Sunday, November 22, 2015

Europe’s Refugee Pile-Up

UNHCR freak-out as Balkan states start to balk. Posted by Ann Corcoran on November 20, 2015

Invasion of Europe news….This story is confusing to me.  Actually it discusses THE big question I have, and I have not seen any good explanation for what could happen.

First, we hear reports that Sweden and Germany are closing their borders.  If that is so, and is happening already (or will happen), eventually what will become of all those migrants working their way northward?  Won’t they build up as water might behind a dam? Maybe these Balkan states are getting ready for that inevitable outcome.

Earlier this morning I saw this confusing (to me) report at the UNHCR website, here.    So I looked for a more understandable news story and found this one at The Guardian.    It still doesn’t answer my question, but does help to lay out the problem.

Have a quick look at the UNHCR interactive map that shows the migrant flow on a daily basis (yesterday 4,499 new refugees arrived in Greece) and imagine if the spigot gets shut off at the German/Austrian border or the Austria/Slovenia border, then what?  All of those flowing northward will inevitably pile up in those states ‘downstream’ right?

And, I guess what those countries downstream are saying is that they don’t want thousands of economic migrants (they are NOT refugees) piled up in their countries.  But, they will get a logjam of legitimate asylum seekers anyway.  EU leaders should have stopped the boats months ago, it all seems too little too late to me!

Here is what The Guardian is reporting: Countries along the Balkan migration trail have begun refusing to admit people of certain nationalities, amid a backlash against refugees in the aftermath of the Paris attacks last Friday.

Humanitarian workers active along the borders of Croatia, Serbia and Macedonia reported that refugees and migrants from countries other than Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq were now being stopped, raising the spectre of a migrant logjam in Greece.
The move comes after Slovenia, the most northerly country along the trail, suddenly tried to return 168 Moroccan migrants to Croatia on Thursday, in the first major development along the Balkan migration route since Hungary shut its border in September.  [Moroccan’s are not refugees, they are not being persecuted!—ed]

The decision sparked panic among the countries to Slovenia’s south, who feared that Slovenia was about to block access to anyone who could not easily prove their need for refugee status, and consequently turned back all migrants from Africa and southern Asia.

Slovenia said on Thursday afternoon it had not made any permanent decisions, and promised to admit refugees as long as Germany and Austria continued to subsequently take them. But a police spokesman confirmed that Slovenia would discuss with its Balkan neighbours how to limit the flow of so-called economic migrants in the future. More here.

The great build up behind a dam seems inevitable to me.  One day Germany will stop the flow and surely Austria will too then and the pile up will happen in those countries less able to manage any of this invasion.  Is anyone planning for this likely outcome? Go here for our complete ‘Invasion of Europe’ archive.
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