Category: ΔΕΛΤΙΟ ΤΥΠΟΥ

“The Small Room with 101 Windows”

Posted on Wednesday June 28th, 2017

“Small Room”, is an artistic project inspired and based on the refugees’ journey from their warring countries to Europe.

The first opening days of the exhibition were from May 28th to May 30th in Thessaloniki, where the initiator-activist Vassilis Tsartsanis, along with the Asklepeion Team, presented their work to the public. The exhibition was held in Bensousan Khan, a 19th-century inn, at the area of Ano Ladakika in Thessaloniki. The exhibition was comprised of a series of installations, with audiovisual material being projected mainly from the mobile phones of the refugees themselves.

The “Small Room with 101 Windows” project, is an experiential and at the same time interactive exhibition, which describes the two year of every day experience with the refugees originating from the war zones heading from Turkey to central Europe.

This vision-project led by Vassilis Tsartsanis’ inspiration and executed by the Asklepeion Team, aims to inform and raise public awareness on the critical refugee issue focusing on its multiple dimensions:

–        the magnitude of this humanistic drama

–        the power of solidarity

–        the threat of the uncontrolled action of the illegal trafficking gangs and their negative impact on the European asylum

–        the urgent need of action of the European authorities

–        the activization of the reflexes of the European citizens

–        the participation of young people and student as well as University institutions throughout Europe

The place/ point of reference, is situated on the Greek-Skopje border at the around area of Eidomeni where the biggest and at the same time most deadly passage to Europe had been established.

SolidarityNow, with the valuable support of our field teams in northern Greece, is participating in this great project with paintings and drawings from our young beneficiaries. The “Small Room” –funded exclusively by OSF– began its journey from Thessaloniki while its official premiere will take place in London, in September 2017. Then it will travel to various European cities; Berlin, Copenhagen, Brussels, Belgrade and Athens, ascertained so far.

See more on the project here.

Safe Refugee and Proud!

Posted on Tuesday June 27th, 2017
Valia Savvidou & Stefania Athanasiou

On Saturday, June 10th and during the three-day period, June 14th to 17th, SolidarityNow participated in Athens and Thessaloniki Pride, respectively, on the side of the LGBTI population.

The aim of the organization’s presence at the Festival was to stand by the LGBTI community and to present its own work on the protection and rights’ defense of the very sensitive population of the LGBTI refugees.

Operating under the principles of equality, respect, freedom of expression and solidarity, the organization implements, since November 2016, the “Safe Refugee” program, the specialized program for LGBTI refugees and asylum seekers who face double stigma; being both LGBTI and a refugee.  

This Festival provided the opportunity to join the voice of the Greek LGBTI community with that of the LGBTI refugee community through actions and things that unite people, all people, regardless of their origin, color, sexual orientation, social status. Music, colorful balloons, interactive awareness games, colorful informational material, and the cheerful general climate, were the means to highlight the joint requests of all for equality and respect.

Thousands of people visited the SolidarityNow kiosk, in both Athens and Thessaloniki, and had the opportunity to be informed about the “Safe Refugee” program, while their interaction with the organization’s people is a small step towards sensitization, against discrimination and in favor of acceptance and respect of human rights.

In SolidarityNow we believe that initiatives like these encourage societies to move ahead, to gradually become the open societies for which we work for, and in which we all have a position as equal members who deserve equal opportunities.

 

*In the framework of the specialized housing and support program, entitled “Safe Refugee”, SolidarityNow provides accommodation to LGBTI refugees in independent apartments in Athens and Thessaloniki. The program’s participants receive psychosocial support, legal aid, while they take part in educational and recreational activities; they are also part of a wider network that aims to improve their living conditions and support them while staying in Greece.

The Hosting and Accommodation Programs are developed by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and funded by the European Union Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (ECHO).

