tv Europes Migrant Crisis BBC News October 10, 2020 8:30pm-9:01pm BST
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hello this is bbc news with me, martine croxall. the headlines... mayors in the north of england say the chancellor's coronavirus financial help package doesn't go far enough, and call for additional support. boris johnson will announce new measures on monday to tackle coronavirus in england — with some areas of the north warned they are likely to face tougher restrictions. wearing a face mask in all work places and outdoors should be compulsory, says the british medical association. president trump says he's feeling great, as he makes his first public
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appearance following treatment for coronavirus — although aides are yet to confirm whether he's still contagious. armenia and azerbaijan agree to a humanitarian ceasefire, following two weeks of intense fighting over the disputed territory of nagorno karabakh. recognition for the uk's un—sung heroes of the pandemic as hundreds of key workers and volunteers are recognised in the delayed queen's birthday honours. now on bbc news — five years ago, more than a million people crossed into europe. many of them took huge risks and embarked on dangerousjourneys in an effort to escape conflict for a better life. but as mark lowen reports, the sudden influx of people sparked a crisis — both humanitarian and political — as europe struggled to respond.
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the migrants who came to europe in 2015 — including here to sicily — were hoping to find shelter from war and terror or new opportunities for a better life. but their journey was often difficult and dangerous. thousands died attempting to reach europe's shores. and while some countries opened their arms, others put up fences and closed their borders. italy was one of the main destinations, and migration deepened divisions here, leading to the far right entering government. this tiny island of lampedusa is still struggling with migrant arrivals five years on. the joy of getting a chance at life. her name, francesca miracle after her birth on an italian rescue boat in 2015 as her mother fled libya. suffering seizures and in intensive care, they almost didn't make it.
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the bbc met them back then. now settled in sicily, we've come back. so francesca, sono mark. si. come stai? bene. was everything you went through worth it? yes, it was worth it, because most of the people they are dreaming to be in my shoes, that you have you have got outside the country. so i thank you are blessed. so i think you are blessed. you're lucky. so i think i should, should be happy for that. they were among the million migrants who made it to europe at the height of the migration crisis of 2015, changing its society and politics. thousands more drowned en route, nameless in the graveyard of the mediterranean. five years on, they're still coming. the camp in lampedusa to the south of sicily, crowded and guarded.
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so far, arrivals this year are a third of what they were in 2015. and yet this camp is already way past capacity. and then for a coronavirus into the explosive mix, pushing migrants to flee suffering economies, creating quarantine concerns and reawa kening the old migration tensions in italian society. in squalid conditions, migrants here say they know of several cases inside. there's pressure to clear the camp and reduce the burden on this gateway to europe. hamza tells me he wants to work to send money back to his wife and daughter in tunisia. translation: we took the risk of dying at sea. now we're at risk of dying from coronavirus here. we left the misery of our country. but if i had known what misery there will be here, i will have stayed in tunisia. even life there is better than this. in mainland sicily, too, they're expecting arrivals. this new camp is being built
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in a disused air base to quarantine them. that's stoking opposition from the far right, which became italy's most popular party and briefly entered government due to migration. translation: the european union has left italy to handle the migration issue alone. and at the same time, italy's leaving its regions like sicily on their own. there's a danger to public order and now also a health risk. aren't you fanning the flames of racism by speaking of an invasion?, i ask. no. translation: i would use the same language if we were being invaded by the english or the french. if tomorrow a thousand french landed in sicily's coast, i would also speak of an invasion. some migrants are settling here. this centre teaching italian, as they're woven into the fabric of modern italy. a story about security, integration, identity is far from over.
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hundreds of thousands of migrants made the long trek up from the mediterranean via the balkans and eventually landed in hungary. but police there sealed off the main railway station to stop them from travelling further into europe, to places like austria and germany. nick thorpe reports now from hungary on how the migration crisis changed that country. reporting from this border through the summer of 2015, i once asked a photographer what he was planning to shoot that day. "just biblical scenes," he replied. "biblical scenes." the exodus that year was astonishing to witness. and of the million or more people who sought refuge in europe some 400,000 crossed hungary, and a good proportion of them entered hungary from serbia down this disused railway track. it all looks very familiar, today, only the crowds are missing. then hungary built a fence to stop them.
