Council of Europe: Deporting refugees back to Kosovo is irresponsible
Germany and Kosovo have agreed on the deportation of thousands of refugees, mostly Roma and ethnic Albanians. But the Council of Europe's commissioner for human rights says Kosovo is not able to receive refugees "in a way that protects their rights."
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Friday, April 16, 2010
Thomas Hammarberg, the Council of Europe's commissioner for human rights, is urging European states to stop forced returns until Kosovo can provide adequate living conditions, health care, social services and employment. The largest Kosovar communities are in Sweden, Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
"A quick deportation from European countries now to Kosovo is irresponsible," Hammarberg told Deutsche Welle.
Almost 11 years after the end of the conflict, Germany and Kosovo on Wednesday agreed on a step-by-step return of 14,900 former refugees.
"We have seen with our own eyes that some of those who have been deported back have not had a good start," Hammarberg said. "In fact, the majority of those who are sent back are leaving Kosovo again and trying to reach other parts of Europe."
Other human rights organisations also criticized the agreement. Germany's Pro Asyl group warned on Thursday that the Roma faced extreme discrimination in Kosovo, and a "life on the fringes of garbage dumps."
The commissioner said that Kosovo (Albanian) authorities were well aware that they would not be able to handle thousands of refugees pouring into the country in addition to the roughly 20, 000 displaced persons already taking refuge.
The Kosovo government agreed to take back refugees, Hammarberg said, because it was "so dependent on the political recognition and the start of the visa-free regulation discussion."