“You have to taste a culture to understand it” *

Posted on 
Giorgos Moutafis for SolidarityNow

*Deborah Cater, British travel and food blogger

On the evening of June 19th, the Seychelles restaurant in Kerameikos had altered its catalogue adding Barshank’s dishes – humus, spicy lamb, tabbouleh, grilled chicken with spices and groats and mutabal. The same happened when Abdul cooked at the 7 Food Sins restaurant in Plaka, where the cook confirmed his reputation as the “king of falafel”!

Both sides ceased the opportunity to come closer to each other’s culture; the Greek public on the one hand and the chefs from other countries on the other; the chefs who live currently in Greece as refugees and/or asylum seekers. Among them, Barshank and Abdul, chefs, refugees from Syria, beneficiaries of the SolidarityNow housing and accommodation program.

All this became a reality for the first time this year, since the Refugee Food festival, which is organized by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in several European countries, came to Greece and more specifically in Athens!

It took five days, from 17th to 22nd June, for the five chefs who cooked in five different restaurants in Athens, their countries’ traditional dishes and literally charmed the audience. Some of the restaurants even needed to extend the days for the new chefs to satisfy the people who wanted to taste the flavors of the different countries, such as Syria, Iran, Somalia, Afghanistan.

The organization’s beneficiaries, firstly Barshank, on June 19th and then Abdul on June 21st, cooked for us Syrian spicy dishes, which were accompanied by their warm smile as they could not hide their happiness doing what they love. Cooking. They cooked for Athenians, delicacies from their own country, giving in this way a message of solidarity, respect and equality.

We wish to all the chefs who participated in the Refugee Food Festival to find their way to a peaceful and safe life and gain the opportunity to do what they love; besides, Abdul states that food and his relationship with it “is the ticket for a better future”!

Initiatives, such as the one by the UNHCR, will always be supported by SolidarityNow, since they are steps towards the next day; the one of social acceptance and integration of refugees and/or asylum seekers into the Greek community.

Abdul and Barshank were uniquely photographed and filmed by Giorgos Moutafis’ lens.

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The best for last! Barshank shares a traditional recipe with the organization’s readers and friends:

Baba ghanoush | Kurdish version without tahini

We punch out the small round eggplant with a fork a and put it in the grill, until it blackens and shrinks. Then, we peel it and put the flesh in the blender until it becomes a pulp. Then we strain it.

Take a pan and pour some olive oil. Add 2 or 3 cloves of grated garlic. In the pan, we can add a whipped egg. Then, we add the pulp eggplant, paprika sauce, salt, pepper. We place the pulp on a dish and make a hole in the center. Add mint or other fresh herbs, olive oil and some slices of tomato to decorate the dish.

 

The Hosting and Accommodation Programs are developed by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and funded by the European Union Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (ECHO).

Joint letter on Racist Attack on a Romani Neighbourhood in the city of Menidi, Attica

Posted on Thursday June 22nd, 2017

Solidarity Now together with other organizations sends a letter of concern to the competent Greek and European authorities in response to the racist attack on a Romani neighborhood in  the city of Menidi. A full criminal investigation on these events which started on 10 June 2017 has not been conducted yet.

Τo:

Nikolaos Toskas

Alternate Minister of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction

4 P. Kanellopoulou St., GR-101 77, Athens, Greece

pressoffice@yptp.gr

 

Municipality of Acharnes, Yiannis Kassavos, Mayor

Filadelfeias Avenue, 87 & Bosda str.

PC 136 73

info@acharnes.gr

 

Lieutenant General, Konstantinos Tsouvalas

Chief of the Hellenic Police

4 P. Kanellopoulou St., GR-101 77, Athens, Greece

press@hellenicpolice.gr

Cc:

Álvaro Oliveira

European Commission Legal Officer, DG Justice

Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 200 1049 Brussels

Belgium

alvaro.oliveira@ec.europa.eu

 

Pia Lindholm

European Commission Legal Officer, DG Justice

Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 200 1049 Brussels

Belgium

pialindholm@ec.europa.eu

 

Dora Husz

European Commission Policy Analyst, DG Justice

Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 200 1049 Brussels

Belgium

dora.husz@ec.europa.eu

 

Andreas I. Pottakis

Ombudsman of Greece

17 Halkokondyli St. 104 32 Αthens, Greece

ombudsman@synigoros.gr

press@synigoros.gr

Re: Racist Attack on a Romani Neighbourhood in the city of Menidi, Attica

Dear Sir/Madam,

We the undersigned organisations are writing to you in response to anti-Romani mob violence and arson attacks that began on 10 June 2017 in a Romani neighbourhood of the city of Menidi, Attica (Greater suburb of Athens).

