Obama did not finish praising Greek hospitality for the refugees and yet again, Chios turned into a battlefield. Residents and refugees are licking their wounds, the hospitality center was almost entirely destroyed and coexistence is becoming increasingly difficult.
When in a city of 20,000 residents accommodates nearly 4,000 migrants and refugees of various ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, who are feeling trapped and disappointed, all it takes is a spark for events as the one from two days ago. It is not the first time this happens, with similar clashes and demonstration carried out on the other islands bearing the brunt of the refugee crisis.
Obviously there are major difficulties, but there are also major delays from the Greek and European side in managing the refugee crisis. The survival problems, the lack of coordination and the sense of entrapment, in conjunction with the economic impact of the refugee arrivals, are fueling the revolts and extremities.
It is imperative to decongest the island, from this disproportionate burden they are undertaking, to expedite asylum procedures and drastically improve living conditions. Otherwise we will not only have repeats of such phenomena, but extreme anti-democratic stances from societies affecting by this problematic coexistence will be encouraged.
However great the refugee burden may be on Greece, the government must manage the crisis with greater consequence and organization. Unfortunately, with the exception of Germany, most European countries have failed to rise to the circumstances and their history, with the asylum process stagnating and no light appearing at the end of the tunnel.
In the immediate future we will at least live with the problem on our doorstep. Let us at least ensure that we do not turn this into yet another internal dead-end.
TO VIMA
