According to media reports, there are secret prisons on the external borders of the EU where asylum seekers are locked up and often mistreated. They would then be sent back across the border, usually in illegal pushbacks.
In the course of the research collaboration, it was possible for the first time to prove the existence of such places, according to a report by the ARD magazines “Monitor” and “Spiegel”, as well as the international media Lighthouse Reports, Sky News, Le Monde, Domani, SRF and RFE/RL Bulgaria. Below that is a barred, derelict shed on the grounds of a Bulgarian border police station, it said. Secret footage shows how several people are forced to stand on the ground surrounded by rubbish until they are taken to cars and driven away.
Expert: “It’s an absolute violation of the law”
Referring to statements from refugees, it is said that asylum seekers are sometimes locked in the shed without water and food for days. The police then take the people back to the border and force them to return to Turkey. Legal scholar Constantin Hruschka of the Max Planck Institute in Munich classified this as illegal, according to the “Monitor”. “It is an absolute violation of the law, because I am not allowed to deviate under any circumstances from the prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment,” Hruschka said, according to the magazine. Moreover, it is an unlawful deprivation of liberty.
EU Border Guard Agency ‘part of the problem’
According to the research network, the illegal detentions apparently take place under the eyes of the EU border control service Frontex. According to “Monitor”, ten Frontex agents are also stationed at the Bulgarian border station. According to the director of Human Rights Watch Germany, Wenzel Michalski, they are complicit if they do not prevent such practices, so Frontex is “part of the problem”.
When asked, Frontex wrote that Frontex officials would only support the Bulgarian Border Police in the area in guarding the border. However, the conditions described were not determined, but the information would be passed on. Bulgaria did not comment on questions about the investigation.
Hungary: Refugees trapped in shipping containers
According to its own statements, the investigative collaboration in Hungary has uncovered similar practices: recordings show people being driven with batons by the Hungarian border police to ship containers. Refugees reported being trapped in such containers for hours, again without water or food. They were then taken in buses to the border crossing and forced to return to Serbia.
The Hungarian government therefore denied all allegations upon request. Hungarian officials would always comply with EU law, it said. When asked, the European Commission said allegations of “misconduct” at the EU’s external borders were taken very seriously. However, the respective states are responsible for respecting fundamental rights at the external borders and for clearing up the allegations, Brussels said.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
