EU accused of discriminating between refugees

By Muhammed Ikbal Aslan

GENEVA (AA) - The EU has been accused of implementing policies which discriminate between the refugees from Ukraine and those from Asia and Africa.

The EU countries, which swiftly and comprehensively mobilized to help Ukrainian refugees following the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian War in February 2022, do not show a similar attitude toward those fleeing from other conflict zones, including Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, or Africa.

Against this backdrop, numerous migrants froze to death or were pushed back while trying to cross the EU borders.

This proves that the bloc violates the principle which entails the provision of humanitarian aid without discrimination.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi is among those who criticized this state of affairs.

He reiterated that Black refugees who fled from wars and armed conflicts do not experience the same welcoming practices offered to their Ukrainian counterparts.

This is the ugly truth, Grandi added.

Moreover, Human Rights Watch (HRW) highlighted the double standards in Europe in treating refugees from Ukraine and refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Palestine, and Somalia.

It also remarked that Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, and Poland continue with their violent policies across their borders against migrants.

In response to Anadolu's questions on the matter, Muhammed Shehada, communications director of the Geneva-based Euro-Med Human Right Monitor, argued that the EU's discrimination between refugees and migrants is becoming obvious day by day.

For example, brutal practices against migrants from Iran, Afghanistan and Syria by Denmark, Bulgaria, Greece, and Hungary are overlooked by the bloc, he said.

These practices are even possible with funding from the EU, Shehada added.