John Dalhuisen (Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia Programme Director) spoke following the drowning of dozens of people in the Aegean sea today.
“The dreadful news today that 40 people, including 17 children, have drowned in the Aegean Sea is an indictment of European-wide policies that for years have prioritised building fences over saving lives. In another incident, two women and a 5 year old child died from hypothermia having made the crossing from Turkey.
“36,000 refugees and migrants have crossed the Aegean so far this year, and 94 have lost their lives. These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe. A manageable crisis has become a moral test that Europe is in danger of failing dismally.”
“European leaders need to wake up to the fact that the poorer regions of the world have been left to struggle with hosting the vast majority of those forced to flee bombs, bullets and torture for far too long.”
“All countries must share responsibility – including the richest – and that means welcoming more refugees through safe routes to, and safe reception, in Europe. Otherwise, refugees will be compelled to turn to people smugglers and the chaos and fatalities we saw last year will continue.”