Contextualization of Refugees and Migration in Greece
This paper aims to outline the manner in which NGOs in Greece, namely One Bridge to Idomeni (OBTI) in Corinth, attempt to fulfill the Greek government’s neglected responsibilities towards refugees and asylum seekers. This research focuses on the Refugee Convention of 1951 and the Protocol of 1967, through the case study of OBTI. The Refugee Convention of 1951 and the Protocol of 1967 render the treatment of refugees a “universal” responsibility (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) n.d., 2). Through the Convention, countries must collectively recognize seeking asylum frequently occurs after illegal border crossings, and thus must provide “safeguards” for refugees and asylum seekers (UNHCR n.d., 3). The term ‘migration’ is utilized broadly as an all-encompassing term for refugees, migrants, immigrants, emigrants, etc. For this reason, this paper provides a clear distinction of the definitions of ‘migrant’, ‘refugee’, and ‘asylum seeker’. International Organization for Migration (IOM) defines refugees as persons who escapes their country of origin due to political, racial, or religious persecution (International Organization for Migration (IOM), n.d.). A migrant is an “umbrella term” for someone who moves within or outside of their country for various reasons (IOM, n.d.). Lastly, an asylum seeker pursues international protection (IOM, n.d.). It is important to note that every person who is legally considered a refugee is initially an asylum seeker, whereas an asylum seeker is not always recognized as a refugee (IOM, n.d.). Through the Refugee Convention and Protocol, states are theoretically obligated to provide a myriad of rights and services. This study discusses aspects taken from the Refugee Convention and Refugee Protocol to determine the Greek government’s ability or lack-there-of in providing all necessary protections towards refugees. Firstly, article 22, which states refugees’ right to access public education, and article 23, which establishes refugees’ access to public relief and health-care (UNHCR n.d., 24-25). Next, the Refugee Convention’s central principle and article 3 ratify the “non-discrimination” of refugees (UNHCR n.d., 3). However, despite the Refugee Convention and Protocol requiring states to provide aid and public services to refugees and asylum seekers, governments often let NGOs intervene to circumvent the government’s responsibilities “imposed by international law” (Mezzadra 2013, 180-181). Greece borders the Mediterranean Sea and is frequently crossed to enter Europe, marking the beginning of the Balkan Route; a route often undergone by refugees and migrants attempting to enter countries within the European Union (EU). Due to its geographical location, Greece has been greatly affected by migration since the 1990s, and the Greek government and society see this as a “constant issue of concern” (Stivas 2021, 1). Since 2015, Greece has been the “main gateway” into Europe from both African and Middle Eastern countries, which is seen as a ‘crisis’ by Europe (Rozakou 2017, 37). However, this ‘crisis’ is considered a crisis for receiving countries rather than “a crisis for the people seeking protection” (Gustafsson and Johansson 2018, 983).
“Europe talks about a refugee crisis in Europe, but the real crisis in Europe is a lack of empathy toward these people” - Ai and Boris 2020, 72.
Methodology
Research on refugees’ human rights commonly utilizes ethnographical methodology. This paper therefore makes use of qualitative frameworks, through a literature review, interviews, and participatory observation from September 2022 to December 2022. However, the reflexive turn – the researcher’s social effect on the research – is required to provide mutual advantages for the refugees and NGOs, rather than solely for the investigator (Janmyr 2022, 5-6). This paper therefore utilizes unstructured interviews as an ethical framework to analyze NGO and governmental organizations’ work towards refugees. Data collection process on refugees and migration requires “interdisciplinary methods” to provide insightful research and adapt around limitations (Grabska and Clark-Kazak 2022, 4). Directly interviewing refugees was particularly difficult and seemed to make them feel like research subjects, thus the methods used were altered to ameliorate the data collection process. By conducting interviews of volunteers, the OBTI coordinator, and indirectly, refugees, the purpose is to obtain personal insight on OBTI’s and the Greek government’s actions in helping refugees and asylum seekers have medical care, education, legal services, and other essential amenities. Moreover, this framework provides both a bottom-up perspective and individual insight deduced from interviews, observations, and the engagement in “naturally-occurring conversations” (Janmyr 2022, 3), to render the core investigation well-fitted, ethical, and unique (Smith 2009, 70).
