The situation at the border crossings Gevgelija and Kumanovo for the period: 09.01.2017 – 22.01.2017

The two weeks report on the situation at the border crossings Gevgelija and Kumanovo includes the following topics: Available facilities and conditions at the camp and Institutional treatment.

Gevgelija 

Available facilities and conditions

The number of refugees at the start of the week amounted to 92, but it dropped twice during the week after some families were transported back to Greece at their own request, whereby the number of refugees went down to 67 during the second week.

Due to the low temperatures, despite the attempts to warm the facilities, some of the water pipes in the toilets froze.

The hygiene in the toilets and the camp in general is very poor, with sporadic improvements.

Institutional treatment

At the start of the week, a seven-member family, who had travelled from Skopje to Gevgelija at their own will, was brought to the camp. The family arrived to Macedonia in September last year, but due to their role as witnesses in court proceedings for smuggling, they were accommodated in the Safe House in Skopje. Soon after this they were transported to Greek territory.

On 12.01.2017, three refugees originating from Afghanistan, two men and one woman, arrived from Kumanovo to Gevgelija by train and were taken to the camp. After several unsuccessful attempts to cross the Macedonian-Serbian border, and several nights spent in the open air in the village of Lojane, they decided to go back to Greece. They were provided with medical and humanitarian relief and after they were interviewed by the security services, they were sent back to Greece.

16.01.2017, seven refugees were brought to the camp, mainly of Syrian origin, and one from Algeria and Pakistan each. They were discovered during a routine field control of a cargo train, which they boarded in order to travel from Greece to Macedonia, and this is their fourth attempt to cross the border. After they were registered by the police and provided with food and medical aid, they were transported to Greece at their own request. On the same day, tree refugees originating from Algeria were brought to the camp, who were also transported to Greece soon after.

A total of 25 refugees from Syria, who had been staying the camp for longer than 10 months, were “deported” back to Greece at their own request. According to them, the reason for this decision were the bad conditions, the feeling of been trapped and deprived of freedom, as well as the hopeless situation they had been facing for a longer period of time.

Kumanovo

Available facilities and conditions

Although the official number of refugees in the camp is 48, the unofficial number is much higher. In the course of these two weeks, the number fluctuated around 100, but due to the constant movement of the refugees, it keeps changing.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs paid a visit to the camp on 09.01.2017.

Due to the low temperatures, the camp is facing problems with the plumbing as the water-supply pipes have frozen.

Institutional treatment

After the decision of the General Staff of the Crisis Management Center to admit the refugees arriving from the villages in the vicinity to the camp, the number of refugees in the camp has increased on daily basis. The refugees accommodated in the camp are from several countries of origin: Syria, Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria, Pakistan, Iran and Libya. All the refugees arriving are issued cards so that they can be given food.

On 09.01.2017, a group of 12 refugees, who had arrived from Athens with the help of groups of smugglers and had paid 1300 EUR per person for the help, arrived to the camp. On the next day, 5 more refugees arrived to the camp. On 11.01.2017, a juvenile person was brought to the camp, who after being found by the mobile team of the Red Cross in an alarming situation, close to freezing, was taken to the hospital in Kumanovo, where the child was provided with medical treatment. The child is now accommodated in the camp, but is regularly taken to the hospital for treatment. On 14.01.2017, 4 more new refugees arrived and were admitted to the camp. On 19.01.2017, three more refugees were brought to the camp, including a man and his pregnant wife who was immediately sent to the hospital in Kumanovo due to her deteriorated health.

The situation with the shelter centers in the Republic of Macedonia

The number of refugees in the shelter centers is not available.

Irregular migration

In the course of these two weeks, the daily bulletins of the Ministry of Interior did not register any criminal and legal events related to refugees or smuggling.