Feature: Greece struggling to improve conditions for refugees year after border closures

A year after the closure of the Balkan route that more than 1 million refugees had taken since 2015 to central Europe, Greek authorities are still struggling to improve living conditions for the 62,500 migrants stranded in the debt-ridden country, according to the latest official Migration Policy Ministry figures.

Disappointment and anxiety about an uncertain future prevail among the refugees and migrants. They risked their lives to cross the treacherous Aegean sea, dreaming of a better life in the European north, only ended up to be trapped in Greek camps in dire conditions, facing the probable deportations to Turkey in the case of their asylum applications are rejected.

With financial support of the European Union, and the aid of international humanitarian organizations and local NGOs, Greek authorities have made steps in improving the shelter provided to the people fleeing wars, but all sides acknowledge that more remains to be done.

During a recent visit to the camp established at the premises of the former Athens airport of Elliniko, Migration Policy Minister Yannis Mouzalas listened to the complains of the refugees and pledged swifter action to offer them further aid.

"We are doing our best in the best possible manner. We have made several mistakes, there had been shortcomings. But we have also done many good things: we have provided help that they haven't received in other countries," Mouzalas told a press briefing on site.

The Greek official spoke of a dramatic improvement of the situation.

"There are no refugees living in makeshift tents in public squares, there are no migrants sleeping in the open. There are no hungry people. Perhaps some people do not like the food, but there are no hungry people. There are children who are going to school," he said, referring to the pilot schooling program launched in October 2016 for up to 10,000 refugee children across Greece.

Abdullah S is an Afghan refugee who reached Lesvos island a year ago with his wife and two children.

Abdullah used to work for the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, and refused to collaborate with the Taliban. For the safety of his family, he decided to flee his country.

He's been living at the state-run camp of Malakasa, 40 km north of Athens, for nine months, and appreciates the help offered by Greece.

But the current life in a refugee camp in Greece is still a far cry from what he dreamed of before his fleeing.

"I escaped from everything because I wanted a good future. It is not clear now what my future will look like, but I want a better future. Here, with the borders closed there is no future," he told Xinhua.

Abdullah said he wants to go to Germany because he believes that his children will have a better life there.

He also applied for asylum, but has yet to receive an answer.

All 530 people hosted at Malakasa, mainly Afghans and a dozen Iranians, were moved from tents into 200 containers with air conditioning and running water three months ago, according to the camp's administrator Eleni Matzouraki.

But the improvement seems not enough to cease complaints from the camp dwellers, including Abdullah.

"They give this food once per week and they say this is the best they can give us. They give potatoes and pasta every day," he said pointing to his lunch distributed by the Greek Army.

Besides food, medical care offered by NGOs is another major complaining point.

Matzouraki attributed the complaints to some extent to the frustration of ending up being stranded in camps in Greece instead of a home in a northern European country they sought.

With the support of the UN refugee agency UNHCR, and International Organization for Migration, NGOs as well as the local community which has embraced the camp, the Greek state is doing its best to help the refugees, she stressed.

Doctors without Borders provide medical care during business hours Monday to Friday, technicians work nonstop to repair the containers first used in 1999 to house earthquake-stricken Greeks, while the first of the 280 children living in the camp will start attending classes at nearby public schools most likely in March, Matzouraki said.

Hiratz T., a camp resident from Iran who has been living there since summer, acknowledged that the situation in the camp has improved.

"No problem, it is good. Before, no good, no heat, no light, no electricity. Now only food not very good, but slowly is good," he told Xinhua in broken English.

An electrician back in Iran, he has applied for asylum and hopes to rebuild his life just in Greece.

"I am living in Greece. I am not going to Germany or Austria for example. I am not leaving Greece. Yes I want to stay here. All people are very nice, it is a good country for me," he said, adding that he hopes his wife will join him soon from Iran.

Mario A., an Italian volunteer, member of the Remar SOS NGO, has been living in Malakasa for the past nine months, helping cooking and offering food to the refugees.

"I think that the ministry did a good job compared to eight months ago. They started from zero and now there is something," he told Xinhua.

Speaking in general about the refugee crisis and Europe's response, Mario stressed that the refugees he has met at Malakasa are well-educated, hard-working people who should not be seen as a burden but as an asset that can benefit Europe.

"I believe that the government can use these persons to profit. I see a lot of people who have a lot of quality here and living only in the camp is crazy because they can do a lot outside here," he said. Enditem