According to information compiled from media sources[1], on 10 June 2017 an 11-year-old non-Romani boy was killed by a stray bullet of unknown source during celebrations on the occasion of the ending of the school year. A 23-year-old Romani man was apprehended as a suspect by the police and on 12 June 2017 was convicted to a suspended 40-month sentence for the use of a weapon[2]. In response, the local Roma community were collectively blamed for the death of the boy. In the immediate aftermath, an angry mob, of about 1500 participants, has gathered in the Romani neighbourhood of Menidi and thrown Molotov cocktails in front of the house of the 23-year-old suspect’s Romani family.

A video posted on social media[3] by far-right groups shows arson attacks on 12 June on the homes of the Romani suspect (2.20) as well as hundreds of supporters of the Independent Maeander Nationalists and Combat 18, marching and chanting “gypos, pigs, murderers”. The footage later (3.30) shows another arson attack on a second home belonging to the Romani suspect’s family and crowds chanting “gypos, cunts, shops of cops”. The video ends with a threat of more violence against the Roma in Menidi (8.55). Both homes were burned extensively[4] but no arrests have been made.

On 11 June the anti-Roma protest continued and outbreaks of violence occurred in Menidi. There was an attempt by the mob to break through police lines and attack the Romani inhabited area. During the rally, some people threw self-made firebombs at Romani houses destroying two of them. The police has responded with tear gas, triggering a clash with the mob.

On 12 June, an anti-Roma march was initiated in the area of Menidi. The rally lead to outbreaks of violence as the angry mob more threw self-made bombs and stones at police at the train station, in an area bordering the Romani neighbourhood. The police has responded with tear gas and stun grenades. At 10.30 pm the rally had reached the Romani inhabited area. The intervention of the police has so far stopped further outbreaks of violence against the Roma.

On 13 June, non-Romani residents of Menidi initiated anti-Romani riots in front of the Citizen Protection Ministry. When authorities reportedly failed to launch a criminal investigation, the Greek Helsinki Monitor filed a complaint with the Hellenic Police’s Division to Combat Racist Violence on 16 June. On 20 June, GHM has been briefly informed that Hellenic Police had launched a criminal investigation on these events.

We urgently call on your respective authority to fully investigate and prosecute (if appropriate) the individuals involved in this incident once order is restored. The clear presence of deeply entrenched anti-Gypsyism in the county requires that this be undertaken, not only to secure the rights of the individuals affected, but also for the protection of the entire Romani community. We would remind your office, it is indispensable to investigate the potential for racial motivation in order to fulfil your legal obligations under the EU Framework Decision 2008/913/JHA, particularly Article 8, as well as Article 14 read with Articles 2 and 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

We urge the Minister of Interior and the Mayor of Menidi to ensure the safety of its Romani citizens in Medini as Neo-Nazi groups rally continue threatening the life and security of the Romani people in the city and in the country. We call your respective authorities to address the issues of marginalization of Greece Romani citizens and the obviously heightened dangerous level of anti-Roma sentiment in the city and society.

Given the gravity of the situation, we in accordance with the applicable domestic and international safeguards regarding disclosure of personal data, requests, in accordance with article 5 (Access to documents—Πρόσβαση σε έγγραφα) of the Greek Administrative Procedural Code (Κώδικας Διοικητικής Διαδικασίας), Law 2690/1999 regarding the free access to information of public interest – your office to provide us with the following information in writing.

