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Report By; H.E. URGC Ambassador At Large, Dr. Amelia Constantinou
SYRIAN REFUGEE OVER-SPILL INTO EUROPE - FEEDING TERRORISM
Without Prejudice; I am reporting on the high possibilities of present realities that can easily escalate if resettlement programs are not immediately applied.
Thousands of Syrian refugees in hosting countries such as Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey are migrating into Europe, mainly to mainland Greece or the Greek Islands and very few also into Cyprus. In hope of migrating further towards Germany, France or UK.
Syrian refugees have waited patiently for over three years for governments and UNHCR to apply a resettlement programs in Syria for Syrian refugees to be able to return to their homeland
Speaking with Syrian refugees from Lebanon, a group of Syrian refugees told us that they cannot wait any longer for UNHCR and the governments to apply a resettlement program in Syria for them to return back home, they said they all know there are many safe areas that housing can be built in Syria for them to return to and they gave Adra City as an example and they were fed up waiting on what seemed to them as empty promises from UNHCR, they felt they had no choice but to resort to further migration via criminal organizations.
Speaking to a disheartened Syrian refugee who identified himself as Mr. Assaad Maloof who has been a refugee in Lebanon for 3 years, he said 'I have been in Lebanon for 3 years with my wife and 3 children as refugees, I am from Duma, I have spent 18 months out of the three years sleeping on the streets with my wife and three children like dogs, the Lebanese have been kind to us, but now more and more Syrians coming to Lebanon. the Lebanese people don't want us now, we are not welcomed now, we know the UNHCR says it is focused on resettlement for Syrian refugees, we dont believe them, they do nothing to show they will do this, just talk only, we see nothing, UNHCR just says this for media only, where is the resettlement, where is the new houses, show me where in Syria so I can go back home, show me, it is all lies and empty UNHCR promises, I have nothing left in Syria, no house, nothing, I lost everything, most Syrian refugees lost everything, nothing to return to, no where to live, how can we go back, go back to what? to sleep on the streets like I slept on the streets in Lebanon. Because of this we have no choice but to migrate to Cyprus or Greece by boat, it is very dangerous and I risk my life and life of my wife and three children, but we have no choice we cannot stay here and live like animals kicked from one place to another, and wait on the empty promises of UNHCR for resettlement, its all lies just to look good in the media, empty promises and we sit here like fools waiting for UNHCR, no more waiting, I rather die in the sea with my family than sit like a fool waiting for empty promises of resettlement from UNHCR. We just want to go home, we dont want to be refugees, we dont want to be here in this country or to risk our lives to go to Cyprus or Greece, we just want to go home, back to Syria, but because of empty promises of resettlement we have no choice now and I am not alone, there are many hundreds of thousands of us who are willing to risk their lives to leave by boat, UNHCR has taken our hope away for resettlement, I have only two choices, first choice is resettlement back in my country or second choice I risk my life and family to the mercy of the sea. Do not blame Syrian refugees for migration to Europe, you must blame international governments and UNHCR for not giving resettlement opportunities to us, no resettlement programs means we cannot go back home, if we cannot go back home it means more Syrian refugees and more migration, we just want the opportunity to go back home, give us a home to return to''
Most Syrian refugees have lost hope in ever returning to their homeland and when hope is lost, desperation becomes their new direction in life which criminals feed of. Syrian refugees are being targeted by organised criminals who offer a so called safe passage by boat to the nearest European Greek Island or to the Illegally Turkish Occupied North of Cyprus (Internationally non recognized state) in hope of crossing borders to the European South of Cyprus and claiming asylum or being set afloat on the coast of the European Southern Cyprus and being rescued by Southern Cyprus coast guards.
Criminals are charging from USD$1000.00 and some up to USD$5000.00 per person to sail them to the nearest Greek Island or to Cyprus. The boats used to carry Syrian refugees from Lebanon or from Turkey to Cyprus or Greece are old disposable vessels which are not sea worthy and doomed to sink, but that is what is required from the vessel, it is required to eventually sink, which gets the attention of coast guards which greatly increases chances of rescue and then taken to Greece or Cyprus mainland by coast guards. Vessels that are more seaworthy than others apply a system of placing people into inflatable rafts and setting them a drift towards the coast, leaving men. women and children to the mercy of the sea.
