Syrian refugees fleeing a civil war in their country and hoping for sanctuary in Greece are often faced with hostility and anti-immigrant attitudes, the Wall Street Journal reported in an extensive article.
The vast majority of more than one million Syrians who leave their country because of the war are heading for neighboring nations and the better-off among them are going to Germany and Sweden, where chances of asylum are higher.
In Greece, the Journal said, Syrian refugees find they are often not welcome and can be detained by authorities up to 18 months. Others struggle to find work and fold into the country’s huge undocumented immigrant population which has come under attack from racist groups and the antipathy of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party.
In 2012, 6,500 Syrians were detected crossing into Greece illegally, according to the European Union border patrol Frontex, although there were many more undetected and an additional 1,500 found living in the country without the necessary permits. More and more Syrians are attempting to enter by sea from Turkey’s Aegean coast.
Smugglers exploit Syrians who are in great need and pay a lot of money to be crowded onto small boats for a dangerous journey across waters where many have drowned or washed up on north Aegean islands, as Lesvos.
Most of the Syrian migrants plan to leave Greece for Northern Europe. The European Commission has called Greece the weakest link in the bloc’s passport-free travel zone, the Schengen area, criticizing the country’s porous borders and its poor treatment of refugees, as the newspaper noted.
Greece has signed international and EU accords protecting refugees’ rights but is not giving them to the Syrians, it was added. Greek police say they have taken “necessary measures” for the appropriate treatment of Syrian citizens.
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