The situation at the border crossings Gevgelija and Kumanovo for the period 12.09.2016 – 18.09.2016
The weekly 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 in the camp this week amounted to 126 and stayed the same during the entire week.
On 12.09.2016, on the occasion of the religious holiday Kurban Bayrami, a small celebration was held in the camp.
On 16.07.2016, a delegation of the European Union and IOM paid a visit to the camp, led by the newly appointed EU Ambassador to Macedonia, Samuel Žbogar.
The preparations for setting up a metal detector at the camp gate are in a closing stage.
Swings for the children have been set up in the camp through a donation by UNICEF, and are now the place where the children mainly hang out.
Institutional treatment
On the night between 16 and 17 September, a group of refugees originating from Iraq, Syria, Egypt were brought to the camp on an Army truck. They had crossed the border on foot, illegally, and were caught by the police in the vicinity of Bogdanci.
Kumanovo
Available facilities and conditions
The number of refugees oscillates around 60. A certain number of refugees who reside in the fields in the vicinity of the camp were spotted, but they are not allowed access to the camp. They sporadically come to the camp to get food and water.
After the disastrous hygienic conditions from the previous week, during this week the camp was cleaned and disinfected by the Center for Public Health, Kumanovo.
Institutional treatment
At the beginning of this week, a father with two underage children originating from Syria arrived in the camp, but was not allowed to enter it. He headed towards the nearby villages, while the Red Cross provided them with medical and humanitarian aid. A few days after, the family headed with a train towards Gevgelija, because they got information that the mother had been caught up in Gevgelija and taken back to Greek territory.
The refugee originating from Algeria who suffered an electrical shock and was sent back to the camp from the hospital after treatment is facing serious pain from the unhealed injuries, and the doctors in the camp are unable to provide him with the necessary means for treatment.
The situation in the shelter centers in the Republic of Macedonia
The number of refugees sheltered in the Shelter centers during this period, is unavailable.
Irregular migration
In the course of this week, no criminal-legal events related to migrant smuggling were registered in the bulletin of the Ministry of Interior.
This report is made possible by the generous support of the Foundation Open Society Institute (FOSI) within the project „Improvement of the rights protection for migrants and asylum seekers in the Republic of Macedonia“. The contents are the responsibility of the Helsinki Committee for Human rights of the Republic of Macedonia and do not necessarily reflect the views of FOSI.