We, the undersigned organisations, would like to highlight that the information requested concerns the institutional response to alleged hate motivated incident rather than any data of a personal nature:

  1. 1. Has an ex officio investigation been launched concerning the violent arson attacks against the Romani community, and if so when? Has the complaint filed by the Greek Helsinki Monitor been addressed and if so when?
  2. What measures have been undertaken by your office to determine the cause(s) of the incident?
  3. Have any suspects been identified?
  4. Have witnesses been summoned to testify?
  5. Has anyone been accused of being responsible for this incident, and if so, what charges were brought against this person(s)?
  6. Has the highly likely racial motivation of the incident been investigated and / or taken into consideration during any investigations?
  7. What measures (if any) are planned, or have already been taken to rehouse the victims of the arson attack?
  8. What measures are envisaged to ensure the safety the Romani inhabitants in the Menidi neighbourhood?

We will be carefully monitoring the situation, and institutional responses. We are available for further information or clarification if it is needed. We look forward to your response via email to atanas.zahariev@errc.org, or by post to the European Roma Rights Centre, Wesselényiutca 16, H-1077 Budapest, Hungary.

 

Yours sincerely,

Đorđe Jovanović

European Roma Rights Centre

 

Panayote Dimitras

Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM)

 

Vasilis Tsarnas

Coordinated Organizations and Communities for Roma Human Rights in Greece (SOKADRE)

 

Epaminondas Farmakis

Solidarity Now

 

Nafsika Papanikolatou

Minority Rights Group – Greece (MRG-G)

 

Read the letter here

 

[1] https://dithen2010.blogspot.hu/2017/06/an-anti-roma-pogrom-in-athens-short.html

[2] https://greece.greekreporter.com/2017/06/13/menidi-residents-demonstrate-at-citizen-protection-ministry/#sthash.KEj859qz.dpuf

[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQq0Y5onv8w

[4] https://agonaskritis.gr/μενίδι-εκαψαν-και-τα-2-σπίτια-του-23χρονο/]

“A Fundamentally Different Approach is Needed”: Α Joint Statement

Posted on 

IDC Members and partners, including SolidarityNow, write to express our collective concern that, “A Fundamentally Different Approach is Needed” to the immigration detention of migrants in Europe.
In advance of a consultation with key civil society stakeholders from 22-23 June 2017 at the Council of Europe Headquarters in Strasbourg, over 30 national, regional and international civil society organisations have drafted a joint statement, which will be presented to the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) who is carrying out a codifying exercise on a detailed set of immigration detention rules based on existing international and regional human rights standards relating to the conditions of detention of migrants.

More info at https://idcoalition.org/ 

Read the joint statement here

A new Child and Family Support Hub opens its doors to refugees and migrants in the City of Athens

Posted on Monday June 19th, 2017

A new Child and Family Support Hub (CFSH or “Blue Dot”) is inaugurated today, as the result of the collaboration between the City of Athens, and more specifically the Department for the Support and Social Integration of Migrants and Refugees, and the NGO SolidarityNow. The initiative, which targets refugee and migrant women and children, is supported by UNICEF, with European Union emergency support funding. It forms part of a wider network of collaborations created by the City of Athens for the management of refugee flows and the development of a framework for the social inclusion of refugees and migrants.

Women and children constitute a significant part of refugee and migrant flows. They are considered as a group with specific needs, since they are more likely to be exposed to multiple forms of discrimination and exploitation. The City of Athens recognized the need to provide services to this population at an urban level and asked for UNICEF’s support, which, in cooperation with Solidarity Now, already operates seven Child and Family Support Hubs across Greece.

