What if your family were torn apart while fleeing from war? After spending your last penny and risking your life to be with them, you were abruptly stopped and forced to live in the most inhumane conditions imaginable, stuck in limbo with no information about your future.
On March 9, 2016, the dreams of tens of thousands of asylum seekers in Greece were shattered when the Balkan route into Europe was abruptly closed. This was followed by the EU-Turkey deal, signed on March 18, 2016. According to this agreement, all illegal immigrants arriving in Greece after March 20, 2016, would be sent back to Turkey.
When the borders closed in early March, Greece lacked a mechanism to responsibly manage the influx of nearly 4,000 asylum seekers arriving daily from Turkey, leading to an immediate humanitarian crisis. By the time the EU-Turkey deal went into effect on March 20, 2016, over 50,000 asylum seekers were already stuck in Greece, living under deplorable conditions with no information about their futures.
Many of these asylum seekers, who were en route to reunite with family members in other European countries, were forced to wait over a year for reunification. Nearly two years later, others were still stuck in Greece, anxiously awaiting their turn. Those who arrived after March 20, 2016, face an even bleaker situation, languishing indefinitely in inadequate camps, unsure whether they will ever be reunited with their families or be sent back to Turkey.
We can all relate to the pain that being separated from a child, husband, father or brother causes. How can we criminalize and turn our back on innocent victims of war? There is no question that these families are no longer able to return to their homes and should be reunited with their loved ones and treated with dignity while awaiting reunification.
Let’s take a moment to watch a few of these refugees' heartfelt stories, and try to imagine ourselves in their shoes. How many days could you live separated from your four and ten-year-old daughters? It’s time to treat their suffering as if one day it could be our own.
