Praxis Protection Monitoring Report

March

 HIGHLIGHTS
In March, the number of refugees/migrants met and interviewed by Praxis’ mobile team did not exceed 150 on
a daily basis, including the newly arrived ones, the refugees/migrants accommodated in the Asylum Centre
Krnjača and the Reception Centre Obrenovac and those who returned to Belgrade after unsuccessful attempts
to cross the Croatian, Hungarian or Romanian border. In this reporting period, Praxis provided assistance to a
total of 823 refugees/migrants, through information, referrals to the targeted assistance provided by various
organisations/institutions or covering the costs of transport to the asylum and reception centres.

Praxis continued its field work and provided a total of 538

newly arrived refugees and migrants (423 adults - 377
men and 46 women, and 115 children - 91 boys and 24
girls, including 63 potential unaccompanied and separated
children (UASC), all boys) with relevant information. Out
of the total of 538 newly arrived refugees/ migrants, 64
persons or 11.9% of them were from Afghanistan. 33
newly arrived refugees/migrants were from Syria, which
accounts for 6.1% of the total number. 67 refugees and
migrants came from Iraq (12.5%). 189 refugees/migrants
(35.1%) came from Pakistan, which is a significant increase
compared to the previous reporting period when 100
newly arrived refugees/migrant were from Pakistan. 125
refugees/migrants (23.2% of the total number) came from
Iran. The refugees/migrants from Iran continue arriving by
plane: 106 out of 125 of them in March. 5
refugees/migrants (0.9%) came from Algeria and 4 (0.7%)
from Morocco. A total of 51 (0.7%) refugees/migrants
came from other countries - from Russia (1), Bosnia and
Herzegovina (1), Burundi (1), Congo (1), Ghana (1), India
(17 – out of whom 4 arrived by plane), Lebanon (1), Libya
(17), Myanmar (2), Nepal (4), Sri Lanka (4) and Turkey
(Kurd) (1).

The families and UASC waiting for registration or transport

to one of the asylum or reception centres they had been
referred to still had the option of spending the night in the
aid hub Refugee Aid Miksalište, in the proximity of
Belgrade Bus and Train Station. In this reporting period,
there was no organised transportation of the
refugees/migrants to the reception and asylum centers.
Info Park continued to provide one meal a day for newly arrived refugees/migrants, and occasionally covered
transport costs to the reception and asylum centres, while MSF clinic continued to provide medical support. In
this reporting period, there was no organised distribution of clothing and footwear in the field in Belgrade.

The Serbian Law on Asylum and Temporary Protection was adopted on 22 March 2018. The Law on Foreigners
and the Law on Border Control were adopted on the same day.

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 PROTECTION
In March, through partnership with Save the Children, Praxis continued performing its activities related to
protection monitoring, provision of information to refugees and migrants in Belgrade, referrals to other
organisations for targeted assistance, follow up on identified especially vulnerable cases where possible, and
provision of transportation assistance. In March, a total of 538 newly arrived refugees and migrants (423 adults -
377 men and 46 women, and 115 children - 91 boys and 24 girls, including 63 potential unaccompanied and
separated children (UASC), all boys) were provided with relevant information in Belgrade. The provided
information was related to the present situation and available services for refugees and migrants in Belgrade
and in Serbia, primarily concerning asylum, transportation to asylum/reception centres, medical assistance,
food and clothes. A total of 543
persons (287 newly arrived and
256 identified earlier) were
referred to different
organisations and institutions,
mainly to the Police for
expressing the intention to seek
asylum, to MSF for medical care
and psychological assistance, to
Miksalište or Info Park hubs for
various services provided by the
organisations present there. The
persons staying in Belgrade and
Serbia for a long time were also
given information, on a daily
basis, about the current situation
and the services provided by
various organisations in
Belgrade. UASC were referred,
through the Centre for Youth
Integration (also the partner of
Save the Children), to field social workers for the provision of best-interest assessment and accommodation.
Praxis continued to cover the costs of bus tickets, as needed, to the reception centres in or near Bujanovac,
Tutin, Novi Pazar, Dimitrovgrad and Vranje, train tickets to Preševo, Vranje and Šid and taxi in Belgrade. A total
of 67 persons were provided with such assistance.

At the beginning of its morning shift, Praxis encountered up to three refugees/migrants sleeping in the parks
and abandoned buildings near the Belgrade Bus Station. Moreover, the number of persons who had the
opportunity to spend the night in Miksalište, while waiting for registration or transportation to one of the
reception or asylum centres they have been referred to did not exceed 27 in this period.

