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Serbia + 6 more

Serbia: Inter-Agency Operational Update (January 2017)

Attachments

Highlights

  • The number of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants accomodated in asylum, reception or transit centres grew from 5,800 to over 6,400.

  • With the opening of another two new reception facilities – Divljana (Bela Palanka) Reception Centre in the southeast of the country on 4 January and Obrenovac Transit Centre near Belgrade on 17 January – the number of available government centres rose to 17.

  • As of 11 January, The number of asylum-seekers squatting close to the “transit zones” of Horgoš and Kelebija fell below 50, as most followed the invitation by authorities, UN and partners to be sheltered in government centres instead.

  • The Centre for Social Work, supported by UNHCR and partners, continued to identify unaccompanied and separated children (UASCs) among those staying rough in Belgrade city. Close to 800 UASCs were accommodated in the 17 governmental facilities at the end of the month. UNHCR and partners continued supporting Centres for Social Work in undertaking systematic best interest assessment with UASC in Preševo and Bujanovac, awaiting a positive reply from authorities to extend these important child protection activities also to the other 15 government shelters and other locations in Serbia where UASC need urgent protection.

PRIORITIES

  • Ensure that urgent humanitarian and protection needs of refugees and migrants are being met.

  • Assist the Government to strengthen the asylum and migration management system in line with applicable international standards.

Operational Context

The number of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants counted in the country continued rising from 7,000 to close to 7,800. According to all available data, most were not adult men (37%), but children (47%) or women (16%). Around 85% of them had fled the so-called “refugee-producing countries”, including Afghanistan (53%), Iraq (20%) and Syria (9%).

Severe weather conditions across the country affected especially refugees/migrants not sheltered in government centres. In response, authorities invited all asylum-seekers to move to government centres, while humanitarian and protection agencies intensified support in counselling and registration and transported over 350 asylum-seekers from Belgrade city centre to designated governmental centres. World media started reporting on the situation of over 1,000 refugee/migrant men and boys sleeping rough in Belgrade city centre in cold, unhygienic and unsafe conditions. By the middle of January authorities decided to resolve their situation by opening a new shelter in Obrenovac of Belgrade.

With outdoor temperatures falling below -10 overnight, consolidated counselling and transportation to Obrenovac, the number of refugees/migrant men and boys in the city centre fell below 800.
As of 23 January, Hungarian authorities again halved the number of daily admissions into asylum-procedures from 100 to 50 per week. Immediately, the number of unregistered men, mostly from North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan observed in the vicinity of the border, rose. Authorities, UN agencies and partners collected daily testimonies of unlawful collective expulsions from Hungary, some including allegations of severe maltreatment such as beatings, dog bites, stripping of clothes and robbery of valuables, committed against asylum seekers by Hungarian officials. 16 Civil Society and 8 UN Organizations contributed to the Serbia Chapter of the Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan (RMRP), which was launched on 23 January by UNHCR and IOM at a press event in Belgrade, together with the Chair of the Inter-Ministerial Working Group of the Government of Serbia and DRC, on behalf of the NGO community (Press Release). The Serbia Chapter of the 2017 RMRP proposes humanitarian and developmental aid to the Response Plans of the Government of Serbia at a total value of over 39m USD.

In January, 584 intentions to seek asylum in Serbia were registered: 48% by men, 12% by women and 40% for children. Applications were filed by citizens of Afghanistan (50%), Iraq (17%), Syria (13%), Pakistan (10%), or other countries (10%). No first-instance decisions were issued.