A canton in Bosnia with thousands of refugees from Syria and Afghanistan has now banned private aid organizations from continuing to support people. This is reported by the Austrian NGO Team Vucjak, which supports the local aid organization SOS Bihac. The canton borders Croatia and thus the EU’s external border.
The NGO, which had pointed out the dramatic grievances in the Vucjak camp last year, is now again making serious allegations against local politicians and the police. According to the NGO, this uses violence against refugees on a daily basis.
Refugee camps are being cleared
Two Bira camps in Bihac and Miral in Kladusa are to be cleared. All refugees are to be accommodated in the new Camp Lipa, 30 kilometers south of Bihac. After the ban on private NGOs, they fear that there will be no medical care in the new camp. This should have been taken over by the Danish Refugee Council, which falls under the ban.
According to the latest cantonal decree, only the UN refugee organization IOM and the local Red Cross can take care of refugees. However, according to Team Vucjak, the Red Cross has already shut down its aid.
Sharp criticism of EU: „values have been abolished“
Team Vucjak also sharply criticizes the EU: Europe „has abolished the values on which it was built“. There are only volunteers left. Team Vucjak therefore appeals to the EU Parliament to „campaign for human rights at the EU’s external border and to provide the city of Bihac with both financial and logistical help in dealing with the refugee crisis“.
