Refugee supporting volunteer groups all over Europe demand in an open letter action of the European governments urgently.
We, the front-line volunteers who for months now have been helping thousands of refugees, call on all the governments of Europe to act immediately and decisively to alleviate the situation. There are tens of thousands of people moving through south-eastern Europe and the current capacities of volunteer-based help sites are seriously challenged. Given also the rapid approach of winter and problems at various borders, we feel there is a real danger that the situation will lead to serious medical problems and likely deaths among the refugee community.
Every person has the legal right to seek asylum. If Europe is not able to provide safe and legal routes for asylum-seekers, it is obliged to provide aid to those who took the dangerous route. We do not want to see a single refugee dying while waiting in endless queues at European borders, literally in our own hands.
Volunteers have been providing a wide range of activities so far, in many places completely replacing the absent government facilities and aid. We are distributing food and water, undertaking crowd management, providing critical information about registration and borders, referring vulnerable people to UNHCR or medical services, caring for children, managing stocks of clothing and blankets, cleaning waste, raising funds and providing shelter to the most vulnerable few.
We have been doing all this for months in Lesvos, Athens, Gevgelija, Budapest, Röszke, Belgrade, Eidomeni, Hegyeshalom, Nickelsdorf, Wien, Salzburg, Heiligenkreuz, Zakány, Botovo, Calais, Preševo, Berkasovo, Bregana, Harmica, Trnovec, Mursko Središće, Bapska, Opatovac and a number of other places around Europe. We have proven that volunteers can do a lot, but we will be unable to keep thousands of people warm once the winter weather closes in.
Winter is coming quickly and we all have just a few days to respond in a humane way.
Every person has the legal right to seek asylum. If Europe is not able to provide safe and legal routes for asylum-seekers, it is obliged to provide aid to those who took the dangerous route. We do not want to see a single refugee dying while waiting in endless queues at European borders, literally in our own hands.
Volunteers have been providing a wide range of activities so far, in many places completely replacing the absent government facilities and aid. We are distributing food and water, undertaking crowd management, providing critical information about registration and borders, referring vulnerable people to UNHCR or medical services, caring for children, managing stocks of clothing and blankets, cleaning waste, raising funds and providing shelter to the most vulnerable few.
We have been doing all this for months in Lesvos, Athens, Gevgelija, Budapest, Röszke, Belgrade, Eidomeni, Hegyeshalom, Nickelsdorf, Wien, Salzburg, Heiligenkreuz, Zakány, Botovo, Calais, Preševo, Berkasovo, Bregana, Harmica, Trnovec, Mursko Središće, Bapska, Opatovac and a number of other places around Europe. We have proven that volunteers can do a lot, but we will be unable to keep thousands of people warm once the winter weather closes in.
Winter is coming quickly and we all have just a few days to respond in a humane way.
- We call on all European countries to provide immediate help to all those countries affected by the refugee crisis, instead of helping those countries that are building fences.
- We call for the building of safe reception and transit centres with facilities that can cope with the harsh winter conditions of the region.
- We also call for humanitarian aid to be delivered to the people that need it, for the provision of appropriate medical services and for the coordination of all efforts on a pan-European level.
- We also call on the EU to immediately implement other mechanisms which aim to provide safe passage to the EU.
This is advance notice to all of you, the leaders of Europe, that people will be freezing to death soon on our borders if you do not act now.
We have done our best up to this point and we will continue to help for as long as is necessary. But now it is your turn, governments of Europe. Please respond and demonstrate to the world that humanity is still at the core of European values.
Do you agree with our letter and want to help? All organisations are happy to receive any kind of donation, but right now we need more. Please call, email or visit your government, your MP, your ministers or your president and ask them, "What are you going to do to prevent suffering and death among refugees?" If they don’t answer, or their response is not sufficient, call, email or visit them again. As long as is necessary.