A recent example of this can be made with the refugees being rescued by Greek coast guards in Lesbos. Lesbos is the third largest Greek island and has a population of 90,000 yet it has been overwhelmed in recent days by the arrival of more than 5,000 Syrian refugees.
The preferred destination is Greece, from there, the Syrian refugees will attempt to migrate further into Europe to settle in Germany, France or UK, which we also have seen thousands of Syrian refugees at Frances Calais borders trying to gain entrance into the UK.
The refugees have to travel six miles by sea from the Turkish coast. First they crowd onto boats operated by people traffickers and then crowd into inflatable dinghies for the final stretch. The Syrian refugees call this ''The death Trip''
This so called 'Death Trip'' is not the Syrian refugees first choice, their first choice is to return back home to Syria, but due to having no homes to return to or seeing any signs of action from international governments and UNHCR to apply resettlement funding in safe locations in Syria for housing, they feel they are left with only the ''Death Trip'' as a last resort.
Authorities have been known to turn a blind eye towards people traffickers because it removes refugees from their country to dump on another country. This further expresses the frustration and pressure hosting countries are experiencing and wishing to remove, even if it means turning a blind eye.
Syrian refugees know there are safe areas within the Syrian Arab Republic that can today accommodate resettlement housing programs which allows Syrian refugees to return and resettle and help rebuild their country, they know that such resettlement programs are being promised and focused upon by UNHCR, they also know that they have seen no such signs of such a promise to be fulfilled or applied and have lost patience, hope and trust that they ever will be.
The non application of resettlement programs in Syria indirectly and possibly innocently feeds crime, funds from such criminal activities of people trafficking are fed back into terrorism which continues terrorism which is spreading into Europe and globally,
Criminal activities of people trafficking = creates millions of dollars that funds terrorism
Funding terrorist = funds weapons and continues terrorist activities which the international communities needs to apply billions of dollars to fight, which causes more global security issues, deaths of innocent people and increases refugee numbers
Increasing refugee numbers = the continuing of funding opportunities for criminals/people trafficking, which creates more money is directed back to terrorism which strengthens terrorist activities and creates more of the above
Directing more money to terrorism = increases terrorist activities, spreads terrorism further into Europe and globally which on going and increase of international spending to fight terrorism is required which greatly reduces funds towards refugee relief aid and reduces funding for resettlement programs and creates more instability which makes resettlement impossible
SUB TOTAL = A Vicious Circle created by not applying immediate funding towards resettlement of refugees
A viscous circle that indirectly funds terrorism, helps terrorism spread globally, increases international spending to fight terrorism, increases death and suffering, creates further instabilities in those regions, which creates more refugees, which increases international and UNHCR costs to aid and maintain refugees, which in turn decreases funding for resettlement programs, present safe areas for resettlement then become unsafe, all of which greatly delays resettlement.
The Syrian refugees spillover into Europe is mainly due to the physical absence of Resettlement programs, this delay in governments and UNHCR in applying funding to physically commence resettlement programs in Syria, is indirectly innocently helping fund terrorism, creates more refugees, increases costs to the international community and UN, risks lives and feeds organised criminal gangs which is directed towards funding terrorism and risks the security of Europe and international community.
The delay of UNHCR applying funding towards resettlement programs of Syrian refugees indirectly contributes in the above vicious circle which will already has created a cost to the international community and UNHCR far greater than the cost of resettlement programs of Syrian Refugees. Delays in applying funding towards resettlement at this stage will later greatly increase costs to the international community and UNHCR which comes out of the European and international tax payers pocket.
It must be accepted by the international community and the UNHCR that they cannot afford to continue to delay on applying a resettlement program in Syria for Syrian refugees, they must act and act now.
A Syrian refugees first choice is to return back home, this is a fact. The absence of applying immediate funding towards resettlement programs will continue the above which has become chaotically uncontrolled by the international community and UNHCR and it will get worse if resettlement programs are not immediately applied.