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this man first suggested it. laszlo, a local mayor. it was my idea. i'm very happy. when the government built this this borderfence because we need these border fence, not only in the 2015. and not only today, but we need this border fence in the future. few migrants attempt to cross the fence today. those who do still reach western europe have found other routes. the government sees the fence as an unqualified success. the southern ramparts of fortress europe. we don't like other people coming here, especially different religions who we know are not going to by the rules religions who we know are not going to abide the rules and they are not going to follow the european way of life because their culture is different. it's not a matter of racism or anti—racism. it's a matter of common sense. back in 2015, the station in budapest was another bottleneck
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as tens of thousands of migrants tried to transit hungary towards northern europe. last year, though, only 500 people were allowed to seek protection here in hungary. a handful of human rights groups defend the right to asylum despite bitter government hostility. it's very clear that whatever the hungarian government has done in the field of asylum since september 2015 is unlawful. it's become more difficult to stand up for refugees in europe, particularly here in hungary. but it's still crucial that we do so. iranian artist abouzar soltani and his 12—year—old son face deportation when they lost their asylum bid. but the helsinki committee took their case to the top european court and won. their new asylum request will be heard this week. translation: i was in a prison. but then i understood that was just politics. i realised people in hungary
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have big hearts and want to help us to be free. that they love refugees. i love hungary and would like to live here. soon they hope to leave this open refugee camp and start a new life here. asylum seekers like them who get the support they need still get through. five years ago, the german chancellor, angela merkel, in effect, opened germany's doors to hundreds of thousands of people seeking asylum in europe. jenny hill was at munich railway station as germans welcomed the new arrivals. she's been back to bavaria to meet some of the people involved in the moment that changed the country and still divides opinion today. "we can do this," said angela merkel. it's five years since germany opened its doors and its arms to tens of thousands of people. many more would follow,
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hoping for the same warm welcome. i was proud of germany because germany didn't hesitate to help the refugees. carmen, who speaks arabic, was among the many volunteers who came to munich station to help. when we look back and today, the situation today, all the doomsday scenarios didn't become true. we could not have closed our doors. and it brought change to every part of germany. in abensberg, a conservative bavarian town, they had to accommodate and integrate around 200 refugees was there. translation: i still think it was a bit much for someone to sit in berlin and say we could manage knowing full well it was up to each and every local mayor to have to manage. if other eu countries had shared this burden, we wouldn't have had this level of political attention. if i could turn back time, i would ask much more of europe. instead, anger, fear on german
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streets, fuelled by high profile migrant crime — the sexual assault of women in cologne, or the terror attack on a berlin christmas market. as angela merkel battled a backlash, the far right flourished. it's now an established part of german politics. but during that time, mohamed, who arrived in 2015, built a new life in abensberg. he learned german, got a job, had a family. translation: it's like my home. everything is good. we have residency like normal people. we have work. it's a good country. we have good neighbours. i like it a lot. but the story is not over. not for those still trying to come to europe and not for those we met in this specially built refugee home on the edge of abensburg. javid tells us he was 16 when he arrived in germany.
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he's 21 now and still awaiting permission to stay here. i don't want to leave, he tells us in german. my future is here. what we witnessed here in 2015 was extraordinary. the euphoria, the drama, the anger have now faded, but you can still feel the consequences of that moment. it changed politics, it changed society. and many of the people who arrived here back then have begun to put down roots. they, too, will shape this country's future. almost 900,000 migrants arrived in greece in 2015. today, the open—armed welcome and sympathy from many greeks has evaporated. the government is determined not to allow the country to become a gateway to europe again and is actively deterring new arrivals. although numbers remain well below the exceptional levels seen in 2015, the flow of people from turkey into greece by land, and then through the balkans
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into western europe, has picked up again. lyse doucet reports from northern greece. the first rays of day, the first stirrings beneath the burnt—out carriages in this rail yard in northern greece. and then they're off. these young men are mostly from afghanistan, waiting tojump on a train, jump at a chance to move further north into europe, a chance they hope, at a better life. we don't know which one is go, but all are ready for going. but so, too, are the police. police comes, we run. a game of cat and mouse at this stop. this morning, the police win, they often do. 17—year—old sadr is from pakistan. how many times have you tried tojump on a train? we are six times. seven times. each and every time, every one of them try to hang on them because the problem of here, police and immigration. that's why the people
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leave this area. their next destination, greece's border with north macedonia. five years ago, thousands took this route through a tiny border village, a gateway to western europe through the balkans. look at these fields now. this border is shut. but migrants are now showing up again in smaller but growing numbers. these men were just pushed back by border guards in north macedonia, and we came across an afghan family waiting in the sunflowers, trying for a sixth time to sneak through. we try to go because the greece government said, go from greece. so what do we do? we cannot go back to afghanistan. this is our problem. so we try to go to... another country. the welcome has gone cold in this little village.