The CFSH aims at becoming a unique hub for the provision of psychosocial support to those who need it and for the promotion of their smooth integration to the Greek society. In particular, the following services will be offered at the CFSH, located at the third floor of the building on 45 Mezonos str.:

  • Information on issues of interest to the beneficiaries, such as hospital care, housing and material assistance.
  • Support to the process of introducing children to the Greek educational system.
  • Psychosocial, recreational and educational activities for minors, including creative groups aiming at promoting their socialization.
  • Identification and referral of vulnerable people to specialized services, including: families, children at risk with emphasis on unaccompanied children, people with disabilities or illness etc.
  • Psychosocial support and empowerment for women, with a focus on mothers, counseling on care issues and networking with services. The aim of the Center is to empower the beneficiaries, thus enhancing their role as mothers.
  • Support to women who have survived gender-based violence by providing counseling and interconnection with the necessary services.
  • Referrals to other services, when necessary.

The CFSH is staffed with qualified personnel by SolidarityNow and the Department for the Support and Social Integration of Migrants and Refugees, including social workers, psychologists, educators and interpreters. Additionally, the Hub will host scientific personnel of other organizations and services working with refugees and migrants. Moreover, it will provide child care to mothers, for the time period that they are consulting with the social workers.

The CFSH will complement the wider framework of services provided to refugees and migrants at the building on Mezonos street.

More specifically, in the framework of the ESF budget 2014-2020, the City of Athens will create two Migrant Integration Centers (MICs). One of them will be hosted on the ground floor of the Mezonos building and the other will be located at more distant areas of the Municipality. The MICs will be staffed with specialized scientific personnel and will aim to work as a “one stop services point” for anyone who requires information, guidance and support to cover a wide range of needs.

The CFSH will be interconnected with other initiatives and programs for refugees and migrants, as well as with the social services of the Municipality and of other institutions, constituting a place of protection and support.

Social integration is now the priority

Posted on 
Giorgos Moutafis for SolidarityNow

World Refugee Day: SolidarityNow underlines the needs on the ground  for refugees living in Greece.

The celebration of the World Refugee Day finds our country at a crucial moment. At present, there are no more than 40,000 refugees in the Greek mainland; nevertheless, an unreasonably large number of them still live in camps under conditions that are anything but satisfactory.

SolidarityNow has already stressed out that social inclusion and integration should now be the priority, i.e. the primary access of these people to the fundamental goods of health, education, labor, etc. Only by this way we will be able to ensure the already wounded social cohesion.

Specifically, SolidarityNow requests:

  1. Direct plan for the evacuation and #close_the_camps and transference of the people to urban areas to become feasible the implementation of the integration policies.
  2. Unrestricted access for all, whether they are in the islands or in mainland, to the asylum process, while respecting all the procedural assurances deriving from national, community and international law.
  3. Access to the labor market for all asylum seekers (and the pre-registered ones).
  4. The registration of all children in the national education system to ensure their smooth socialization in the country.
  5. The unhindered access for all to the health system without discrimination
  6. Immediate activation of Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund to support the respective actions, focusing on the housing allowance for persons who are granted the refugee status and are therefore not eligible for asylum accommodation.

The refugees will live with us. The sooner we respond to this fact with integration policies, the better we will protect ourselves, the local communities and the cohesion of the Greek society.

Airbnb Partners with SolidarityNow To Launch New Platform Providing Housing for Refugees and Displaced Populations in Greece

Posted on Thursday June 15th, 2017
Sophia Ioannou

New Technology Lets Anyone with a Spare Bedroom Open Their Home,
Help Address Global Refugee Crisis

 

Airbnb, the world’s leading hospitality company, in partnership with SolidarityNow, a pioneering Greek NGO working with migrants and refugees, launched Open Homes in Greece, a new platform that will make it easier for people to open their homes to refugees and displaced populations. Anyone can volunteer their space by visiting airbnb.com/welcome/refugees/.

The new platform connects Airbnb hosts who have offered to temporarily house displaced people at no cost with relief organizations and nonprofits that serve refugees and other people in need. Authorized organizations can use Open Homes to search and book free Airbnb listings for refugees and other displaced people in need. Starting today, SolidarityNow will match refugees and other displaced populations to available accommodation through the platform, and act as a liaison between guests, hosts, and Airbnb.

“It’s easy to feel powerless when you think about massive global challenges such as the refugee crisis, but there are things everyone can do that make a big difference”, said Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia. “The simple act of opening your home for a few nights can be life-changing for people who who’ve had to leave everything behind.”

