them stuck in limbo and facing an uncertain future, many in unsafe accommodation. This is an often terrifying situation where robbery, injuries and even death are the price being paid. Migrants and refugees trying to reach Europe are taking enormous risks, including abuse at the hands of smugglers, freezing temperatures in winter and negotiating unknown and dangerous terrain such as forests and fast-flowing rivers. ![]()
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