STATISTICS AND HIGHLIGHTS
The number of the asylum seekers at the border with Hungary continued to remain high with up to 390 that waited to be admitted into Hungarian “transit zones” and many others located near Subotica. 196 asylum seekers departed by accessing procedures in Hungarian “transit zones”.
HCIT access to asylum seekers at the border crossing with Hungary in Horgos and Kelebija remained unresolved with the authorities.
UNHCR and partners learned of 102 irregular arrivals: 64 from fYR Macedonia and 38 from Bulgaria.
41 persons expressed intent to seek asylum, bringing the total in April 2016 to 442 and for the whole of 2016 to 2,383 (statistics courtesy of the Ministry of Interior).
SOUTH
66 refugees remain hosted in the Reception Centre (RC) in Presevo. 37 individuals who arrived irregularly from fYR Macedonia were accommodated in the RC. Philanthropy distributed 76 cash cards to the refugee population. The UNICEF/DRC/CSW child friendly space/mother and baby corner hosted a total of 35 children and 26 women while a new modern mural was painted in one wall of the power station in the RC and sponsored by SOS Children's Villages. The UNHCR-supported Public Health and the Natan/Humedica clinic treated over 80 patients during the reporting period.
EAST
On the 23 of April, a group of 14 refugees including four children, arrived near Dimitrovgrad from Bulgaria. They all received humanitarian assistance from UNHCR partners Sigma Plus, Red Cross and Indigo.
BELGRADE
UNHCR and partners assisted between 250 and 350 refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants on a daily basis, most from Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia or Pakistan. The Asylum Info Centre facilitated in various referrals, including access asylum procedures to recent irregular arrivals from fYR Macedonia and Bulgaria. UNHCR/DRC doctors offered medical treatment to 39 patients while MSF, Refugee Aid Miksaliste and Divac Foundation assisted them with food and other aid. Between 200 and 300 were present at night in the parks near the bus and train station.
WEST
42 refugees remain hosted in the Refugees Aid Points (RAPs) in the West: 17 in Adasevci and 25 in Sid. Many left the sites during the reporting period towards the Hungarian border but some of them returned because of the rain and low temperatures. CRS/Divac Foundation continued to provide hot lunches and OM hot tea. The BCM/Sid Health Centre at Adasevci treated four refugees and WAHA 22 in Sid.
NORTH
Between 300 and 390 asylum seekers, including 29 unaccompanied and separated children (UASC), waited outside the two “transit zones” in Kelebija and Horgos border-crossings. They had arrived from Sid and Presevo but many were also recent irregular arrivals to Serbia from fYR Macedonia and Bulgaria. They stayed in improvised tents, with lack of access to sanitary facilities. Some 30 asylum seekers were admitted into each “transit zone”.
On 24 April UNHCR successfully advocated with SCRM to open Subotica RAP for vulnerable cases. Only 13 individuals were sheltered in the RAP while many women and children decided to wait outside the Hungarian “transit zones”.
During the entire reporting period HCIT was denied by the authorities to provide humanitarian aid at the two border crossing with Hungary. UNHCR and UNICEF were at Kelebija and Horgos while HCIT assisted asylum seekers at Subotica bus station. They all distributed food, 2,720 water bottles, 1,338 WFP HEBs, 15 UNHCR blankets, 100 hygiene packs, 14 jackets and UNIQLO clothes. MSF offered medical assistance at all locations.