Literature Review
Numerous literature presents the ways in which migration is criminalized. First, solidarity of civil societies and NGOs towards refugees and migrants is made illegal. Second, informal and insecure pathways into Europe are increased. Third, border security is augmented (Allsopp et al. 2022, 70-71). Thereby, the safeguarding of human rights of refugees metamorphosed into an “issue of secondary importance” for EU member-states (Grigonis 2016, 95). Consequently, the involvement of NGOs becomes limited due to a lack of resources and ability to provide aid. Oftentimes, EU member-states prosecute humanitarians and NGOs as “people smugglers,” creating structural criminalization of humanitarian workers, and structural ‘othering’ of refugees (Fekete 2018, 65). Fekete (2018) determines the necessity of NGOs in helping refugees because of Greece’s and the rest of the EU member’s lack of involvement, as well as the difficulties NGOs face as a result of the EU’s policies and views on migration. However, Fekete does not provide insight in how refugee aid can be maximized if NGOs and governments work alongside one another. The literature studied contains insight on the limitations of NGOs due to governments, but lacks any durable solutions to how governments and NGOs can deliver adjoining aid and services to refugees. However, much of the literature presents the EU’s and Greek’s policies and actions towards refugees, and how they neglect their responsibilities. Governments, namely EU states, have shown little effort in placing resources and efforts into helping refugees economically, medically, nutritionally, and educationally. Thus, NGOs oftentimes take over the role of ‘first responders’ (Allsopp, Vosyliūtė, and Smialowski 2020, 66-68), additionally to providing quotidian aid, an aspect not often discussed in literature. Large and small NGOs are frequently targeted by governments and consequently lack the resources, manpower, and finances to assume state responsibilities towards refugees. Likewise, NGOs have many limits. Namely, they must choose which refugees and asylum seekers to support, as they lack the capacity to provide “legal and social assistance” to all requests (Cabot 2013, 452). NGOs attempt to determine who requires more immediate aid, oftentimes neglecting many refugees and asylum seekers. However, limits derive from both NGO and government abilities. Cabot (2013, 462) highlights the vulnerability and prejudice faced by refugees and asylum seekers when seeking asylum; reliving traumatic events and moments. Nonetheless, the author lacks an analysis of how the asylum process can be made less distressing and discriminatory for individuals. Due to Greece’s geographical location, the country plays an immense role in the provision of asylum in Europe. Consequently, large numbers of asylum seekers and refugees in the country stretched the Greek government’s lack of resources and abilities to fulfill all its responsibilities towards them (Cabot 2014, 6-7). This literature review aims at determining how NGOs and the Greek government get involved in refugee aid, through the analysis and criticism of relevant academic literature. However, there is not yet research on NGOs who work quotidianly towards community and essential needs, only on those who work in high emergency situations, for example in temporary camps or as search and rescue entities. Thus, this research will utilize first-hand interviews and experiences to determine OBTI’s methods and limits in providing services for refugees, to bring forth research for future small-scale non-emergency NGOs. This paper thus fills a gap in the field by providing first-hand experience, interviews, and observations at OBTI’s Community Center and Community School, to determine how small NGOs like OBTI attempt to assume the neglected government responsibilities through daily services and resources. It aims to bring forth research for future small-scale NGOs similar to OBTI.
Analysis: Quality Education Provided to Refugees in Corinth, Greece Under article 22 of the 1951 Refugee Convention, all refugees should be provided access to public education. However, until 2021, the Greek government did not offer any form of education to refugees residing in the Corinth refugee camp (Lanzalotti, Project Introduction Interview, September 6, 2022). To cover this gap, alongside two other small NGOs – Vasilika Moon and Aletheia –, OBTI opened a ‘Community’ School in Corinth to contribute to the fulfillment of refugees’ right to education.