Earlier this year, Airbnb set a goal of providing short-term housing over the next five years for 100,000 people in need around the world. The new platform will help achieve this goal by making it easy for relief organizations to book listings with hosts around the world who have offered to share their space with refugees at no cost. To date, 6,000 people have offered globally to open their home to a refugee at no cost.

There are approximately 35,000 asylum seekers in Greece with no access to accommodation besides camps. These include candidates for the European Union’s relocation program who have not yet secured accommodation through existing programs, or asylum seekers who are ineligible for relocation (and thus also ineligible for program placements). SolidarityNow and Airbnb hope to make a significant impact by placing thousands of these refugees in homes during this partnership.

“We are thrilled to pair SolidarityNow’s deep local expertise with Airbnb’s powerful community of hosts to provide housing solutions for refugees in Greece,” said Sofia Gkiousou, Airbnb’s Regional Policy Manager for Greece. “We look forward to this initiative not only providing shelter for those who have been forced from their homes, but also to foster a deeper community among refugees and Greeks.”

The partnership has been created with the support of Open Society Foundations, and in collaboration with the Radcliffe Foundation and the Ascend Initiative, a new philanthropic effort launched in Concordia last week.

“We believe this groundbreaking initiative will benefit guests, hosts, and the wider community alike”, said Epaminondas Farmakis, Executive Director of SolidarityNow. “We hope our partnership will enable local hosts to gain awareness of the plight of refugees and edge the wider community towards acceptance and smooth coexistence, as well as promote our longstanding goal to #closethecamps.”

“In the past, Airbnb staff worked directly with relief organizations to place refugees with hosts who volunteered their homes”, added Gebbia. “Now leveraging Airbnb’s core competency is easy for anyone who has a spare room or apartment and wants to connect with relief organizations and play a small role in tackling this global challenge.”

Airbnb’s mission is to create a world where anyone can belong anywhere and has worked to support refugees and displaced people for several years:

  • In the wake of Superstorm Sandy in 2012, Airbnb community members volunteered to house people displaced by the storm at no cost. The idea inspired the creation of Airbnb’s disaster relief program, which has since provided free temporary housing during 65 disasters around the globe to people in need.
  • To date, we have provided over 5,000 nights of free housing to relief workers working on the refugee crisis in Kos, Lesvos, Ionnina, Athens, and the Balkans.
  • Last year, we matched up to $1 million in contributions from our community to UNHCR to support their work with refugees.
  • Since November 2016, over 550 Airbnb hosts and resettled refugee families shared holiday meals to find common ground and to learn more about each other. Over the course of 2017 we will be expanding this initiative, enabling our community to offer warm meals and create new bonds with future citizens.
  • When policies that prohibited some people from entering the United States were enacted earlier this year, thousands of members of the Airbnb community volunteered to open their homes to displaced travelers.
  • Earlier this year, Airbnb pledged to contribute $4 million over the course of four years to the International Rescue Committee to support the most critical needs of displaced populations globally.

SolidarityNow is a network of organizations aiming to assist and support those most affected by the economic and humanitarian crises in Greece. Through the provision of services to both the local Greek and migrant populations, it seeks to restore the vision of a strong Europe based on solidarity and open values.

  • Since 2013 it has implemented 75 programs on human rights and social justice, protection of vulnerable populations, youth, and advocacy; one third of its programs are directly related to the refugee crisis. More than 65,000 persons in need have passed the previous year through the open-door policy Centers in Athens and Thessaloniki operated by SolidarityNow and funded by the Open Society Foundations.
  • Its staff combines expertise with deep local experience to ensure successful matching services, secure the safety and comfort of guests and foster a sense of community between hosts and guests.
  • It currently provides accommodation to 1,200 people through building and apartment rentals (hosted more than 3,700 people of concern during 2016), under the Accommodation project “Home for Hope” implemented with support from UNHCR and the EU. While provided services to more than 1,000 children in camps with the Blue Dots program funded by UNICEF.