Do resettlement programs exist? the answer is yes they do exist and have done so for over three years, many example of this can be seen via the lobbying of international Not For Profit-Non-Governmental Organisations such as the New York Go Green Syria Organization Not For Profit-Non Governmental (GGSO) who lobby to prioritize resettlement of Syrian refugees. This view is shared by most NGO's and Not For Profit organizations internationally who want to see immediate solutions applied towards resettlement of refugees and let's not forget that it is also prioritized and focused upon by UNHCR, but since funding is always in need to be raised and applied by the international community and UNHCR, it falls upon the international community and UNHCR to not just prioritize and focus, but to actually act on its priority on resettlement programs to commence before the above recent events goes from 5000 Syrian refugees being illegally trafficked by criminals to increasing numbers to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees being trafficked by criminal organizations which will create the above vicious circle example.
If we are to express matters realistically, we must question matters realistically, the increase of Syrian refugees being illegally trafficked by criminals by sea will increase, no doubt authorities from hosting countries will be pressured by the international community to be more alert and to capture such vessels before they leave their sovereign waters and return them back to their hosting country, but we all know that a vessel with 1000-2000 people on board is immediately picked up by the authorities radar, so how are they not apprehended before they leave sovereign waters? how are they not being detected? This is an area that contributes to all of the above and allows Syrian refugees to risk their lives in the open seas and enter into Europe where Syrian refugees then become a European issue and not the hosting country issue, which only spreads the problem instead of containing it which also greatly increases costs which we all must bare. We must also ask ourselves if a resettlement program was physically being applied and in place where housing was being applied in Syria for Syrian refugees to return to on a drip basis, this would most probably not be occurring and if it was they would be easier detected and apprehended and redirected back to Syria instead of Europe.
The question we must all ask ourselves is, Should Syrian refugees continue to suffer, should hosting countries continue to suffer, should Syrian refugees become victims of criminal organizations, should we accept the high risks of the above escalating into a chaotic uncontrolled viscous circle, should international resources be unnecessarily strained further, should our way of life, safety and quality of life be effected throughout Europe and in the International community, should we bare this unnecessary high cost, all due to delays in applying resettlement programs? I think not, it is us who will pay the ultimate end price.
SYRIAN REFUGEE OVER-SPILL INTO EUROPE - FEEDING TERRORISM
Without Prejudice; I am reporting on the high possibilities of present realities that can easily escalate if resettlement programs are not immediately applied.
Thousands of Syrian refugees in hosting countries such as Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey are migrating into Europe, mainly to mainland Greece or the Greek Islands and very few also into Cyprus. In hope of migrating further towards Germany, France or UK.
Syrian refugees have waited patiently for over three years for governments and UNHCR to apply a resettlement programs in Syria for Syrian refugees to be able to return to their homeland
Speaking with Syrian refugees from Lebanon, a group of Syrian refugees told us that they cannot wait any longer for UNHCR and the governments to apply a resettlement program in Syria for them to return back home, they said they all know there are many safe areas that housing can be built in Syria for them to return to and they gave Adra City as an example and they were fed up waiting on what seemed to them as empty promises from UNHCR, they felt they had no choice but to resort to further migration via criminal organizations.