The OBTI Corinth project, including the Xeirapsies Community Center and Community School, began in 2019, the same year the Corinth Refugee Camp was created. Initially, the Xeirapsies Community School aimed to provide education to refugees as there were no schools in the Corinth camp. In 2021, however, the Greek government opened a kindergarten and elementary school in the camp with the help of the International Organization on Migration (IOM), giving children the chance to attend classes (Zsófia 2018, 386). Nonetheless, anyone above the age of 11 must attend public school to utilize the government’s educational resources (Lanzalotti, September 6, 2022). Although refugees now have an opportunity to learn and meet people outside of the camp borders, three hindrances to the Greek government’s attempt to fulfill their responsibilities can be identified. Firstly, the government built and maintains the schools within the camp with IOM’s help, thus the state is unable to act alone. Secondly, refugee students are solely taught art, sport, and history, entirely in Greek, therefore giving them limited access to wider ranges of knowledge, as well as higher education and/or jobs. Furthermore, the scheduling of the classes is intentionally segregated: Greek students attend school from the morning until 14h00, whereas refugee students can only attend from 15h00 to 17h00 (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022). In fact, qualitative literature provides a Greek teachers’ criticism of the government’s segregated education: “According to us [teachers], it is the wrong approach. […] I think by and large the government was absolutely unprepared for the task” (Zsófia 2018, 390).
Inclusion within a sovereign state functions solely with the presence of exclusion. In fact, Agamben (1995, 116) argues that refugees display how human rights are entirely unprotected unless they are “coupled with citizenship”. Systematic refugee exclusion is evident through the exclusion of refugees from normalcy and daily classes, as it maintains state sovereignty, and establishes a clear distinction between the ideal state citizens and everyone else (Blus 2013, 427). As Zsófia (2018, 375) argues, the government’s efforts in involving refugees in the Greek public education system can be seen as an attempt to bring “normalcy” into the lives of refugees, rendering the ‘rehabilitation process’ simpler. However, it maintains a separation between Greeks and refugees, thus pushing small NGOs like OBTI to intervene to create a community and sense of hospitality between all refugees, volunteers, and visitors (Carlotta, Volunteer Interview, September 12, 2022). NGOs, therefore, complement governmental responsibility in regard to education access, inclusion of refugees, and humane interactions.
OBTI provides language courses – English, French, German, and Italian –, to try to complement the fulfillment of refugee’s rights to education, and indirectly help anyone aiming to reach a different country. However, this service has various pros and cons. Firstly, volunteers change often, creating instability and uncertainty in the course materials and students’ comfort with the teacher(s). Secondly, none of the volunteers are qualified teachers, thus are only able to teach a certain language to their best abilities. Therefore, the government’s responsibility is compensated with unqualified services provided by OBTI. Despite this, a sense of community is built between the students, coordinator, and volunteers, creating a sense of trust and humanity which government services do not (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022). Furthermore, OBTI provides babysitting, cooking workshops, art workshops, sports classes, and music workshops, to grant the refugees a sense of normalcy, comfort, calm, and joy, which, from personal observation, is an aspect which the Corinth refugee camp lacks. OBTI intervenes and provides community-based services which bring forth a sense of inclusion which the government has shown little ability to do.
Analysis: Medical Care Provided to Refugees in Corinth, Greece
Access to healthcare is stated in Article 23 of the Refugee Convention, but nonetheless does not ensure everyone this right (Bradby, Lebano, et al. 2020, 4). The concept of borders is a central reason for which the human right to health of refugees is unachievable, leading to refugees being trapped in a “new form of inequality” (Bradby, Lebano, et al. 2020, 1). For example, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, refugees were deprived of their rights, as camps in Greece lack “basic facilities” (Teloni et al. 2021, 2). Greek governmental services, resources, and facilities are maintained largely for the country’s citizens. Refugees, as the ‘other’, are excluded from the state’s priority: the ‘citizen’. This displays why civil society actors and humanitarian NGOs are essential in the process of safeguarding the human rights of refugees, as governments lack the will and ability to do so. However, NGOs’ efforts solely complement refugees’ human rights, as NGOs do not have the capacity or authority to safeguard human rights for all refugees.
