Drowned boy laid to rest as leaders struggle to cope with refugee crisis
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A Syrian father yesterday buried his wife and two little boys, drowned as they tried to flee to Europe, while Hungary’s leader told Europeans they risk becoming a minority on their own continent.
With desperation and anger deepening among people escaping conflict and poverty, around 300 migrants broke out of a Hungarian reception camp while about 200 others scuffled with police on a Greek island.
Austrian police also said the driver of a truck found abandoned last week with the bodies of 71 migrants in the back was among a group of people arrested in Hungary.
The Syrian family and the 71 migrants, who suffocated in the truck, were among many casualties as hundreds of thousands make their way by sea and land toward northern European countries such as Germany, hoping to find safety and a new life. Many are refugees from the four-year civil war in Syria.
In the Syrian town of Kobani, 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi was laid to rest alongside his mother and 5-year-old brother at a cemetery near the Turkish border.
Images of Aylan’s tiny body of Aylan washed up on a beach near the Turkish resort of Bodrum prompted a global outpouring of sympathy this week.
While pressure is rising on European governments to tackle the crisis more effectively, the boys’ father Abdullah Kurdi called on countries closer to home to act.
“I want Arab governments — not European countries — to see my children, and because of them to help people,” he said.
Nevertheless, the head of the United Nations’ refugee agency, Antonio Guterres, called for Europe to mobilize its “full force” to help the migrants.
In southern Hungary, around 2,300 migrants in the reception camp were threatening to follow 300 who had already broken out unless their demands were met within two hours, police said.
Many migrants are refusing to register in Hungary, fearing this will prevent them from getting to their preferred final destination, often Germany.
Elsewhere, hundreds of migrants started walking from Budapest’s eastern railway station, saying they were heading to Austria. On the Greek island of Lesbos, about 200 unregistered migrants trying to board a ship scuffled with police and coastguard officials.
The UN refugee chief’s appeal contrasted with the tough line from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who warned about the consequences of “a mass inflow of people,” which he said could possibly number tens of millions.
Guterres said the EU needed to help more migrants enter legally and provide about 200,000 relocation places, according to a preliminary estimate, as well as provide more support to countries under pressure such as Greece, Italy and Hungary.
“It now has no other choice but to mobilize full force around this crisis. The only way to solve this problem is for the Union and all member states to implement a common strategy, based on responsibility, solidarity and trust,” Guterres said.
More than 300,000 people have risked their lives this year trying to cross the Mediterranean, and more than 2,600 people have died doing so.
Orban said: “The reality is that Europe is threatened by a mass inflow of people. Many tens of millions of people could come to Europe,” he said.
Yesterday, Britain said it would spend a further 100 million pounds (US$152 million) on humanitarian aid to address the Syrian refugee crisis. Prime Minister David Cameron said: “Today I can announce that we will provide a further 100 million pounds, taking our total contribution to over a billion pounds. That is the UK’s largest ever response to a humanitarian crisis.
“Sixty million pounds of this additional funding will go to help Syrians still in Syria. The rest will go to neighboring countries, to Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon, where Syrian refugees now account for one quarter of the population.”
Earlier, Cameron said Britain would take in “thousands more” Syrian refugees.
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said her country will not tolerate xenophobia, but a poll for ARD television showed her popularity has dropped over her handling of the crisis.
She was criticized for being slow to condemn violent protests against refugees in an east German town last month.
A record 104,460 asylum seekers entered Germany in August and the country expects about 800,000 people to file for asylum this year.
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