EU Commissionh Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs

To:

EU Commissionh

Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs

Tao: Ms Yiva Johansson, commissioner for Home Affaires

Cab-johansson-contact@ec.europa.eu

Rue du Luxembourg 46
B-1000 BRUSSELS

Dear Ms. Yiva Johansson,

Fires have destroyed Greece’s largest migrant camp, an overcrowded facility on the island of Lesbos, leaving nearly 13,000 people without shelter.  According to local organizations, almost 70% of them are Afghan asylum seekers. Afghan community in Europe is seriously concerned about the condition of the asylum seekers, namely the safety of women and children.

Federation of Afghan Refugee Organizations in Europe (FAROE) , is a platform established in the year 2000 in The Netherlands and represents 53 social-cultural organizations in the Member States of the European Union. Advocating for collective rights of the Afghan community in Europe, namely the asylum seekers, is the main goal of FAROE. That is why we function as mouth piece of Afghan community in this case and request you to look for a real and proper solution to this problem. A solution based on norms an values the people of Europe have traditionally stand for.  Short-time  solution won’t work but will cause other explosive situations.

Dear Ms. Yiva Johansson,

The current asylum policy of the European Union to discourage asking for asylum in the EU Member States by initiating regional reception and reception on external EU borders can only postponed the crisis and undermine the European norms and values. Problems should be tackled at their roots. When the Cold War was ended, there was some hope for reduction in the number of regional conflicts. But the War-on-terror and the so-called Preventive-wars initiated by the West namely in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya in the past two decades, resulted to explosive increase in the number of refugees. In order to prevent new waves of mass-movement of asylum seekers towards Europe, these war-torn countries should be helped to rebuild their economic infrastructure and produce jobs. Economic stability can result to political stability. It will cost money, but paying Turkey, Libya, … can in the long run swallow much more resources.

In relation to the victims of fire in the Moria camp, we request you to use your good offices to stimulate Member States to rescue as much asylum-seekers as the can by admitting them to their asylum procedure and by doing this, relief Greece from the enormous pressure the country experiences since 2015. We believe that priority should be given children and families with children.

We are interested to meet you at any time proper for you and discuss the situation of Afghan asylum seekers in some EU Member States.

With kind regards, on behalf of the executive committee of FAROE,

Mrs. Lona Wali, chair person of FAROE