By Eirini Vlachou, lawyer, Head of Legal Service at the Athens Solidarity Center of Solidarity Now

The most important issue one thinks of when dealing theoretically or practically with the so-called refugee crisis in Greece and the EU, is the integration of recognized refugees into the labour market and the Greek and European society in general – integration of culture, language and values.

This challenge, which is approaching for all of us and which concerns not only asylum seekers but also third-country nationals living in Greece, is for many people the most important aspect of the issue. It is essentially a problem that does not yet concern as much as it should the state and civil society even though the management of many vulnerable people with multiple and serious demands, ranging from daily survival to the process of recognizing them as refugees in Greece, is now urgently required.

In this process, the most important problem for asylum seekers in Greece is the lack of information about their rights in the country, but also about their obligations, procedures, deadlines, etc. Even people who have been in Greece for a long period of time and may have been pre-recorded, fully recorded, detained, or even interviewed to be recognized as refugees, often find out for the first time what a request for international protection means shortly before or even after their first instance interview.

A serious problem is the almost impossible – at least in Attica – access for asylum seekers to the Asylum Service if it is not the day of their interview or the day of the renewal of their Asylum Seeker’s Card. As a result, they fail to obtain information even on matters of major importance, such decisions on their international protection request or other equally important issues, for example progress of family reunification requests under the Dublin Regulation.

This established situation has led applicants to seek the assistance of lawyers and advisers to simply accompany them to the Asylum Service or to provide them with a lawyer’s note so that they can reach the entrance of the Service. The issue of access to the asylum procedure is not a simple administrative problem. It is linked to the very core of the right to international protection: this is the basis on which countries are legally considered as safe or not for asylum seekers and the basis on which this country’s tomorrow citizens are “trained” to be either frustrated and unable to take responsibility or to have a sense of respect towards the rule of law of the host country.

However, the most important problem the refugee population in the country is facing right now- and with it, all professionals and volunteers in the refugee sector – is the situation on the islands; caused by the EU-Turkey deal, the problematic implementation of the agreement marked a year in March 2017. In the predominant cases of Lesvos and Moria, which have been the subjects of domestic and international research, but also on other islands, people have been wedged for months in inhumane and even dangerous conditions for their lives, without substantial access to the asylum process – the latter being a very important problem for our legal culture. Asylum seekers on the Greek islands are not allowed to go to the mainland to have their asylum claims considered there except in specific cases of vulnerability judged on-the-spot. Some are just waiting for their return to Turkey, a safe third country according to the EU-Turkey deal, many are leaving illegally to other European countries with traffickers who demand huge sums of money, in the hope that something positive will happen at the place they end up to, while others just leave for Athens and the mainland with the same hope. The ones who have no hope, commit self-immolations or go on a hunger strikes as an ultimate attempt to be heard.

Besides the obvious humanitarian risk and, in many cases, the already manifested danger to public security and social peace and besides the increasing racist attacks against refugees, what is particularly important for the legal world is the access to the asylum process for refugees on the islands. More specifically, the problem concerns the totally problematic imposition of the geographical constraint which is appropriate only for detention and in conflict to the to date rights of asylum seekers who should only be restricted and/or detained in very special circumstances and under specific conditions; and ultimately it concerns the separation of the state regarding the examination of asylum claims in the mainland and on the islands, while the Asylum Service is unified. After all, detention of asylum seekers on the islands after the first rejection of their request and up to the second instance of their judgment is very common.

As time passes, the problems are deepening and developments in Turkey are far from justifying its designated status as a safe third country. Fortunately, institutions are reacting with the European Court of Human Rights being the leading one; the Court recently accepted an Iranian refugee’s claim for protection and banned, at least temporarily, his deportation to Turkey. This development is particularly promising at a time when the messages from Greece and Europe were and are, the acceleration by any means of the asylum process, with parallel reductions to the rights of asylum seekers which can even lead to the limitation of the possibility for appealing rejection decisions on asylum applications.

Those who believe that Justice can teach, they have something to hope for: a shift of the European and Greek legal order to the requirements of international law for the rights of asylum seekers.

by George Kanaris, Social Services Coordinator at SolidarityNow’s Athens Solidarity Center.

The integration of the newly arrived refugees is one of the biggest challenges that the Greek society will face in the coming years.

