In an urgent letter (here in Greek) addressed to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the Europarliament Group of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) denounces the recent tragic, deadly migrant shipwreck off the coast of South Greece and calls her to position herself on the EU's anti-immigration policy.
More specifically, the MEPs of the KKE point out in their letter:
"Mrs President,
The new deadly shipwreck off Pylos that resulted in the loss of dozens of lives, while reports refer to hundreds of missing people, is an unspeakable tragedy that is taking place in the Mediterranean with refugees and migrants being the victims.
The ship carrying the uprooted people had sailed from Libya, a country that has been suffering for years from the imperialist intervention of the EU and NATO, thus resulting in the bloodshed of the people and the country's dismemberment.
The EU and the governments have assumed great responsibilities by promoting the policy of brutal repression through Frontex, with the “visible” and “invisible” fences, the pushbacks. This EU policy reinforces the action of the networks, the dangerous itineraries, having turned the Mediterranean into a “liquid grave” with 2,400 dead refugees in 2022 alone and 1,037 this year to date. This policy was implemented by all Greek governments in previous years and is responsible for the deportations of asylum seekers, for the confinement of persecuted people in superstructures-prisons in mainland and island Greece, due to the unacceptable EU-Turkey Joint Declaration of 2016 and the so-called lists of “safe countries”.
The recent dangerous decision of the European Council on the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum reinforces the EU’s repression against the uprooted, tramples and buries the Geneva Convention perpetuating the tragic situation experienced by refugees and migrants. The so-called “host countries” such as Greece and Italy have to bear a particular burden with the confinement of thousands in superstructure prisons. The Pact also promotes a sordid bargain between the governments of the “host countries” which will deport under fast-track procedures and those of the “destination countries” who will pay €20,000 for each refugee in order to banish them in a country outside the EU. This is the new version of an ongoing brutality.
Through this letter, the European Parliament Group of the KKE calls you to take a position on the urgent request:
— to stop without further delay the policy of repression and confinement that costs human lives and leads to such tragedies at the expense of the uprooted
— to stop the methodical burying of the Geneva Convention and the inalienable right of refugees to asylum in order to go to the countries of their final destination .
The MEPs of the KKE
The ship carrying the uprooted people had sailed from Libya, a country that has been suffering for years from the imperialist intervention of the EU and NATO, thus resulting in the bloodshed of the people and the country's dismemberment.
The EU and the governments have assumed great responsibilities by promoting the policy of brutal repression through Frontex, with the “visible” and “invisible” fences, the pushbacks. This EU policy reinforces the action of the networks, the dangerous itineraries, having turned the Mediterranean into a “liquid grave” with 2,400 dead refugees in 2022 alone and 1,037 this year to date. This policy was implemented by all Greek governments in previous years and is responsible for the deportations of asylum seekers, for the confinement of persecuted people in superstructures-prisons in mainland and island Greece, due to the unacceptable EU-Turkey Joint Declaration of 2016 and the so-called lists of “safe countries”.
The recent dangerous decision of the European Council on the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum reinforces the EU’s repression against the uprooted, tramples and buries the Geneva Convention perpetuating the tragic situation experienced by refugees and migrants. The so-called “host countries” such as Greece and Italy have to bear a particular burden with the confinement of thousands in superstructure prisons. The Pact also promotes a sordid bargain between the governments of the “host countries” which will deport under fast-track procedures and those of the “destination countries” who will pay €20,000 for each refugee in order to banish them in a country outside the EU. This is the new version of an ongoing brutality.
Through this letter, the European Parliament Group of the KKE calls you to take a position on the urgent request:
— to stop without further delay the policy of repression and confinement that costs human lives and leads to such tragedies at the expense of the uprooted
— to stop the methodical burying of the Geneva Convention and the inalienable right of refugees to asylum in order to go to the countries of their final destination .
The MEPs of the KKE
Kostas Papadakis
Lefteris Nikolaou-Alavanos.
902.gr