Speaking to a disheartened Syrian refugee who identified himself as Mr. Assaad Maloof who has been a refugee in Lebanon for 3 years, he said 'I have been in Lebanon for 3 years with my wife and 3 children as refugees, I am from Duma, I have spent 18 months out of the three years sleeping on the streets with my wife and three children like dogs, the Lebanese have been kind to us, but now more and more Syrians coming to Lebanon. the Lebanese people don't want us now, we are not welcomed now, we know the UNHCR says it is focused on resettlement for Syrian refugees, we dont believe them, they do nothing to show they will do this, just talk only, we see nothing, UNHCR just says this for media only, where is the resettlement, where is the new houses, show me where in Syria so I can go back home, show me, it is all lies and empty UNHCR promises, I have nothing left in Syria, no house, nothing, I lost everything, most Syrian refugees lost everything, nothing to return to, no where to live, how can we go back, go back to what? to sleep on the streets like I slept on the streets in Lebanon. Because of this we have no choice but to migrate to Cyprus or Greece by boat, it is very dangerous and I risk my life and life of my wife and three children, but we have no choice we cannot stay here and live like animals kicked from one place to another, and wait on the empty promises of UNHCR for resettlement, its all lies just to look good in the media, empty promises and we sit here like fools waiting for UNHCR, no more waiting, I rather die in the sea with my family than sit like a fool waiting for empty promises of resettlement from UNHCR. We just want to go home, we dont want to be refugees, we dont want to be here in this country or to risk our lives to go to Cyprus or Greece, we just want to go home, back to Syria, but because of empty promises of resettlement we have no choice now and I am not alone, there are many hundreds of thousands of us who are willing to risk their lives to leave by boat, UNHCR has taken our hope away for resettlement, I have only two choices, first choice is resettlement back in my country or second choice I risk my life and family to the mercy of the sea. Do not blame Syrian refugees for migration to Europe, you must blame international governments and UNHCR for not giving resettlement opportunities to us, no resettlement programs means we cannot go back home, if we cannot go back home it means more Syrian refugees and more migration, we just want the opportunity to go back home, give us a home to return to''
Most Syrian refugees have lost hope in ever returning to their homeland and when hope is lost, desperation becomes their new direction in life which criminals feed of. Syrian refugees are being targeted by organised criminals who offer a so called safe passage by boat to the nearest European Greek Island or to the Illegally Turkish Occupied North of Cyprus (Internationally non recognized state) in hope of crossing borders to the European South of Cyprus and claiming asylum or being set afloat on the coast of the European Southern Cyprus and being rescued by Southern Cyprus coast guards.
Criminals are charging from USD$1000.00 and some up to USD$5000.00 per person to sail them to the nearest Greek Island or to Cyprus. The boats used to carry Syrian refugees from Lebanon or from Turkey to Cyprus or Greece are old disposable vessels which are not sea worthy and doomed to sink, but that is what is required from the vessel, it is required to eventually sink, which gets the attention of coast guards which greatly increases chances of rescue and then taken to Greece or Cyprus mainland by coast guards. Vessels that are more seaworthy than others apply a system of placing people into inflatable rafts and setting them a drift towards the coast, leaving men. women and children to the mercy of the sea.
A recent example of this can be made with the refugees being rescued by Greek coast guards in Lesbos. Lesbos is the third largest Greek island and has a population of 90,000 yet it has been overwhelmed in recent days by the arrival of more than 5,000 Syrian refugees.
The preferred destination is Greece, from there, the Syrian refugees will attempt to migrate further into Europe to settle in Germany, France or UK, which we also have seen thousands of Syrian refugees at Frances Calais borders trying to gain entrance into the UK.
The refugees have to travel six miles by sea from the Turkish coast. First they crowd onto boats operated by people traffickers and then crowd into inflatable dinghies for the final stretch. The Syrian refugees call this ''The death Trip''
This so called 'Death Trip'' is not the Syrian refugees first choice, their first choice is to return back home to Syria, but due to having no homes to return to or seeing any signs of action from international governments and UNHCR to apply resettlement funding in safe locations in Syria for housing, they feel they are left with only the ''Death Trip'' as a last resort.
Authorities have been known to turn a blind eye towards people traffickers because it removes refugees from their country to dump on another country. This further expresses the frustration and pressure hosting countries are experiencing and wishing to remove, even if it means turning a blind eye.
Syrian refugees know there are safe areas within the Syrian Arab Republic that can today accommodate resettlement housing programs which allows Syrian refugees to return and resettle and help rebuild their country, they know that such resettlement programs are being promised and focused upon by UNHCR, they also know that they have seen no such signs of such a promise to be fulfilled or applied and have lost patience, hope and trust that they ever will be.