Quite a big part of the currently residing in Greece refugees will be relocated in other countries, another big part will be rejected and sent back to their countries of origin. Still an important proportion of the presently asylum seekers will be granted with asylum and will be settling down in Greece.

How ready the Greek society is to integrate these people and make them part of their own society? At what extent are we prepared to accept them and create a fertile ground for them? Is there any chance for the masses of Syrians, Iraqis, Pakistanis and Afghanis and all the other nationalities to become Greek citizens and have equal rights and obligations with the Greek nationals? This is a very complex subject and no easy answer is available for the all above questions.

Many different factors must be taken into consideration e.g. the deep crisis that the Greek society faces the last decade without any clear solution soon, the cultural gap between the country of origin and the host country, the differences in language, religion, mentality that many times prevent or even hinder the integration.

Still, what is our role as host community and what are we doing to facilitate the process and create favorable conditions for their becoming equal members of the Greek society, safeguard their future and prevent them from discrimination and social and professional isolation? One more time, the answers are not easy to articulate.

Despite the difficulty and complexity of the topic, we will try to set priorities and highlight the different aspects that should be taken into consideration when we talk about integration of the refugees.

The very first step in settling somewhere is the languages and communication. When discussing integration, learning the language of the host community is often the first topic to come in mind. Language skills is the key enabler to do all the other things necessary to start a life, like attending schools, looking for a job or interacting with host communities. Education and job opportunities are very often hindered because of the language barrier.
The second step in settling somewhere is the access to public services in building a state – citizen relationship and generating trust in government and other institutions. Asylum seekers and recognized refugees need additional support to access services such as housing, healthcare and schooling at the beginning of their integration process, as they don’t have the same facilities as locals do. Stability is key for them to start thinking about moving ahead with their lives. They need stability during and after the asylum procedure, with access to decent accommodation so that they can then look for a job or start studying the local language. The relationship with host communities is a cornerstone for their integration. Refugees are often treated disrespectfully and unfairly because of discriminatory attitudes and prejudices of the host community based on their culture and religion. The cultural gap and the lack of tolerance and openness to accept and integrate the different hinders the integration. After all integration is all about proper behavior, dignity and acceptance. Treating the foreigners with humanity and respecting their cultural and religious differences, trying to understand them and making them part of our own community.
Job access and activity opportunities is another significant factor for the integration. The refugees as anybody else need economic independence which is very difficult to achieve because of legal or qualification barriers. On the top of that easy access to activities like sports, language learning and training facilitates the integration and changes the routine that becomes depressingly monotonous after months, triggering psychosocial problems. People stay idle all day for a long period either waiting desperately for the answer of their asylum request or for their relocation. They don’t adopt any activity or invest any energy, in the local language for instance, as they don’t know which will be their destination country. This uncertainty and state of limbo in between different countries and cultures doesn’t help them to feel part of the community and be integrated in it. The often-traumatic experiences of refugees on their way from the country of origin renders safety, peace and security a priority in the destination country. Nevertheless, this is frequently difficult to guarantee. Being stranded in camps and squats, trying to survive many times under inhuman living conditions, they feel that the rule of law doesn’t apply to them and they have nowhere to report abuses, fights and other forms of violence. Tensions between communities and a general lack of security provisions make them feel unsafe and abandoned. They even blame the host community for increasing tensions and resentment between communities and different tribes because of perceived differences in treatment between nationalities.
Finally, the social bonds and connections is a primal aspect of the integration of refugees. The presence of family and friends is indispensable when it comes to settling anywhere. Family reunification is often their priority and waiting for this kind of major decision is preventing them from looking to the future. The presence of social bonds and connections is helpful for smooth integration but when it comes to refugees it usually becomes particularly difficult who are often physically isolated from cities and other hubs of human activity. Overall, a sense of uncertainty is preventing the refugees from moving ahead with their lives and hoping for a better future.
The prospects for integration of many asylum seekers and refugees seem low in reception countries and there is lack of long term planning by government authorities on this issue so far. However, ideas for better integration need to involve refugees themselves so they feel a sense of ownership. It would give an awareness and acceptance of the difficulties involved and allow authorities, agencies and organizations to work together with the refugees in developing solutions, rather than them being mere recipients.

Finally, the integration of refuges depends a lot on our own preparedness, cultural sensitivity and openness as host community and individuals. It depends a lot on our capacity to understand, respect and accept. And ultimately that becomes a process of self-awareness and discovery of our own limits.