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The United Nations denounced that the Belarusian authorities prevented the entry of its delegation to investigate the situation of thousands of migrants who had been agglutinated for several months on the border with Poland. The organization interviewed several affected, from the Polish side, who denounced having been beaten by the Belarusian military to force them to cross to the neighboring country; as well as forced returns also by the Polish authorities.
The UN calls on Belarus and Poland to stop practices that put the lives of migrants at risk.
The organization’s spokeswoman, Liz Throssell, reported on December 21 that a delegation from the organization revealed “dire conditions” for the thousands of migrants, especially from Africa and the Middle East, who have been camping on the border between the two countries for months. hoping to join the European Union.
“The majority (of migrants interviewed) denounced that when they were in Belarus they were beaten or threatened by the security forces” to force them to pass to the neighboring country.
Several migrants told United Nations officials that the military told them “when and where to cross, and prevented people from leaving the border area to return to Minsk,” the capital of Belarus, where they were initially drawn, the organization said.
Belarusian officials reportedly asked for “exorbitant sums” for food and water
In addition, the migrants said they have had little access to water and food, while enduring freezing temperatures. “Several interviewees said that Belarusian security forces had demanded exorbitant sums for food and water” and several people were reportedly killed in the harsh conditions, Throssell added.
The UN compiled the information from the Polish side, through meetings with representatives of civil society and the Government, as well as by interviewing 31 migrants who arrived in the country between August and November. The investigation was carried out between November 29 and December 3.
The agency denounced that Belarus prevented its team from entering the country to investigate and that, although it made the investigation from Poland, that nation did not give it authorization to access the border area either.
Complaints against Poland for violations of the rights of migrants
Investigators also established that the Polish authorities have returned dozens of people who crossed into their territory, while requesting refuge and asylum.
The delegation argued that Poland should review its legislation that, given the current situation, has allowed the expulsion of migrants without considering their human rights situation.
Poland should “carry out meaningful individual assessments to determine individual protection needs, in accordance with the international law of return and collective expulsion prohibitions,” Throssell said.
Since last August, both Warsaw and Brussels have accused the Government of Alexander Lukashenko of attracting thousands of migrants to Belarus, with tourist visas, mainly from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Africa. They complain that Minsk has encouraged them to cross into Poland, Lithuania and, to a lesser extent, Latvia. All three are nations of the European Union (EU).
The European Union maintains that it is a campaign initiated by the Belarusian president in retaliation for the economic sanctions that the bloc of 27 countries has imposed against him, after the violence that the country experienced after the disputed elections in which Lukashenko resulted reelected, in the midst of an unprecedented social movement against him. Minsk denies the allegations.
On November 19, Minsk reported that it cleared the refugee area, but Poland accused the Belarusian government of returning hundreds of them there.
Now, the UN signals both sides of putting the lives of migrants at risk and urges them to “address this dire situation.”
The Reuters news agency said for its part that neither Belarusian officials nor the Polish government had commented on the situation and the treatment of migrants after being contacted by this news company, at the time of writing.
With Reuters, AFP and EFE
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