The Corinth refugee camp structure contains four central entities. First, the Greek government. Second, the camp manager, who is hired by the government. Third, four IOM employees, which manage the lawyer, social assistant, and psychologist present within the camp walls (IOM Member Interview, November 18, 2022). Lastly, the Red Cross, which oversees medical aspects. Until December 2021, the Red Cross was available for visits and check-ups every weekday morning. However, since January 2022, doctors are available solely on Wednesday and Friday mornings, despite 500 to 1,000 people currently residing in the camp (Lanzalotti, September 6, 2022). As the Red Cross is not a governmental entity (Hellenic Red Cross, 2007), its autonomy within the camp is controlled by the Greek government. Both the government and NGOs highly limit one another, solely as a sovereignty play (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022). This signifies that as the ‘sovereign’, the Greek Government has the power to “retain and revoke” the autonomy of the Red Cross, as means of maintaining and strengthening its own power (Hobbes 1998, 121). However, as Greece has been suffering from an economic crisis, the government lacks resources for the “public healthcare system” (Bradby, Lebano, et al. 2020, 4). Therefore, NGOs and civil society are essential in Greece’s case, to provide health services to refugees which the government is unable to offer due to economic instability. Thus, to enhance the Greek economy, the government is not prioritizing refugees’ rights to health services, and NGOs like OBTI intervene (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022).
As OBTI is an Italian NGO, it is not recognized by the Greek government, consequently giving it both very limited and highly flexible authority over its actions. The organization cannot enter the refugee camp unless instructed by IOM or the government, but can cooperate largely with other organizations to provide large support to refugees. In fact, every Wednesday since December 2021, doctors from the German NGO Medical Volunteers International (MVI) work from 10:00 until 17:00 to provide checkups at the Community School for any refugee who requests or requires it. This way, OBTI takes on part of the government’s largely neglected responsibility of health care. However, OBTI is highly limited as it relies on other organizations for structuring and conducting the work. MVI works alongside volunteer translators, who often are not available, limiting both MVI and OBTI: the organizations are unable to provide clear and effective medical care without translators.
Public hospitals do not welcome those who either do not have the correct documents (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022), or have the right documents but do not seem ‘western’ (Anonymous Refugee Interview, November 11, 2022). Therefore, offering a regular health service to those who cannot use public healthcare helps refugees obtain aid, comfort, and a sense of community. Moreover, many OBTI volunteers offer to accompany refugees to hospital appointments to diminish the discrimination the refugees may face (Personal Lived Experience, December 6, 2022). By accompanying refugees, OBTI takes on the role of preventing discrimination, which the government lacks. Furthermore, it maintains a personal and humane touch to its work with refugees, an aspect which government services seem to be deficient in. Additionally, OBTI assures clarity and organization for both the hospital workers and the refugees.
Moreover, the Community School holds monthly checkups with an ophthalmologist, as well as frequent individual and group psychological support sessions for those who request it. Through these services, OBTI can support refugees’ physical and psychological health despite lacking large financial resources. Despite providing a psychologist in the Corinth Refugee Camp, only one psychologist is available for everyone. Thus, many refugees cannot make use of the service. Although the Greek government provides bi-weekly medical appointments for approximately 500 to 1,000 people, OBTI further safeguards refugee rights through frequent medical, psychological, and ophthalmologist services. Furthermore, despite providing medical services, the Greek government only allows refugees to make use of public services, such as public hospitals and doctors, if they have the right documents, which frequently take between four months and three years to obtain (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022). Participatory observation and interviews of various volunteers lead to two central conclusions about the Greek government’s role in relation to health services provided to refugees and migrants residing in the Corinth Refugee Camp. Firstly, medical assistance is “slim to none”, especially if the Red Cross did not provide essential but minimal help (Elisa, Volunteer Interview, September 6, 2022). Second, as NGOs provide medical and educational services, the state is failing to do so, thus likely takes advantage of the NGOs’ interventions and resources. As a result of such, various EU governments, such as the Greek, have been failing to fulfill their responsibility because NGOs place higher effort into assuming responsibility instead of the state (Allsopp et al. 2022, 65).
Analysis: Non-Discrimination of Refugees in Corinth, Greece
Article 3 of the 1951 Refugee Convention affirms the responsibility of governments towards non-discrimination of refugees. Despite this, academic literature, interviews, and participatory observations all display the undergoing discrimination of refugees by the Greek and EU governments and policies. ‘The Deal’ – an agreement signed by European countries, including Greece and Turkey – limits the numbers of refugees who enter and remain in the EU, oftentimes through illegal pushbacks (Rozakou 2017, 45). The Nation-State today requires strong and distinct borders to assure sovereignty over its people, thus Greece practices illegal pushbacks to adhere to ‘The Deal’ (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022).