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in southern greece, on scenic islands like samos, the mood is much the same. a camp built five years ago to house hundreds of migrants now sprawls across the hills. thousands living in squalor, losing hope asylum cases will never be settled. we weren't allowed to enter the camp. residents filmed for us. duraid shows us their food, bread gone mouldy. he fled syria with his family. there are far fewer arrivals on greek shores now.
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look at how close turkey is. it's in touching distance of greece and they share a land border, too. so earlier this year, when tensions rose between turkey and europe, turkey sent more migrants towards greece. it could do it again. but right now, it's greece's actions which are also causing concern. these videos appear to show migrants being pulled by the greek coast guard out of greek waters, back towards turkey in breach of international law. we obtained this material from groups monitoring traffic in the aegean sea. and the un says it's also documented multiple cases. without them sending a signal that greece has boarded. the european union has broader borders and illegal crossings are not being tolerated. but we do so in compliance with international law.
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life for migrants gets tougher under greece's conservative government. they insist greece won't be a gateway to europe again. it knows much of europe thinks the same. in 2015, sweden was one of the most welcoming countries to migrants, its asylum policies have since become significantly stricter. five years ago, the bbc followed a young syrian woman, noor ahmad. she made her perilousjourney north. a report from sweden now on how noor‘s life has changed. coffee with mum, a simple pleasure. noor doesn't take for granted. they were separated as she travelled alone across nine countries to make it here. her father died in the war in syria. now she's learned swedish, got her driving licence and a job in a food warehouse. i have my apartment. i have my family. i have my dog.
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so i feel like i'm a stable, confident person right now. and what about making friends settling in? they are so like closed group the swedish people. so you canjust go in and be friends with someone. you can't do this. do you have any swedish friends? no. she'd hoped for deeper connections, but still feels lucky to be here. that's because sweden, one of the most welcoming countries to migrants, changed its approach soon after she arrived. limiting numbers and making temporary permits the norm for a center—left government. it was a major shift in policy. of course, it was a tough decision to make. but on the other hand, there was nothing else to do. there arrived 114,000 people to sweden. injust four months. and it would have been impossible for sweden to keep on that pace. so we had to be very clear, well, if you're going to apply for asylum in europe,
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you have to choose other countries. crime is also a big issue here in sweden. in cities, suburbs like this one, where almost everyone has an immigrant background. they've been high profile shootings in recent years, and that's led increasing numbers of swedes to vote for anti—immigration parties, even though police say most of the crimes are carried out by gangs and people who've grown up here, not new arrivals. and lots of locals say they do feel safe even if they've lost friends in the violence like this 16—year—old. normal people don't have to be scared about that. if you are not involved in a gang, you don't have to be scared for nothing. if you are involved and you better run. how easy is it to.. ..to be successful, if you come from a place like this to be successful, if you come from a place like this to to have a career, education? you only have two ways, either
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you play football or you do music. there are no other ways out. there is a strong push to improve life with a new police station and projects to help more people into work here and other segregated neighbourhoods. it's a big challenge to enter the job market in sweden. if you don't have a network and also to progress up, bring them in the market. we facilitate meetings with just ordinary swedes, but we match them on that. they have the background in the same sector. and since the immigration away five years ago, we have facilitated for over 50,000 people to meet this way with a great impact, 24% get a job or an apprenticeship through our programme. while some new swedes are making their way, even in neighbourhoods that were already troubled, no one disputes that the decision to take in so many has brought challenges that is shaping this country's future. five years since the 2015 migrant crisis, hundreds of people are still drowning in the mediterranean, according to the international organisation for migration. despite a crackdown on smuggling.
