Europe has been divided on how to address the troubling refugee crisis on its doorstep.
The haunting image of three-year-old toddler Aylan Kurdi lying lifeless on the Turkey beach has evoked international outrage and has raised some serious concerns about the surging refugee crisis in Europe. The boy, who died along with his mother and four-year old brother, was trying to escape unrest in Syria in the hope for a better life.
There have been a series of similar horrific stories being reported recently, as refugees continue to flee conflict areas in the region. In another tragedy in Austria last week, around 71 refugees, including women and children, were found dead in a refrigerated, windowless lorry. The autopsy revealed that they died a slow and painful death due to suffocation, because all of them were crammed in a space, five people to a square metre. In another incident, almost 200 bodies were found floating in the sea, after a boat carrying 400 refugees from a major smuggling port Zuwara in Libya, sank in the Mediterranean sea. Some of the survivors of the tragedy said that smugglers were charging them money just to come out of the hold of the boat to breathe. An Iraqi orthopaedic surgeon claimed he paid almost $4,000 to come to the top deck with his wife and son to get some air.
These and several other incidents have finally prompted world leaders to consider the seriousness of the situation and jolted people out of their apathy towards the refugees.
But why are they leaving in hoards, hiding in crammed containers and choosing to make the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean sea to reach Europe? Most are driven to escape from conflict-ridden zones like Syria as well as countries in Africa and the Middle East due to unrest. However, after leaving everything behind and fleeing from their countries fearing death and violence, many end up meeting the same fate or worse in the process.
Also Read: Why do refugees risk their lives to cross the Mediterranean sea to Europe?
Europe, on the other hand, is facing a huge refugee crisis. The continent is expected to receive the biggest influx of refugees since World War II. In countries like Germany, almost 800,000 refugee arrivals are expected this year. Other European countries like Greece, Italy and Hungary are scrambling to accommodate the huge influx. While countries like Germany and Italy say they are trying to provide basic asylum care to the refugees, there are also countries that are outright refusing to accept people from Islamic countries. Many European countries are also being accused of cherry picking refugees according to their needs and requirements. Here's how some of the countries in Europe are addressing the issue:
Germany
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has remained steady in showing her support to the refugees and has urged the European Union members to accept their fair share of asylum seekers.
However, small towns in Germany like Heidenau and Freital are being criticised for xenophobic violence. There have been increasing reports of anti-refugee violence with arson attacks on the refugee camps and several related hate crimes. Merkel was also recently heckled during a protest rally while on her visit to refugee shelters.
France
France has backed Germany's call for a common European policy for the asylum seekers who are pouring in from various war-torn and poverty-ridden regions. The French President also denounced the anti-refugee violence that has cropped up in Germany.
Britain
Talking about Britain's acceptance of refugees, Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron said that that "No European country has done more than Britain in this regard. Were it not for that massive aid, the numbers making the perilous journey to Europe today would be even higher."
Austria
Austria has asked Britain to show more solidarity with the European Union and try to accommodate more of the refugees who are pouring in from the Middle East. Austrian Chancellor Werner Fayman had said, "When I think of the British, who have their own catalogue of demands, why should we do anything for them? Because, you have to say, solidarity is not a one-way street."
Austria also agreed to accept thousands of refugees arriving at the Hungary border on Friday. Around 2,000 refugees were seen pouring in on the Austria border on Saturday.
Greece
According to the figures provided by the Greek government, around 157,000 refugees arrived in Greece by sea during July and August. During the first eight months of 2015, more than 230,000 people arrived by sea. This is more than 13 times the 17,000 people who arrived during the same period in 2014. Greece appears to be lacking funds to administer to the refugees' needs. Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos said that the refugee crisis is primarily Europe's responsibility.
Italy
Italy is one of the major destinations for refugees, more than 111,197 refugees have arrived in the country this year. However, Italy is struggling to accommodate the thousands of migrants who still pouring in and claims that although it is trying to, it does not have enough space to accommodate the number of people. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, in a Guardian article said:
Hungary
Recently, Hungary responded to the crisis by putting up a barrier of rolls razor wire along its entire 175-kilometre border with Serbia, which is also being patrolled by border police with dogs. The move has been widely criticised by French and German governments. Hungary’s prime minister has maintained a hardline anti-immigrant policy and has painted the issue as a crisis between Christianity and Islam.
Slovakia
Slovakia has also adopted a no-Muslim policy and are taking in only Christian refugees, saying that the former would not like living in a country where there are scarcely any mosques. This move has garnered a lot of criticism for the country. Slovakia's foreign minister Miroslav Lajcak said on Wednesday that the flood of migrants could unite the far-right in his country, calling it a "scary" prospect. Meanwhile, while talking to BBC, the Interior Ministry spokesperson Ivan Metik had said:
Also Read - Refugees not Migrants: How Europe is misleading the world on the humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean
Reports suggest that more than 350,000 people have arrived in Europe so far this year, and more than 2,600 people have died, trying to cross the Mediterranean sea to Europe this year. Although the European countries have the right to secure their borders from illegal migrants and traffickers, the matter will not be resolved if the desperate refugees are brutally turned away. Europe will have to come up with a feasible plan to accommodate opportunities for asylum seekers and accept them in an orderly fashion, if they want to help solve this massive humanitarian crisis. Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, on Friday, called on the European Union to admit up to 200,000 refugees as part of a "mass relocation programme" that would be binding on EU states. "No country can do it alone, and no country can refuse to do its part," Antonio Guterres said.
Also Read: How you can help Syrian refugees fleeing to Europe
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Refugees seeking help from the coastguard while crossing the Mediterranian")
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}