Press release

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) steps up its response to the ongoing arrivals of migrants and refugees in Bosnia and Herzegovina

27^th December 2017, SARAJEVO – During the past days Bosnia and Herzegovina has faced increased influx of irregular migrants that are arriving to its eastern border with Montenegro. The latest arrivals originate mostly from North Africa, through Greece, Albania, on through Montenegro to Trebinje. They arrive in small groups composed predominantly of single adult men.  From 01^st January to 26 December 2017, the BiH Border police detained a total of 735 irregular migrants, which compare to total figures for 2016 of less than 100 irregular migrants. This represents a significant increase and has put the capacity of the relevant authorities and national aid agencies such as the Red Cross under strain. In response, IOM, in line with its mandate as the UN Migration Agency, has stepped up its efforts to assist them, in collaboration with other UN agencies.

Concretely, IOM has allocated internal resources to support the Red Cross in Trebinje to provide on-arrival support to migrants through the purchase of food, hygienic products and clothing. To cope with additional arrivals, IOM has also increased the staffing of its migrant protection teams in East Sarajevo and Mostar. They are IOM’s first line responders and, when needed, provide transport and medical and psychosocial assistance, especially to vulnerable migrants. To assist authorities to communicate with the new arrivals and ensure that those in need have access to medical support, IOM has recruited a translator for Arabic language and an on-call doctor in Trebinje. Says Peter Van der Auweraert, IOM’s newly appointed representative in BiH, “it is critical that each migrant is treated with dignity and respect for their basic human rights, including their right to claim asylum in BiH”. “This is why”, he explains, “we are reinforcing our migrant protection teams, as they play a critical role in supporting authorities with assessing needs and ensuring access to the appropriate assistance”. 

While ensuring that migrants’ immediate humanitarian needs are met is critical, it is also important to ensure that those who do not want asylum – or, indeed, are found not to be in need of international protection – have access to a dignified solution to their situation. This why IOM is also increasing its capacity to offer migrants who want to return home Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) support. Its migrant protection teams are currently being capacitated to provide eligible migrants with counselling and information this respect. For those who want to return home, the AVRR project offers free services, including the obtaining of the necessary travel and identity documents, a return flight ticket and financial assistant at the beginning and the end of the return process. IOM relies on its global network of offices to ensure that migrants are supported also when they arrive home.

Looking forward, Peter Van der Auweraert does not believe that BiH will see a large influx of migrants and refugees in the coming period: “together with UNHCR and its other UN partners, IOM will, however, continue to work with the BiH asylum and migration authorities to ensure that they have the necessary support and capacity to manage the continued arrival of small groups of migrants and refugees, also through the readmission as it is currently in place with Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia”. One final protection activity IOM is currently preparing in partnership with National Society of Red Cross is the provision of information about what areas in BiH that remain mined following the war in the 1990s. “Migrants are not aware of this danger”, Peter Van der Auweraert says, “and while there have been no incidents so far, it is important to ensure that this remains this way, as some of the areas through which migrants are traveling remain dangerous in this regard”.

CONTACT INFO:

Mrs. Edita Selimbegović, Public Relations Coordinator

Tel: 033/293-713, 061/215-839

E-mail: eselimbegovic@iom.int

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Saopštenje za medije

Međunarodna organizacija za migracije (IOM) pojačava svoje odgovore na novi priliv migranata i izbjeglica koji dolaze u Bosnu i Hercegovinu

28. decembar 2017., SARAJEVO – U proteklih nekoliko dana, Bosna i Hercegovina se suočila sa povećanim prilivom neregularnih migranata koji dolaze na njenu istočnu granicu sa Crnom Gorom. Najnoviji talas uglavnom stiže sa prostora Sjeverne Afrike, a preko Grčke, Albanije i Crne Gore dolazi do Trebinja. Stižu u manjim grupama, koje čine uglavnom odrasli muškarci koji putuju sami. U periodu od 1. janaura do 26. decembra 2017. godine, Granična policija BiH je zadržala ukupno 735 neregularnih migranata, što se može uporediti sa ukupnim brojem od 100 neregularnih migranata koliko ih je bilo u 2016. Ovo predstavlja značajno povećanje, što dalje vrši ogroman pritisak na postojeće kapacitete relevantnih organa i nacionalnih agencija za osiguranje pomoći kao što je Crveni krst. IOM u svom odgovoru, u skladu sa svojim mandatom UN agencije za migracije, ulaže veće napore da im pomogne, u saradnji sa drugm UN agencijama.