The area of and around Evros River is a common location for illegal pushbacks carried out by Greece and Turkey, rendering arrival into the country, and legal qualification for state services and resources, very difficult (Amnesty International 2021, 13). In 2020, the number of pushbacks by the Greek government augmented, despite continuously refuting its use of such methods (Abdulrahim 2021). Abdulrahim (2021) and Kovner et al. (2021) denounce the Greek government and EU border police for their illegal pushbacks, as well as the restriction and criminalization of NGOs working with refugees and asylum seekers. Kovner et al. (2021, 1751) highlight the Greek and EU border police’s actions as “breaching international law”. The Greek government has therefore not been working towards fulfilling the ‘non-discrimination’ of refugees entering and crossing the country.
This paper, so far, displays how NGOs oftentime assume responsibility over the government’s obligation towards refugees and migrants. However, EU members frequently prosecute NGOs as “people smugglers,” creating structural criminalization of humanitarian workers and further criminalizing and ‘othering’ refugees (Fekete 2018, 65). Blus’ (2013, 414) literature presents the dangers of undocumented refugees when within an EU country. Namely, not having access to education or healthcare, as well as experiencing racism and discrimination; three aspects which are highly important within the 1951 Refugee Convention and the UN Declaration on Human Rights (UNDHR). Moreover, as access to education, healthcare, justice, and other services are provided to ‘legal’ residents, regularization is likely the most “adequate solution” (Blus 2013, 441). Regularization signifies providing documents and asylum to refugees for their presence in a country to be seen as legal. Rozakou (2017, 39) highlights state power as an aspect of sovereignty and EU politics which regularization and classification heighten. However, although states have implemented the regularization method, illegality is simply “redefined,” not removed: although some refugees and migrants are granted asylum, others remain ‘illegal’ (Blus 2013, 418).
Regularization varies immensely depending on situations, both economic and political, of the countries of origin and arrival. The government grants legal status to some but not others, whereas OBTI and other small NGOs are able to provide non-discriminatory services to all when the resources are available. For example, OBTI has been helping a Syrian family of seven for two years, due to their long-standing relationship with OBTI and its coordinator. Thus, OBTI provides for individual’s specific needs as well as general ones, but cannot do so for everyone due to limited resources (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022).
The government, on the other hand, is responsible for providing for its own citizens and refugees within its territory, but has not shown good use and distribution of economic resources for any refugees aside from those from Ukraine (Penelope, Volunteer Interview, October 10, 2022). In fact, the enormous aid provided to Ukrainian refugees by EU countries proves that the resources for more to be done to help refugees are available, but European states lack empathy towards other refugees (Ai and Boris 2020, 72). As a result of the general inhumane European perception on refugees, those who flee their country due to persecution or conflict are not always acknowledged under the Refugee Convention or the arrival state’s “protection system,” thus are labeled as ‘illegal’ migrants and not asylum seekers (Bus 2013, 426). Additionally, migrants are oftentimes not recognized as refugees, and thus are not given the right to protection and social services.
Furthermore, Greece provides asylum only if someone is being persecuted due to their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or belonging to a social group, as stated in the 1951 Refugee Convention, but no protection is granted in Greece for LGBTQ+ persons (Lanzalotti, September 6, 2022). Thus, members of said community are oftentimes forced to risk their lives with the hope of reaching a better place, but nonetheless arriving where there is “little to no protection” of their rights (Anonymous Refugee Interview, November 20, 2022). Contrarily, OBTI’s presence provides essential human touch through games, classes, workshops, and conversations; an aspect which is not direct aid but ameliorates the livelihood and mental health of refugees. They can have a stronger sense of normalcy, rather than always being labeled as a refugee or, worst, illegal migrant.
