The situation
As of today, more than 1,030,000 people are being reported to have crossed to Europe since the beginning of 2015. The main migratory entry point remains Greece, with almost 875,000 arrivals registered.
Demographically, we can still see a majority presence of adult males among the migrants on the move (49%), but we encounter more families, which is translated into an increasing number of children (31%) and women (19%).
Changes on border policy controls developed by nations such as Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, which are limiting the entry into their territories to nationalities (Syrians, Iraqis and Afghanis) continue to be implemented and have led to diversions in the previous patterns of the countries of origin.
On the Western Balkans migratory route, 91% of the migrants come from these three nationalities (Syria 56%, Afghanistan 25%, Iraq 10%).1Other countries of origin represented in Greece are Pakistan, Somalia, Morocco and Bangladesh, among others.
Many countries along the migratory route are typically exposed to severe weather conditions with temperatures below zero on the Celsius scale. The winter, so far, has not been as harsh as expected. However, in the coming weeks worsening weather conditions are predicted, which may expose people on the move to further challenges.
As projected by UNHCR and other humanitarian actors, even if in decreasing numbers, the migratory flow still continues in spite of worsening weather conditions or border restrictions, and the situation remains volatile.
The situation in Greece remains a major concern for the IFRC. Due to deteriorating weather conditions, several rescue operations took place on the waters near Lesvos, Chios and Samos for boats in distress. Currently, an average of 1,500 to 2,000 people are arriving in Greece on a daily basis, especially in the Greek island of Lesvos.
Arrivals in islands such as Kos, Chios, Samos or Leros have substantially decreased.
Like other humanitarian actors, the Hellenic Red Cross is providing assistance to the population in the reception and shelter facilities. However, tensions among the migrants remain vivid due to the uncertainty of their situation. The results of the border restriction policies are making migrants look for alternative routes, which include Bulgaria and Albania (the latter leading towards Italy).
Meanwhile, the migrants coming from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq are keeping on the move through the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and continue on the so called Western Balkans route towards Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Austria to reach the main countries of destination such as Germany, Finland or Sweden.
As of 4 January 2016, Sweden introduced additional checks and restrictions at the borders. Everyone entering Sweden by bus, train or ferry from Denmark will be checked and those lacking valid ID documents will be sent back.
This practice aims to reduce the number of migrants entering the country, which has already received more than 160,000 asylum seekers, and follows the re-introduction of border checks in Germany, Austria, France, Belgium and several other European countries. A number of further EU member states, being either transit or destination countries, have also introduced stricter asylum and/or immigration laws during the second half of 2015.
At their weekly meeting on 13 January 2016, the European Commission discussed the refugee crisis, looking at the measures taken in 2015 and the initiatives to be presented in spring 2016. One of the priorities of the European Commission in 2016 will be the return to the normal functioning of the Schengen system.
As of 1 January 2016, the Netherlands took over the presidency of the Council of the EU. During the next six months, the Netherlands Presidency will focus on four key areas, including migration and international security. 2 The full programme is accessible here. One of the first meetings organised as part of the Netherlands Presidency was on “Promoting the multidisciplinary approach in addressing migrant smuggling” organised in Amsterdam on 12-13 January 2016. Representatives of the Netherlands RC, RCEU Office and Croatian RC participated at the Conference.