ΣΥΝΗΓΟΡΙΑ

Comments on the draft legislation of the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction

Posted on Friday October 21st, 2016

As a civil society organization implementing a variety of projects that provide accommodation, legal and psychosocial support to migrants and refugees during the reception crisis faced in Greece, SolidarityNow submits its comments on the draft legislation of the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction, that transposes the Directive of the European Parliament and the Council of 26 June 2013 laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protection (recast).

Read the full text in Greek.

Report by the Greek Ombudsman on the development of a Monitoring Mechanism for the Situation of Children on the move in Greece.

Posted on Sunday July 10th, 2016

In this report the Ombudsman reflects the actions taken, the data gathered and his observations and findings on the situation of children on the move in the second half of 2016. The data and conclusions are grouped together in four key chapters, where the observations and findings of the Ombudsman are documented. These concern (a) the identification and registration of the children’s population (b) the access of children to international protection (asylum, family reunification, resettlement); (c) the living conditions of children and their access to basic goods and services; (d) more specific issues concerning unaccompanied children. Solidarity Now works with the Ombudsman to develop common advocacy actions through the Children’s Rights Network.

Report in GR

Access to the labor market must be facilitated

Posted on Wednesday June 15th, 2016

Statement on the pre-registration process for refugees

SolidarityNow supports governmental efforts to confront the existing refugee crisis while respecting ‪‎humanrights.

“We welcome the procedure of pre-registration which began a few days ago and which will grant access to ‪‎asylum procedures to all those that wish to partake in the process. The participants in the pre-registration procedure will receive a certificate of legal temporary residency in ‪Greece and of access to basic services,” says Epaminondas Farmakis, Managing Director of SolidarityNow. However, he also stresses that: “We cannot overlook a crucial loophole that exists in this procedure and that unfortunately challenges efforts to integrate the people on the move: the certificate given to those who have been registered does not permit access to the labor market”.

At SolidarityNow, we have already hired ‪#‎refugees for our projects, mostly for interpretation positions, where there is already significant difficulty in finding adequate workforce. Therefore, we have seen firsthand how beneficial the aforementioned procedure is for the integration of refugees in our country, given the fact that it offers them the opportunity to become independent and to lead a dignified life.

This legal gap must be addressed immediately!