Moreover, after arrival into Greece, individuals who obtain asylum and reside in a Greek refugee camp receive the red asylum card and the cash card. Before November 2021, the cash cards were managed by IOM, through which everyone received €150 per month. After November however, Greece’s prime minister, Mitsotakis, gave the government control of the cash cards; every refugee now receives only €75 per person per month (Lanzalotti, September 6, 2022). However, if someone’s asylum application is rejected, they do not receive the monthly cash cards or housing in a refugee camp. Furthermore, an asylum rejection prevents them from working or studying, thus further excluding them from social and cultural life in Greece, as well as access to education and public health services.
Analysis of Findings: OBTI’s and the Greek Government’s Roles in Safeguarding Refugees
Under the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Refugee Protocol, states are required to fulfill their responsibilities towards refugees. However, neither agreement ensures the assumption of responsibility. In fact, Devi (2021, 479) discusses the EU’s implementation of “hard measures” as a tactic to end any illegal crossing of borders, resulting in the violation of refugees’ human rights and the increase of illegal and unsafe alternatives. Borders within EU countries function alongside the continuous inclusion and exclusion of persons, augmenting systematic discrimination towards refugees (Mezzadra 2013, 7). The notion of borders and their enhancement, namely since the EU-Turkey deal, while decreasing migration numbers, generates more insecurity and life-risks (Blus 2013, 413). This displays the secondary importance of refugees’ Human Rights protection for EU member-states. The sovereignty of states enhanced by border creation and maintenance has been a central focus of EU politics, consequently leading to the neglect of human rights of migrants and refugees. As the strengthening of border policies persists, and individuals’ need and will to enter the EU continues, small NGOs like OBTI feel obliged to help refugees survive ‘The Game’: a term referring to illegal, unsafe, and unsure routes undergone by refugees, both by foot – thus through the Balkan Route –, or by boats – hiding under trucks on ferries headed to Italy –. OBTI does not actively help refugees illegally cross borders. However, the organization prepares bags with tents, blankets, clothes, food, and hygiene products for anyone to use if attempting ‘The Game’. As EU governments, including Greece’s, limit the safe passageway into Europe, NGOs like OBTI are given no choice but to support refugees undergoing ‘The Game’ from a distance to continue safeguarding, whilst not risking criminalization.
“We cannot help them in any other ways otherwise we would get accused of smuggling”
- Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022.
OBTI and all its volunteers from the past months have felt compassion and empathy towards refugees who see no alternative but to attempt ‘The Game’. Many refugees experienced police brutality throughout the Balkan Route, namely in Bosnia, before being pushed back into Greece (Anonymous Refugee Interview, November 20, 2022). Thus, all volunteers have shown understanding towards anyone wanting to leave Greece: all those who are determined to leave would do it even without OBTI’s help (Claudia, Volunteer Interview, September 15, 2022). OBTI simply helps them through ‘The Game’ in a more “humane condition to face” the life-risking and uncertain journey (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022). NGOs like OBTI thus safeguard refugees’ rights and aid them towards survival before ‘The Game’. Contrarily, to maintain sovereignty over borders and territory, the Greek government pushes refugees to undergo life-threatening routes.
During the 2015 ‘refugee crisis’, government officials in charge of coordinating registrations of refugees pleaded the civil society for aid, thus displaying the country’s lack of medical and economic resources despite all efforts placed by the government (Rozakou 2017, 44). Due to the economic crisis that began in Greece in 2010, the 2015 ‘refugee crisis’ became a “crisis within a crisis”; Greek citizens legitimize the discrimination of refugees by accusing refugees and EU countries of causing the economic instability (Zsófia 2018, 378-379). Discrimination towards refugees, although a violation of the Refugee Convention and Protocol, is difficult to abolish, whether the government, NGOs, or both, are involved. Ruhs (2012, 1277) highlights that providing rights to refugees the same way they are provided to citizens is not beneficial to Nation-States. The exclusion generated within a state’s inclusion of its citizens results in othering, mistreatment, and alienation of refugees. Similarly, Sitaropoulos (2017) presents the systematic neglect of the Greek government’s protection of refugees’ human rights, indirectly displaying the necessary presence of NGOs in Greece for the protection of migrants’ and refugees’ human rights.
