Filenews 24 July 2021 - by Michalis Hatzivasilis
Frontex's surveillance of Turkey's southern coast to stop the flow of migrants to Cyprus has been requested by the Government, after our country is facing a huge increase in asylum applications and reception centres being overcrowded.
As Interior Minister Nikos Nouris tells "F", our country is moving forward with the new migration policy recently set out, while declaring itself ready to lift the fence on the Green Line if the flows from the occupied territories stop. It warns of the new looming major problem that Cyprus will face, namely the arrival of migrants from the occupied territories through checkpoints, which is why it states that it is not backing down from its decision not to allow three Cameroons to cross into the free areas. The Ministry also refers to the new hospitality structure set up in Medoyia and reveals that many have profited financially from immigration.
As Mr Nouris states, when he took over the Ministry of the Interior he found that the passages for migration flows were four:
- The first one was through arranged marriages. In 2017 to 2019 we had 4,000 arranged marriages. After the change in legislation, penalties were increased and municipalities were warned. As he notes, arranged marriages immediately stopped, and I was forced to remove the power to perform civil marriages from a municipality that did not comply.
- Virtual students: Between 2017-'19, 3,214 students applied for asylum and 2,239 performed n arranged marriage. That is, in two years 5,500 people who came as students ended up asylum seekers. We changed the criteria and stopped the phenomenon.
- The third entrance door was the seas. We made a deal with Lebanon for migrant returns. We also took measures in the area of Pyrgos Tellyria to prevent the arrival of migrants and instead of the Turks stopping sending migrants, they shot the boat of the Cypriot Port that was patrolling at 11 nautical miles.
- The fourth passage is the Green Line. 70% of migration flows come from the Green Line. We have no understanding with the occupying authorities who promote immigrants in free areas. Following the development with flows increasing by sea, President of the Republic raised the issue with The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, so that the EU could give political support to Frontex for surveillance of Turkey's southern beaches, from where we have the daily almost daily departure of migrants. In fact, we have set this as a condition for consenting to the EU's new immigration policy.
Also, under the Green Line regulation, to come to the free areas one must have legal travel documents and come from a legal port. Those who attempt to pass illegally should not be allowed and it is also our obligation to stop them. "That's why I think it's ostrichism to say some people applied the regulation and on the other hand to say why you're putting a fence on the Green Line. I have no intention of putting fences on the Green Line and I am ready to lift them if and when the EU oversees Turkey's southern coast and stops flows. But since we have systematic flows through the occupied area and I can tell you that we have the names of traffickers now, from Astromeritis, Limnite and The Trulos, we must stop them. The occupation is demarcated by the occupying troops. All I have to say is that the fence is working, which is why now the flows have gone to The Tower of Tellyria and this will be dealt with as well.
The essence of our policy now is that we have divided immigrants into two categories: refugees and economic migrants. Thus, according to our policy, we have established a list of 28 safe countries and anyone who comes from them as an immigrant, their application will be considered manifestly unfounded and will be dealt with in summary proceedings within 10 days. He also has the right in 15 days to go to court and if he fails, he is declared an undesirable immigrant and returns to his country. Today the one who is declared undesirable goes to a detention centre. Now our spaces are limited so the Ministry will proceed with the establishment of a structure, the Lakes in Mendoya. I should note that in the first half of this year we issued 5,555 rejections of asylum applications and due to lack of places, only 177 of them left. That is why we are asking the EU to make return agreements so that we can return those whose applications are rejected. Let me give an example: It has been five months since we have 447 Pakistanis who have voluntarily agreed to return to their country, but because we do not have a bilateral agreement with Pakistan, they cannot leave.
We as Cyprus, stresses Mr Nouris, have recently concluded two important agreements, one with Germany and one with Switzerland, where: With Germany the agreement provides for the acceptance of relocation of refugees. In other words, we agreed as for three specific countries that I do not want to name, where planes will come from Germany to Cyprus, pick up migrants in cooperation with Frontex and take them to their countries. With Switzerland we agreed to assist with financial assistance of €10 million in asylum infrastructure.
New hospitality structure in the model of Lesvos
At the moment the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is moving forward with the new migrant structure, the "Lakes" in Medoya in the model of Lesvos. As the Minister of the Interior explains, the first Hospitality Centre for a thousand people has been built, where those who have their application for asylum from safe third countries will be transferred, but their appeal to the Court of Justice is pending. Until the court's decision is delivered, they will be able to leave the Centre after fingerprinting and returning at night. If their application is also rejected by the Court, they will be transferred to the Detention Centre which will be erected soon and completed by 2023.
The big problem called Syria
Today, the interior minister says, the big problem we face comes from Syria.
Today most asylum seekers come from Syria and we cannot return them to their country because they are not in safe countries.
We have found, Mr Nouris points out, that most come from Turkey, which is paid €6 billion by the EU to contain them. Instead it allows them to come here, which is why Turkey must comply fully with all EU countries. You can't hold them back for all the countries but with Cyprus push them to come here. Let me also tell you that the Ministry of Returns is being set up to centrally monitor the returns of migrants.
Some people benefited financially from immigration.
In 2015 we had 2,253 asylum seekers, which then started an upward trend with a peak of 13,648 applications in 2019, an increase of 506%. Last year with the measures taken the applicants were reduced to 7,000, while this year we have already reached 6,892 because there is a large flow from the Green Line.
In relation to the criticisms Mr Nouris receives regarding the three Cameroonian migrants who came from the occupied territories, are at the checkpoint in Ledra Palace and are not allowed to enter the free areas, he initially stresses that immigration is a big business that generates money. "It has people who are made rich with immigration and between them and R/C, either through illegal work, by providing legal services, or by helping them with trafficking.
When we started putting up barriers to the Green Line, an extremely dangerous passage appeared: Migrants come to the barricades and want to cross into the free areas to apply for asylum. As is the case now with the three from Cameroon. They accuse me of not letting them through, and there are thousands in the free areas. The problem is the new passage that the occupying authority is trying to create.
The three Cameroons officially came from the occupying authorities in a pseudo-state vehicle to the checkpoint in Ledra Palace and informed us that they want to apply for asylum. I refused to accept them. And I'm not going to change that. Because if I allow them in, it means I'm implementing an asylum policy on the Green Line that's not a border. Also, if I accept them coming from the point of Ledra Palace, then they will come by bus, we will open a door and we will not be able to stop them," he concludes.
On 30 May, Mr Nouris sent a letter on the matter to the Commissioner for Migration informing her that the situation in Cyprus would not allow them to enter the free areas. We tell them that we are ready to transfer them to any state you designate us to. No country has yet been found to accept them, he says.