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many west africans are now making the perilous journey via the atlantic to the canary islands instead. some have been shipwrecked and died. others have returned home voluntarily or forcibly. a report from senegal. the senegalese coast is a starting point for many migrants who aspire to reach europe or the canary islands in order to offer theirfamilies better living conditions. like many young senegalese migrants, this man wanted to reach europe via libya. he left the a region in southern senegal in troubled tunisia ——he left the a region in southern senegal and travelled tunisia before entering libya, where he started working in construction. he was 2a years old. there were three of them and they started banging on the door before. ifi if i open it i asked if they were
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arabs or blacks, when they answered that they were... i wanted to run away, so they started shooting with guns andi away, so they started shooting with guns and i was shot in the leg. at first, he just couldn't get medical treatment because he didn't have a passport, so his wound became infected and his leg had to be amputated. after spending a month in hospital, it was impossible for him to find work or to stay in libya. so he asked to be repatriated. the senegalese who choose illegal immigration sometimes begin their dangerous journey from villages such as kochie, where we are in the locality of mali kunda, 80 kilometres from the senegalese capital, dakar. but many lose their lives along the way. and with more than 5,000 death in 2017 in africa, migration is now one of the major causes of mortality, according to the international organisation for migration. for those who returned voluntarily or forcibly, iom is working with the senegalese government to involve local authorities in the reintegration process.
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translation: as we go to the coordination, the coherence and the vision of a migration policy. not much has been done in our country and we have a lot of progress to make. we need a more convincing language towards the use of resources and operational programmes that will attract debt interest and generate profits for them. among these initiatives is the community radio 0xygen. it is based in bekim. the second most populated city in senegal. the poverty rate there is close to 30% and the income per capita per day is less than $2. every wednesday, this man hosts a programme that addresses communities on topics related to immigration. translation: we talk to these young men and women and to their parents, especially mothers who can spend and borrow a lot of money or sell their assets
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for the departure of their sons so that they can provide for their needs and put them in better condition. since settling in mali kunda, some 80 kilometres from dakar, dejan kamara has been managing the only food shop in his neighbourhood. in his quest for survival, he has lost a leg but has regained dignity in his work. so many of the migrants who came here to europe in 2015 in huge numbers took enormous risks and embarked on dangerous journeys to escape conflict and find a better life. but the sudden influx of people sparked a crisis, both humanitarian and political. as europe struggled to respond. and the impact of this mass migration is still being felt today. good evening. definite autumn chill in the air today and they
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will be again tomorrow. but compared to today, there will be a few of those darkening clouds and downpours and that of course does mean where we saw a little bit of sunshine in between the downpours, there will be fewer in the way of rainbows around as well. but we have the moment is an area of low pressure still close by but moving eastwards. because of its proximity to us, we still have the showers around us, but because it is to the east of us, we are dragging our air down from the north. at that area of low pressure moves away slowly through the night, the showers will start to fade. particular inland as daytime heating disappears. a few showers continue — northern ireland, wales, southwest. showers most frequent across part of northern scotland, eastern counties of england. so you come inland where you get the clearest of skies, the coldest of conditions. widespread temperatures into single figures. even a touch of frost in some sheltered parts of southern scotland and northern england. but tomorrow, a drier, brighter start for many and a much brighter and drier day. one or two light showers, particularly in the morning, for northern ireland, wales, and the south—west. maybe the north west midlands. showers continuing in the far north of scotland and down
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through these north sea coast. it is here where the breeze will be at its strongest throughout the day, so quite a cold feel. but further west, with lighter winds, much more sunshine around, although sunshine temperatures similar to today's values, it will feel a little less chilly. then as we go into sunday evening and overnight, after a clear start and a chilly start, temperatures will rise later as cloud and rain started push its way in. all went into this, the next approaching weather system of the atlantic. this will bring a different day again on monday compared to sunday. back to grey conditions. maybe a bright start towards east anglia and the south—east and brightening up in the far west later. but many others will see cloud, outbreaks of rain trundle across during the day and with it, a strengthening wind, too. so, on monday, with the lack of sunshine for many and that strengthening wind again, it will feel colder than sunday will. and as we go, in fact, into monday night, our area of low pressure that brings that when front arts to develop even more to the east of the country, so the winds will strengthen. particularly cold down the north sea coast of scotland and england. outbreaks of rain most prevalent across england and wales.
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something a little bit brighter in scotland and northern ireland, only one or two showers. but it will be chilly. temperatures only around ten to 13 degrees for many. so remaining lower than it should be for the time of year and it will stay chilly as we go through wednesday and thursday. there is a selection of us, the forecast, though, suggests it will be a little bit drier and brighter, though.
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this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. president trump makes his first appearance at a public event following treatment for coronavirus, although aides are yet to confirm whether he's still contagious. first of all, i am feeling great. i don't know about you. how is everyone doing? his rivaljoe biden says he's tested negative, and tells the president to encourage mask wearing and social distancing. in the uk, the prime minister boris johnson will announce new measures on monday to tackle coronavirus in england, with some areas being warned they are likely to face tougher restrictions. a fragile ceasefire comes into effect between armenia
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