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Portugal will receive 500 unaccompanied minors currently in refugee camps in Greece, as soon as the movement restrictions imposed by the covid-19 pandemic are lifted, Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva announced.
“The commitment to accommodate 500 of the 5,000 unaccompanied minors in camps in Greece remains and will be implemented as soon as the restrictions due to the pandemic permit,” said the minister in the Republic Assembly.
Augusto Santos Silva, heard today in the parliamentary committee on European Affairs in the framework of a request from the parliamentary group BE about the “imminent humanitarian tragedy on the Turkish-Greek border”, was questioned by the deputies of the different parties about the reception of those minors.
The minister declared that the reception and integration process is being prepared by the ministries of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security and the Presidency, which oversees migration.
In view of the migratory pressure and the overcrowding of the various reception camps on Greek territory, the Government of Greece asked European partners to receive 1,600 of the approximately 5,200 unaccompanied minor refugees currently living in that country.
A dozen Member States responded positively to the call, namely Portugal, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, France, Ireland, Lithuania, Germany and Luxembourg.
In response to BE, the minister also indicated that, within the scope of the so-called European resettlement programs, Portugal “addresses the fulfillment of half of the commitment to welcome and integrate 1,100 people” and, within the framework of the bilateral agreement signed in 2019 with Greece “will welcome 1,000 people from the refugee and migrant camps on the Greek islands”, Portugal is waiting for the Greek authorities to identify the first group of 100 people they will host.
Santos Silva also wanted to emphasize that Portugal “is one of the few European countries that has always responded to requests for voluntary collaboration to welcome people saved in the Mediterranean”, which to date has received more than 200 people in these conditions.
Beatriz Gomes Dias, from BE, and then João Almeida, from CDS, questioned the minister about the conditions for the reception of refugees, and the first highlighted the lack of accommodation and the second highlighted the “overwhelming majority” of the refugees. Looking to go to other European countries.
In the responses, Augusto Santos Silva emphasized that this is not an area of his competence, but that “whenever possible” reception is improved and he pointed out, regarding permanence in the country, the importance of family reunification and create “specific responses”. “
He pointed out, as an example, “internationally recognized as an excellent practice”, the support platform for Syrian students created by former President Jorge Sampaio, which “allows responding not only to the problem of the people”, the young people who saw higher education interrupted by the war, “Starting the country”, “preparing for post-war Syrian reconstruction”.
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