Report: Growing Sexual Exploitation of Child Refugees in Greece
A report by health specialists at Harvard University warns of a “growing epidemic of sexual exploitation and abuse of migrant children in Greece.”
The study, by Dr. Vasileia Digidiki and Professor Jacqueline Bhabha of Harvard’s FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, is based on interviews and observation across Greece during November 2016.
They found that unaccompanied child refugees in Greece are particularly vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Some children, mostly Afghan boys followed by Syrians, Iraqis and Iranians, are selling sex to older men in Greece for around €15 ($16), according to the report. Some have become addicted to drugs.
“We can no longer sit idle while migrant children are abused and forced to sell their bodies in broad daylight and plain sight in the heart of Athens simply to survive,” Digidiki said.
Authorities estimate that there are around 2,300 unaccompanied child refugees in Greece.
Despite progress in establishing safe areas for children in Greek camps, nearly 50 percent are still awaiting transfer to child-friendly accommodation. The report also documented incidences of rape, assault, early marriage and blackmail using humiliating images against children in the camps.
Asylum Claims in Mexico Surge by 150 Percent Since Trump Election
Growing numbers of people fleeing Central America are claiming asylum in Mexico since Donald Trump was elected U.S. president, Reuters reports.
Some 5,421 people applied for asylum in Mexico between November 2016 and March, an increase of over 150 percent on the 2,148 who applied during the same period a year earlier.
Experts told Reuters it is too early to say whether the surging asylum claims are directly linked to Trump’s election. But they also wouldn’t rule it out.
“The views that people have about a political change, they definitely impact everyone’s consciousness,” said Cinthia Perez, a director at Mexico’s refugee agency, COMAR.
Fishermen Find 28 Bodies in Refugee Boat off Libya
Libyan fishermen discovered a boat containing the bodies of 28 asylum seekers, including four women, off the coast of Libya. All had died at sea, apparently of thirst and hunger.
The boat in which they were traveling had a broken engine, Libyan officials said. Smugglers are increasingly sending out shoddy boats packed with people trying to reach Europe. Nearly 9,000 people were rescued over the Easter weekend.
Meanwhile, the cofounder of rescue charity Migrant Offshore Aid Station, Chris Catrambone, accused E.U. naval boats of staying too far from the Libyan coast. “The priority needs to be saving lives, not patrolling a make-believe border. The further they [Frontex] stay away, the more people will die,” he said.
The E.U. border and coast guard agency Frontex in turn accuses NGO rescue boats of patrolling too close to Libyan waters, allowing smugglers to take advantage of their proximity. Such accusations have been fiercely rebuffed by NGOs. “Saying there is a pull factor is just ignorance. It’s avoiding responsibility,” Catrambone said.
Recommended Reads
- Al Jazeera: Remembering the Victims of Egypt’s Rashid Tragedy
- The Christian Science Monitor: Instead of a Wall, an Open Door: Why Ethiopia Welcomes an Enemy’s Refugees
- Center for Global Development: Refugee Compacts: Addressing the Crisis of Protracted Displacement
- Deutsche-Welle: New Report Highlights Tragedy of Migrant Slave Markets in Libya
- The Guardian: He Fought the Mafia and Won. Now This Mayor Is Taking on Europe Over Migrants