As a result of EU-wide policies, as well as the notion of sovereignty and borders, the Greek government seems to lack the capacity to fulfill its responsibilities towards refugees. Likewise, due to the higher level of power and sovereignty by the state, NGOs have little agency in deciding what they can control, such as medical and educational services provided in the Refugee Camp. Furthermore, as Lanzalotti (December 16, 2022) stated, small NGOs are more influential and produce more change than large organizations, because actions and services provided are simultaneously general and specific to individual needs. However, NGOs often compete with one another, limiting each other and their ability to aid refugees. Thus, collaboration between NGOs is “fundamental,” as the end goal, helping and supporting refugees, is the same for all (Lanzalotti, December 16, 2022).
Conclusion and Discussion
In accordance with the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Refugee Protocol, signatory states, including the Greek government, are obliged to safeguard refugees’ rights. However, research and current events display that this is not always the case. The Greek government, for instance, focuses largely on its citizens’ wants and needs, as well as the country’s finance, since its 2010 economic crisis. Although the economic instability of Greece renders it difficult for the country to provide education, healthcare, and equal services to refugees, other aspects present why the government does not fulfill its responsibilities towards refugees. Namely, strong and distinct borders assure the Nation-State’s sovereignty. Therefore, to respect ‘The Deal’, Greece practices illegal pushbacks. Furthermore, structural discrimination towards refugees is enhanced rather than diminished to maintain the structure of inclusion and exclusion in the country. Consequently, small NGOs like OBTI must intervene to safeguard human rights daily. In fact, OBTI provides a “community where everyone feels equal”, as well as practical services such as education, medical care, legal aid, and psychological support (Lanzalotti, December 14, 2022).
Conducting this research paper led to two practical and ethical issues. Firstly, rendering refugees ‘research variables’ through structured interviews bares various ethical implications. Therefore, participatory observation replaced direct interviews as the new research method. Consequently, the research became less structured and more impressionistic. Accordingly, this paper’s use of refugees’ and volunteers’ personal experience, as well as academic literature, aims to provide a wide-spread analysis of “emporal, spatial, and embodied aspects” (Grabska and Clark-Kazak 2022, 4). Through observation, refugees did not feel studied or utilized for testimonies, therefore were more open to sharing thoughts, experiences, and opinions. Secondly, this paper should ideally have included an interview with a Greek government employee to provide a wider perspective, but this requires special permits that are difficult to obtain. Consequently, this research lacks a wider academic perspective, which would include volunteers’, refugees’, and government employees’ views on how the state fulfills or ignores its responsibilities towards refugees.
This paper leads to a myriad of additional questions. Whose responsibility is it to protect the human rights of refugees: that of the government or civil society? To what extent should NGOs or the government have the responsibility, and how can it be divided? Participatory observation led to the conclusion that civil society can try to change the government or support NGOs, but the ultimate responsibility is of those in power. Therefore, NGOs must work with one another, as well as alongside the government, to successfully provide all the services and materials necessary for respecting the Refugee Convention and Protocol. That is because, without external aid, NGOs do not have enough economic capacity, materials, or employees/volunteers to provide all the necessary services, whereas governments alone think primarily of their financial benefits, sovereignty, and power.
However, it is important to recognize that the resources, structures, and services provided by OBTI were created to become ‘normalized’ and permanent, rather than temporary, whereas the Greek government’s actions, such as the refugee camp itself (Personal Lived Experience, December 6, 2022), is temporary. This, consequently, normalizes the crisis, rather than normalizing those within the crisis, i.e. the refugees (Zsófia 2018, 379). However, most refugees see Greece as a country of transit, thus arrive without the intention of remaining long. Despite this, although the EU-Turkey deal provides the theoretical possibility of relocating 65,000 refugees stranded in Greece, the process has been a disappointment, creating an obstruction where refugees wait in “frozen transience”” (Zsófia 2018, 380). This paper therefore will conclude with two central ideas for improvement. Firstly, this research has led to an understanding that further research similar to this paper is required in the context of ‘illegal’ migrants. This would augment the understanding of governmental actions towards migration, and highlight the discrimination between locals, migrants, and refugees. Lastly, it is essential to conduct myriads of more research viewing the refugee crisis to be a crisis for refugees, rather than for governments. This way, a humanistic approach can be placed upon the field, rather than a solely political or economic approach, such as how the refugees from Ukraine were welcomed as people and not as a problem.
