Athens, 30 August 2021:The fall of Kabul and the Taliban takeover have had one very direct consequence: many people from Afghanistan are already at risk.

It is of course beyond our place to predict if there will be refugee flows from Afghanistan, although this is very likely. The experience gained from previous Taliban regimes and the recent atrocities demonstrate that the lives and the freedom of many thousands of civilians, and particularly women, are at stake due to their religious beliefs, their ethnic origin, their gender and sexual orientation or their political views.

This situation ought to be alarming for all democratic societies; to raise the alarm on the imperative to protect people who are at risk and to save lives.

With great sadness, we are realizing that the political reality is failing to serve this purpose up to now. That there is an emergency mobilization between EU member states, yet in the opposite direction. That instead of solidarity, there seems to only be preparation for deterrence.

In light of developments that may lead to a new and prolonged humanitarian crisis, at a time when all possible efforts should be focused on the protection of human lives, it seems unfathomable to hear that Greece cannot become an “entry gate for a new wave of refugees”, as the Minister of Migration, Mr. Mitarakis, recently stated.

It is similarly unthinkable how even five days before the fall of Kabul, 6 ministers of EU member states (including Greece) prompted the European Commission to accelerate discussions with the (former) government of Afghanistan, in order to ensure that the compulsory expulsion of Afghan citizens to Afghanistan would continue.

As members of the civil society, we feel that we must emphasize that every person who is at risk of persecution on the basis of their origin and beliefs has the right to receive protection as per the international law of refugee protection. We feel that we have a duty to emphasize that every person who seeks asylum has the right to an individual examination of their asylum application, as provided by international and EU law.

In this context we are particularly concerned that in our country, all current preparations for managing the potential consequences of the crisis in Afghanistan, seem to be exclusively focused on upscaling deterrence mechanisms. We are also highly concerned about the possibility of people in need of protection being prevented from finding a safe refuge for their families and themselves and we urge the Greek government to avoid such an event by any means.

The tragic developments in Afghanistan also necessitate re-examining the recent rejections of asylum applications concerning citizens of Afghanistan and reconsidering the institutional framework that governs these rejections. As is well known, Greece has recently and unilaterally designated Turkey as a “safe third country” for citizens of Afghanistan. The implementation of this measure can lead to the Greek state refusing to examine the merits of asylum applications by citizens of Afghanistan. This is unacceptable and amounts to refusing the responsibility to protect people coming from the least safe country in the world. In light of Turkey’s ongoing refusal to accept the return of third country nationals from Greece since March 2020, this will place a significant number of Afghan asylum seekers in an unacceptable state of legal limbo between Greece and Turkey; in a situation without access to healthcare, housing or education. We therefore and once again urge the Greek government to review the Joint Ministerial Decision with respect to the citizens of Afghanistan, as well as with respect to the citizen of other nationalities.

EU governments should decisively contribute to sharing the responsibility for protecting all Afghan citizens seeking international protection, instead of refusing this responsibility, by shifting it to third countries. This responsibility and solidarity stems from the democratic, historical and cultural values shared by EU countries, as well as form international law. Let us not once again fail to uphold the principles of democracy, humanitarianism, the rule of law and solidarity.

Co-signed by:

Lesvos Solidarity

ARSIS – Association for the Social Support of Youth

ASAM Greece

Network for Children’s Rights

Greek Council for Refugees

Greek Forum of Migrants

Greek Forum of Refugees

Equal Rights Beyond Borders

Jesuit Refugee Service Greece (JRS Greece)

HumanRights360

Irida Women’s Center

Centre Diotima

Community Pope John XXIII

Legal Centre Lesvos

Melisa Network of Migrant Women in Greece

METAdrasi – Action for Migration & Development

Mobile Info Team

Odyssea

Still I Rise

SolidarityNow

The HOME Project