This #europeact open letter is supported by these volunteer groups:
- PomocUprchlikum.cz (Czech Republic)
- IRPeace.org (Hungary)
- Migration Aid (Hungary)
- United Volunteers of Preševo (Serbia)
- Youth office Preševo (Serbia)
- Budapest – Bamako SOS Refugees (Hungary)
- MigSzol Csoport (Hungary)
- Dobrodošli / Welcome Hrvatska – Centar za mirovne studije (Croatia)
- Protirasistična fronta brez meja (Slovenia)
- IHA – InterEuropean Human Aid Association (Austria / Germany)
- Refugee Aid Serbia (Serbia)
- SOSKonvoi – der geheime Kunstsalon Wien (Austria)
- Slovene Philanthropy (Slovenia)
- Fotomovimiento (Spain)
- Graz: Spendenkonvoi (Austria)
- Southampton Action – People to People Solidarity (UK)
- Vluchtkonvooi (The Netherlands)
- Cars Of Hope Wuppertal (Germany)
- Studentské hnutí za solidaritu (Czech Republic)
- Rastplatz Project (Switzerland)
- Open Eyes Balkanroute (Switzerland)
- Igors volontärarbete (Sweden)
- Are you syrious (Croatia)
- Center of Solidarity and Advancement Preševo (Serbia)
- Netzwerksammelsurium (Austria)
- Bezirk Jennersdorf – Flüchtlingshilfe 2015 (Austria)
- Alla ar kockar (Sweden)
- Reisegruppe 3 (Germany)
- Hilfe für Kinder auf der Flucht (Switzerland)
- CCC – Croatian Coordination Centar (Croatia)
- HelpNeeded Europe (Sweden)
- Tsüri Hilft (Switzerland)
- Studenti pomáhají (Czech Republic)
- BE AWARE & SHARE Projekt: "Flüchtlingshilfe, mit Vans vor Ort" (Switzerland)
- CERIBA (Switzerland)
- Medicine on the Spot – MedSpot (Hungary)
- Crossing Channels (The Netherlands)
- Helferlein-Netzwerk für Flüchtlingshilfe / Helpers-Network for Refugee Aid (Austria)
- SHARE (Great Britain)
- Plateforme Citoyenne de soutien aux réfugiés / Citizens Platform to support the refugees in Belgium (Belgium)
- Kinder auf der Flucht e.V. (Germany)
- Graz:Spendekonvoi (Austria)
- Refugee Crisis Bratislava Volunteers group (Slovakia)
- Cook4refugee (Slovakia)
- Action from Switzerland (Switzerland)
- Mercy Worldwide Trust (UK)
- ENNSZ (Hungary)
- Spolek Podhradí (Czech Republic)
- HSUST – Aktivisti dana (Croatia)
- Refugees in Serbia (Germany)
- Refugees – Aid from the Northwest of England (UK)
- Balkanroute (Switzerland)
- Bienvenidos Refugiados – España (Spain)
- Udruga slobodarskih aktivista (Croatia)
- German Alliance for Civilian Assistance (Germany)
- SOS ERM (Italy)
- Solidarity for All (Belgium)
- Let’s help the refugees together in Hungary (Hungary)
- Lighthouse Relief (Greece)
- Humanitet.nu (Sweden)
- Connecting Hands to Help Refugees in Greece (Greece)
- Helping refugees Lesvos island ”Skala Sykamineas" (Greece)
- Safe Haven Voyages (Ireland)
- Hands of Hope (Douglas Isle of Man)
- Humanitarian Mission in Europe (Italy)
- Chlebem i Solą (Poland)
- Goals connect e.V. (Germany)
- Cork to Calais (Ireland)
- Patient Innovation (Portugal)
- Europe Refugee Network (Europe)
- Lübecker Flüchtlingsforum / Solidaritätszentrum für Geflüchtete im Transit (Germany)
- BORDERLESS:Flüchtlingshilfsaktion (Austria)
- Züri4refugees (Switzerland)
- Friends Helping Refugees (England)
- Borderfree association (Switzerland)
- Zevnitř ven o.p.s. (Czech Republic)
- Bauern helfen Bauern (Austria)
- CROATIAN BAPTIST AID (Croatia)
- CEV (Belgium)
- Refugees Welcome Portugal (Portugal)
- RIRK *RevolutionaryIndependentRefugeeKitchen* (Germany)
- Wroclaw Wita Uchodzcow (Poland)
- Are you Syrious Maribor helping reguees (Slovenia)
- Stop Mare Mortum (Catalonia)
- Occupy Ljubljana (Slovenia)
- Start Now Flüchtlingshilfe (Austria)
- BALLYNAHINCH & DRUMANESS REFUGEE SOLIDARITY (UK)
- Flyktinghjälpvidgränsen (Sweden)
- Der volle Topf (Austria)
- Happy.Thankyou.Moreplease!! (Austria)
- WFWPI Europe (Austria)
- The Institute for African studies (Slovenia)
- Børnebørn for Asyl (Denmark)
- Rotes Kreuz Bezirksstelle Braunau (Austria)
- Refugees Welcome Mülheim am Inn (Austria)
- The Refugee Helpers of Hamburg main station (Germany)
- Refugees Shepherds – European Human Rights Defense League (Germany)
- These Hands Are Better Than None (UK)
- RefugeesFoundation e.V. – Support for refugees on the run (Germany)
- Kos Kindness (Greece)
- No Lager Osnabrück (Germany)
- Hilfe für Flüchtlinge in München (Germany)
- Amadia International (Norway)
- Welcome to Denmark (Denmark)
- Bag To The Future (Netherlands)
- Molyvos Refugees (Greece)
- Carry the Future (United States of America)
- Kos Solidarity (Greece)
- RefugeeVolunteers (Greece)
- Search and Find Refugees (Austria)
- Výzva k ľudskosti (Slovakia)
- Levicharsko Dvizenje ”Solidarnost” (Macedonia)
- l’Auberge des Migrants (France)
- Coexistence and Communication in the Aegean (Greece)
- East Lothian Welcomes Refugees (United Kingdom)
- Calais Compassion (United Kingdom)
- Refugee Foundation (Greece)
- Kindness Across Borders (Denmark)
- Institute APIS (Slovenia)
- Cadus – redefine global solidarity (Germany)
- MYVOICE-project.org (Germany)
- Fair Welcome (Denmark)
If you would like to add your volunteer group to this list or if you have other enquiries, please email us at europeactplease@gmail.com.
We are unfortunately unable to add individuals to the list. If you are an individual volunteer who would like to support this letter, please share it on social media with #europeact and do not forget to call or email the leaders of your country.
Media contact: Michal Berg +420 603 102 284, michal.berg@seznam.cz
#europeact http://www.europeact.eu/