The non application of resettlement programs in Syria indirectly and possibly innocently feeds crime, funds from such criminal activities of people trafficking are fed back into terrorism which continues terrorism which is spreading into Europe and globally,
Criminal activities of people trafficking = creates millions of dollars that funds terrorism
Funding terrorist = funds weapons and continues terrorist activities which the international communities needs to apply billions of dollars to fight, which causes more global security issues, deaths of innocent people and increases refugee numbers
Increasing refugee numbers = the continuing of funding opportunities for criminals/people trafficking, which creates more money is directed back to terrorism which strengthens terrorist activities and creates more of the above
Directing more money to terrorism = increases terrorist activities, spreads terrorism further into Europe and globally which on going and increase of international spending to fight terrorism is required which greatly reduces funds towards refugee relief aid and reduces funding for resettlement programs and creates more instability which makes resettlement impossible
SUB TOTAL = A Vicious Circle created by not applying immediate funding towards resettlement of refugees
A viscous circle that indirectly funds terrorism, helps terrorism spread globally, increases international spending to fight terrorism, increases death and suffering, creates further instabilities in those regions, which creates more refugees, which increases international and UNHCR costs to aid and maintain refugees, which in turn decreases funding for resettlement programs, present safe areas for resettlement then become unsafe, all of which greatly delays resettlement.
The Syrian refugees spillover into Europe is mainly due to the physical absence of Resettlement programs, this delay in governments and UNHCR in applying funding to physically commence resettlement programs in Syria, is indirectly innocently helping fund terrorism, creates more refugees, increases costs to the international community and UN, risks lives and feeds organised criminal gangs which is directed towards funding terrorism and risks the security of Europe and international community.
The delay of UNHCR applying funding towards resettlement programs of Syrian refugees indirectly contributes in the above vicious circle which will already has created a cost to the international community and UNHCR far greater than the cost of resettlement programs of Syrian Refugees. Delays in applying funding towards resettlement at this stage will later greatly increase costs to the international community and UNHCR which comes out of the European and international tax payers pocket.
It must be accepted by the international community and the UNHCR that they cannot afford to continue to delay on applying a resettlement program in Syria for Syrian refugees, they must act and act now.
A Syrian refugees first choice is to return back home, this is a fact. The absence of applying immediate funding towards resettlement programs will continue the above which has become chaotically uncontrolled by the international community and UNHCR and it will get worse if resettlement programs are not immediately applied.
Do resettlement programs exist? the answer is yes they do exist and have done so for over three years, many example of this can be seen via the lobbying of international Not For Profit-Non-Governmental Organisations such as the New York Go Green Syria Organization Not For Profit-Non Governmental (GGSO) who lobby to prioritize resettlement of Syrian refugees. This view is shared by most NGO's and Not For Profit organizations internationally who want to see immediate solutions applied towards resettlement of refugees and let's not forget that it is also prioritized and focused upon by UNHCR, but since funding is always in need to be raised and applied by the international community and UNHCR, it falls upon the international community and UNHCR to not just prioritize and focus, but to actually act on its priority on resettlement programs to commence before the above recent events goes from 5000 Syrian refugees being illegally trafficked by criminals to increasing numbers to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees being trafficked by criminal organizations which will create the above vicious circle example.
If we are to express matters realistically, we must question matters realistically, the increase of Syrian refugees being illegally trafficked by criminals by sea will increase, no doubt authorities from hosting countries will be pressured by the international community to be more alert and to capture such vessels before they leave their sovereign waters and return them back to their hosting country, but we all know that a vessel with 1000-2000 people on board is immediately picked up by the authorities radar, so how are they not apprehended before they leave sovereign waters? how are they not being detected? This is an area that contributes to all of the above and allows Syrian refugees to risk their lives in the open seas and enter into Europe where Syrian refugees then become a European issue and not the hosting country issue, which only spreads the problem instead of containing it which also greatly increases costs which we all must bare. We must also ask ourselves if a resettlement program was physically being applied and in place where housing was being applied in Syria for Syrian refugees to return to on a drip basis, this would most probably not be occurring and if it was they would be easier detected and apprehended and redirected back to Syria instead of Europe.
The question we must all ask ourselves is, Should Syrian refugees continue to suffer, should hosting countries continue to suffer, should Syrian refugees become victims of criminal organizations, should we accept the high risks of the above escalating into a chaotic uncontrolled viscous circle, should international resources be unnecessarily strained further, should our way of life, safety and quality of life be effected throughout Europe and in the International community, should we bare this unnecessary high cost, all due to delays in applying resettlement programs? I think not, it is us who will pay the ultimate end price.