World Refugee Day 2017 Event

Posted on Monday June 12th, 2017
Giorgos Georgiou

Commemorating World Refugee Day, 15 organizations invite the citizens of Athens «TOGETHER» with the refugees to an open discussion about the new reality of refugees after the most difficult journey of their life.

The event will take place from 18:30 pm until 21:00 pm
on Wednesday, June 21
in the garden café of the Numismatic Museum (12 Panepistimiou Str.)

The refugees themselves will narrate the next day, that of integration, the difficulties that they faced concerning their adjustment, as well as their hopes. They will also share their experience regarding their stay in Greece, their access to the healthcare system and education, as well as the conditions of access to accommodation and labor.

The refugees will also share artistic initiatives that they have created and participated in, as long as they are in Greece, which give them the strength to continue the most difficult journey of their lives, talking about the challenges of their new life. The event will be welcomed by the Deputy Mayor of the City of Athens, on Migrant and Refugee Affairs, Lefteris Papagiannakis. The journalist, Dimitris Aggelidis will coordinate the discussion. Screening of photos and videos of the organizations operating on the field during the refugee crisis as well as live traditional music by the refugee communities will bring the event “TOGETHER” to an end.

Athenians are invited and encouraged to actively participate in order to send a message of solidarity «TOGETHER».

This event is free and open to the public, supported by the Integration Council of Athens Municipality.

Press Release for June 21st
Médecins du Monde
Médecins Sans Frontières
Hellenic League for Human Rights
GCR
ActionAid
CARE
International Rescue Committee
Mercy Corps
Nostos
PRAKSIS
Save the Children
SolidarityNow
UNICEF
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

Visit of representatives of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the SolidarityNow Solidarity Center in Athens

Posted on 

Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway as well as the Ambassador of Norway in Greece visited on Friday, June 9th, the organization’s Solidarity Center in Athens, in the framework of the overall SOAM Program “Supporting Organizations that assist migrant asylum-seeking population in Greece”.

The President of SolidarityNow, Mr. Stelios Zavvos, welcomed Ms. Marit Berger Røsland, State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jørn Eugene Gjelstad, Ambassador of Norway in Greece, Mr. Lefteris Papagiannakis, Vice Mayor of Athens and Mr. Dimitris Vlastos, President of Bodossaki Foundation, to the Solidarity Center. The ensuing discussion concerned the expansion of Norway’s support to Greece through the new EEA grants, focusing on the cooperation among all partners, including the civil society and municipalities.

“We are proud to have contributed through the EEA Grants – a unique platform of cooperation – to the humanitarian crisis in Greece. It was important for my country to take the initiative on this, while our support remains active. I am really impressed by what I saw today at the Solidarity Center and the work being done on it,” said Ms. Røsland, the State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The President of SolidarityNow, Mr. Stelios Zavvos, stressed that: “Civil society has taken the lead in tackling the humanitarian crisis in Greece. People of different backgrounds worked together and managed to help our fellow citizens in need. A solid example of effectiveness is the SolidarityNow Center in Athens, which has so far provided more than 130,000 services to people with immediate needs. To accomplish this, we have successfully cooperated with the EEA Grants, the Norwegian Embassy in Greece and the OSF that contributed to the project, the Municipality of Athens, as well as with civil society organizations and institutions active in the Solidarity Center. On this occasion, I would like to thank you warmly, for what you have done so far and for your immediate response when we needed your help. Your contribution to our efforts to improve the lives of our most vulnerable fellow citizens has been and remains of significant importance.”

*Norway, through the EEA grants has provided invaluable support to Greece and the Greek civil society sector. The Solidarity Center in Athens was established and operates, through this grant mechanism, following an “open door” policy meaning it is accessible to all people, regardless of nationality, religion, ethnic origin. Through this grant mechanism

 

**The Athens Solidarity Center was funded through EEA Grants and the Embassy of Norway in Greece, since its start and until April 2016.