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Quarantined camps in Greece; Italy prohibits the docking of rescue boats
  • The coronavirus has accentuated the refugee drama. The Greek Government has quarantined two camps after identifying cases of contagion by the armed forces. The Italian Government has banned ships operating at sea from docking, considering that it is not "safe" for refugees.
ARGIA @argia 2020ko apirilaren 08a
Greziako errefuxiatuen kanpamentu bat. Argazkia: ACNUR/Achilleas Zavallis.

The Greek Government has confirmed that 28 cases of people infected with the coronavirus have been detected in the two camps in northern Athens. He's quarantined the two camps. People and associations working with refugees have long warned that coronavirus disease can lead to dramatic situations in refugee camps. It is not possible to take the necessary security measures, among other reasons, because the mass is high and the hygienic conditions are poor. They have demanded that the Government take action, something that has not happened at the moment, according to the same sources.

On the occasion of the quarantine camp, Marco Sendron, of the Médecins Sans Frontières association working in Lesbos, has denounced that reaching the Aegean islands camps is a tragedy. Tens of thousands of refugees survive in the area. “How are you going to ask someone who lives in a tent to isolate themselves in a room? How will you ask anyone who has to make a queue full of people to avoid contact with people, eat or go to the bathroom? How can you ask a child or a pregnant woman to increase their level of hygiene if there are not enough toilets, showers or water points? ", Sandron asked.

Italy, no port

It is precisely in the name of the health of the refugees that the Italian Government has argued for a ban on landing refugees who are rescued at sea. The ban has been established by the Government through a prohibition decree. “Essential conditions cannot be guaranteed as long as the health emergency lasts,” the government representatives said. An NGO vessel Une Sea Eye expects a landing port on the Italian coast, with some 150 refugees, the NGO has reported.