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Gustafsson, Kristina, and Jesper Johansson. “A Worthy Reception? Ambivalences in Social Work With Refugees and Migrants in Sweden.” Advances in Social Work 18, no. 3 (2018): 983–1004. https://doi.org/10.18060/21656. Hellenic Red Cross. “Hellenic Red Cross.” 2007. http://www.redcross.gr/default.asp?pid=138&la=2#:~:text=Hellenic%20Red%20Cross%2C%201st%20Likavitou,mail%3A%20pr%40redcross.gr
Hobbes, Thomas. “Of The Rights of Sovereigns by Institution.” From Leviathan. Oxford, New York, 1998. 113-122. International Organization on Migration (IOM). “Key Migration Terms.” Accessed October 11, 2022. https://www.iom.int/key-migration-terms#Immigration
IOM Member Interview. November 18, 2022. Janmyr, Maja. “Ethnographic Approaches and International Refugee Law.” Journal of Refugee Studies, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feac042.
Kallinikaki, Theano. “Social Work Education in Uncertain Times: Protecting the Human Rights of Migrants.” Journal of Human Rights and Social Work 4, no. 1 (2019): 28–35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41134-018-0084-1.
Kovner, Bella, Adar Zehavi, and Daphna Golan. “Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Youth in Greece: Protection, Liberation and Criminalization.” The International Journal of Human Rights 25, no. 10 (2021): 1744–1767. https://doi.org/10.1080/13642987.2021.1874936.
Lanzalotti, Mina. Project Introduction Interview. September 6, 2022.
Lanzalotti, Mina. Coordinator Interview. December 14, 2022.
Mezzadra, Nielson, Mezzadra, Sandro, Mezzadra, Brett. “The Sovereign Machine of Governmentality” from Border as Method, or, the Multiplication of Labor. London: Duke University Press, 2013.
Participatory Observation. September 01, 2022 to December 15, 2022.
Penelope. Volunteer Interview. October 10, 2022.
Rozakou, Katerina. “Nonrecording the “European Refugee Crisis” in Greece.” Focaal 2017, no. 77 (2017): 36–49. https://doi.org/10.3167/fcl.2017.770104.
Ruhs, Martin. “The Human Rights of Migrant Workers.” The American Behavioral Scientist (Beverly Hills) 56, no. 9 (2012): 1277–1293. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764212443815.
Sitaropoulos, Nikolaos. “Migrant Ill-Treatment in Greek Law Enforcement-Are the Strasbourg Court Judgments the Tip of the Iceberg?” European Journal of Migration and Law 19, no. 2 (2017): 136–164. https://doi.org/10.1163/15718166-12340005.
Smith, Valerie J. “Ethical and Effective Ethnographic Research Methods: A Case Study with Afghan Refugees in California.” Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics 4, no. 3 (2009): 59–72. https://doi.org/10.1525/jer.2009.4.3.59.
Stivas, Dionysios. “Greece's Response to the European Refugee Crisis: A Tale of Two Securitizations.” Mediterranean Politics (Frank Cass & Co.) ahead-of-print, no. ahead-of-print (2021): 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/13629395.2021.1902198.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “Do You Know All 17 SDGs?” Accessed on October 27, 2022. https://sdgs.un.org/goals
Teloni, Dimitra-Dora, Sofia Dedotsi, Alexis Lazanas, and Aristeidis Telonis. “Social Work with Refugees: Examining Social Workers’ Role and Practice in Times of Crisis in Greece.” International Social Work, 2021, 2087282110469: 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/00208728211046980.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). “Convention and Protocol Relating to the Statues of Refugees.” Accessed October 17, 2022. https://www.unhcr.org/3b66c2aa10
Zsófia, Nagy. “From Camps to Schools: The Participation of Refugee Children in Greek Public Education.” Journal of Modern Greek Studies 36, no. 2 (2018): 373–399. https://doi.org/10.1353/mgs.2018.0028.
Relevant Links
https://www.onebridgetoidomeni.com/
https://www.unhcr.org/ceu/184-enresourcesconventionsrefugee-convention-html.html