Patras

Sebastian Rich

Set Ref:163

Date:19/07/2009

Greece has one of the worst records in Europe in terms of treatment of migrants, and has been heavily criticised (UNHCR, EU) for its treatment of unaccompanied migrant children in particular fleeing such countries as Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia. The granting of refugee status in Greece is the lowest in Europe and in April 2007, the European Commission sued Greece at the European Court of Justice over its asylum processes.
The Greek authorities say they are overwhelmed at the numbers of people flooding in and say that Greece, as one of Europe?s poorest nations, should not be saddled with the EU?s immigration responsibilities. Many are from Afghanistan. They arrive with no papers, often owing thousands of dollars to traffickers and unaware of their rights to seek asylum. Many live rough on the streets, live in cramped derelict buildings sharing the space with adult migrants, or make their way to a squalid, makeshift shanty town outside Patras,