In Greece, the fire department cut into the bone Despite the known risk of deadly fires, new EU funding has been poured into violent border controls and repressive internal policing under EU austerity measures.
In one instance, lack of firefighting equipment meant that new police water cannons had to be sent to the Mandela fire, in a clear display of misplaced priorities.
arms
In fact, the Greek government allocated €1.7 million for the fire department and €50 million for the police (not including the Greek coast guard) in 2023, although last summer’s widespread fires highlighted Greece’s preparedness for such disasters There are weaknesses. event.
In Europe and beyond, climate change is having a growing impact on displacement. Whether it’s a bad year for villages dependent on vineyard income, a chronic lack of water and basic food, or the impact of extreme weather on places already affected by poverty and conflict, climate is what people make decisions about. an increasingly important factor. move.
In early June, a boat carrying hundreds of people sank off the coast of Greece. It has now become a notorious tragedy and has been the subject of multiple investigations into the conduct of border forces, as evidence mounts that the Greek coastguard (which works closely with the EU border force Frontex) was involved.
Many on board were fleeing countries increasingly divided by environmental crises, such as Pakistan, India, and North and sub-Saharan Africa.
Dealing with this situation cannot and should not be more weapons and walls. But that’s where we are right now.
smuggler
The EU has just signed a deal to increase spending at the border with another 15 billion euros, and Frontex is becoming the largest agency in the bloc with an 11-fold increase in funding since its first year of operation.
Countries in the northern hemisphere are spending sixteen times more on new border infrastructure than they are spending on climate finance for countries in need.
Even well-meaning people like Antonio Guterres refer to climate-related migration as a “biblical exodus,” raising concerns that large numbers of faceless, nameless “invaders” are moving rather than needing humanitarian support People who can only embark on the journey are safer.
Such controls did not solve the immigration emergency, in fact they created it. The fear narrative of “intruders”, rather than the reality of immigration, creates the need for European troops like the European Border Agency, and ever-increasing border spending.
The EU claims it is cracking down on smugglers. But smugglers can only profit in an environment where safe passage does not exist.
move
Far from reducing the harm caused by smugglers, European policies have exacerbated it. European governments — and no one else — should be held accountable for the delay or obstruction of search and rescue operations, the criminalization of those who stand in solidarity with people on the move, and the agreements reached with countries such as Libya and Turkey that are known to continue violating fundamental rights. Liability for defective protocols.their allies include Those who profit from smuggling.
The EU’s recent deal with Tunisia to prevent people migrating north involves funding Tunisian border forces, and Human Rights Watch has documented serious abuses, including torture, of people on the move.
The aim is to control the movement of people, regardless of the casualties – whether Libyan border guards find bodies in the desert after a mass deportation in Tunisia, or the daily shipwrecks in the Mediterranean.
As always, providing safe passage and support for people on the move and their communities can make mobility a more manageable and even more positive experience for all involved.
Violence
Climate change affects us all in different ways.but it Do affect us all. So instead of doubling down on border violence to shield rich countries from the climate emergency, we should focus on solving our common problems.
Europe and the Mediterranean can, rather than become The deadliest border in the worldto be the place for global leadership on how to manage the climate consequences.
The European Green New Deal has already achieved some significant progress on climate action. It can replace the political obsession with border controls as the main driver of external policy – from support for emergency services, to long-term plans to protect livelihoods and restore the environment, to systemic support for people who need to relocate, to investing in greening the European Mediterranean area.
In the current environment, that seems a long way off. In Western politics, climate change denial, inaction, and border violence are all driven by powerful far-right forces backed by for-profit lobbies that have much to gain from the status quo.
protected
One need only look at the current simultaneous focus of the UK Conservative Party on downplaying the net-zero emissions plan while simultaneously announcing new oil and gas licenses and attacking immigration in the English Channel, or the dual aim of the bloc of the EU right, which is attacking green legislation and laying claim to deadly Funding to raise funds for frontier technology to see where their priorities lie.
The priorities of progressives need to be equally clear. If ever there was a time for rigor, it was in response to the hottest month on record, and possibly tens of thousands of years.
The climate movement must continue to demand a rapid and just green transition to address the most pressing global challenges of our time, prioritizing the needs of those who are most marginalized and most vulnerable to climate consequences.
Part of that is making sure that all of us – no matter where we are born – are protected from the warming of the world that already exists.
these authors
Adla Shashati is Director of the Greek Migration Forum. Hope Barker is a senior policy analyst at the Border Violence Monitoring Network.