Konkretno, IOM je doznačio unutrašnje resurse za podršku Crvenom krstu u Trebinju kako bi se obezbijedila podrška migrantima prilikom dolaska kupovinom hrane, higijenskih proizvoda i garderobe. Da bi se mogao nositi sa dodatnim prilivom, IOM je takođe povećao broj svog osoblja u timovima za zaštitu migranata u Istočnom Sarajevu i Mostaru. Oni predstavljaju prvu liniju kontakta IOM-a, a po potrebi osiguravaju prevoz, ljekarsku i psihosocijalnu pomoć, naročito ranjivim kategorijama migranata. Da bi se pomoglo vlastima u komunikaciji sa novopridošlim migrantima i osigurao pristup ljekarskoj pomoći, IOM je angažirao prevodioca za arapski jezik i dežurnog ljekara u Trebinju. Peter Van der Auweraert, novoimenovani predstavnik IOM-a u BiH kaže: “Ključno je da se sa svakim migrantom postupa sa dostojanstvom i uz poštivanje njegovih osnovnih ljudskih prava, uključujući prava da traži azil u BiH”. “Iz tog razloga”, dodaje, “mi smo ojačali naše timove za zaštitu migranata, jer oni imaju ključnu ulogu u pružanju podrške organima vlasti u procjeni potreba i osiguranju pristupa odgovarajućoj pomoći”.

Bez obzira koliko je ključno da se osiguraju hitne humanitarne potrebe migrantima, takođe je važno osigurati da oni koji ne žele azil – ili kojima nije neophodna međunarodna zaštita – imaju pristup dostojanstvenom rješenju za njihovu situaciju. Iz tog razloga je IOM takođe povećao svoje kapacitete kako bi ponudio podršku Potpomognutom dobrovoljnom povratku i reintegraciji (AVRR) onim migrantima koji žele da se vrate svojoj kući. Timovi za zaštitu migranata trenutno imaju kapacitete da osiguraju savjete i informacije migrantima o ovoj stvari. Za one koji se žele vratiti kući, projekat Potpomognutog dobrovoljnog povratka i reintegracije nudi besplatne usluge, uključujući pomoć za dobijanje potrebnih putnih i identifikacionih dokumenata, avionsku kartu i finansijsku pomoć na početku i kraju procesa povratka. IOM se oslanja na svoju globalnu mrežu ureda u nastojanju da osigura podršku migrantima, čak i nakon njihovog povratka kući.

Gledajući u budućnost, Peter Van der Auweraert ne vjeruje da će se BiH suočiti sa velikim prilivom migranata i izbjeglica u narednom periodu: “Zajedno sa UNHCR-om i drugim UN partnerima, IOM će ipak nastaviti da radi sa BiH organima u oblasti azila i migracija, čime nastoji osigurati da oni imaju potrebnu podršku i kapacitet da upravljaju stalnim prilivom manjih grupa migranata i izbjeglica, a takođe će koristiti i instrumente readmisije koji su trenutno na snazi sa Hrvatskom, Srbijom i Crnom Gorom”. Jedna od aktivnosti koje IOM priprema u partnerstvu sa Društvom Crvenog krsta BiH je pružanje informacija o prostorima u BiH koji su i dalje pod minama nakon ratova iz 1990-ih. “Migranti nisu svjesni ove opasnosti”, kaže Peter Van der Auweraert, “te bez obzira što do sada nije bilo nesretnih slučajeva ove vrste, važno je osigurati da to tako i ostane, jer neki od prostora kroz koje se kreću migranti predstavljaju opasnost ove vrste”.

KONTAKT PODACI:

Gđa. Edita Selimbegović, Koordinator za odnose sa javnošću

Tel: 033/293-713, 061/215-839

E-mail: eselimbegovic@iom.int