Protection by presence continues to be an important Praxis’ activity. In March, Praxis escorted 101
refugees/migrants to the Police Station in Savska Street and assisted them in the procedure of expressing their
intention to seek asylum. In this reporting period, the registration continued to be conducted regularly, with
several exceptions where the registration was not conducted during our working hours because of other
obligations of the inspectors responsible for the registration of refugees/migrants. In March, refugees and
migrants were referred to the Reception Centres in Preševo, Dimitrovgrad, Bujanovac and Adaševci and the
Asylum Centres in Tutin and Krnjača.

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In March, a total of 542 refugees/migrants reported 558 cases of pushbacks occurring at the different borders
along the Balkan route. Some of the refugees/migrants were pushed back at more than one border. Children
were involved in 128 cases of pushbacks (128 children, out of whom 63 potential UAMs, 60 boys and 3 girls and
65 (25 boys and 40 girls) who were traveling with families). A total of 62 refugees/migrants reported that they
had been pushed back from Hungary to Serbia, 199 from Croatia to Serbia, 19 from BiH to Serbia, and 100 from
Romania to Serbia. A total of 38 refugees/migrants reported that they had been pushed back from Serbia to
Macedonia. The rest of the pushbacks occurred at the borders from Bulgaria to Turkey (57), Albania to Greece
(1), Croatia to BiH (2), Slovenia to Croatia (13), Macedonia to Greece (45), Greece to Turkey (20) and Greece to
Macedonia (2). The excessive use of force by police in different countries during pushbacks was reported by 191
persons (out of whom 40 minors, 31 male UAMS, 4 boys and 5 girls traveling with families). In addition to the
incidents at various borders along the Balkan route, a large number of refugees/migrants reported
maltreatment by the police and/or centre employees or the denial of medical care. In March, a total of 24
refugees/migrants informed Praxis about having been the victims of beatings and thefts committed by the
police or staff in the asylum/reception centres - 15 in Bulgaria, 1 in BiH, 4 in Iran and 1 in Serbia. In this reporting
period, Praxis’ mobile team talked to 69 refugees/migrants who had been robbed by some local criminals or
gangs of refugees/migrants.

As regards UASC, in March, Praxis met and provided information to 63 newly arrived UASC – 55% of a total
number of children and 11.7% of a total number of all newly arrived refugees and migrants. 38.1% percent of all
UASC arrived via Bulgaria, 50.8% via Macedonia, 1.6% entered Serbia from Kosovo, while 9.5% did not specify
where they entered Serbia. In the cases of 14 UASC (10 newly arrived and 4 identified earlier), Praxis referred
them to the Centre for Youth Integration and to the field social workers to provide the best-interest assessment,
take the minors to registration and ensure accommodation. 19 UASC (4 newly arrived and 15 identified earlier),
who did not want to separate from the group they were travelling with, were taken to registration together with
their group, without the presence of a field social worker.

 CONCERNS, GAPS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

These concerns identified in the previous reporting periods remain unsolved:

 Although the influx of refugees/migrants transiting through Serbia has been significantly reduced compared
to the period before the closure of the Balkan route in March 2016, it has not stopped, despite the efforts of
the countries in the region to protect their borders as much as possible. The refugees/migrants fleeing
violence and insecurities in their countries continue to face with closed borders, expose themselves to
various risks and rely on the services of smugglers, which makes them even more vulnerable. The countries
in the region, as well as throughout Europe, should tackle the issue of smuggling more resolutely and
provide secure access to basic rights for the people in need of international protection. In addition, we urge
the authorities to rigorously investigate and take action against all perpetrators of crimes against refugees
and migrants, including all forms of inhuman or degrading treatment by law enforcement officers, physical
violence, and robbery.

 Need for the organized transport of newly registered refugees/migrants still exist. The costs of
transportation are still mostly covered by non-governmental organisations in most cases.

 Centre for Youth integration announced that as of 1 May they will stop working in the third shift. In order to
avoid an increase in the number of people sleeping rough, it is necessary to consider the possibility of

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 emergency accommodation for the persons waiting for registration or transportation to the asylum and
reception centres to which they have been referred.

 A very small number of people who can legally enter Hungary and the impossibility of entering legally any
other EU country led to an increasingly longer period of stay in Serbia. As there are no guarantees that
refugees/migrants will eventually reach the desired destination, it is necessary to work on their integration.
Thus, the authorities must ensure that everyone is living in adequate conditions that provide safety and
dignity and that their rights are protected.

 The use of force against refugees/migrants by the police in different countries along the route, especially in
cases of collective expulsions, and the inhumane treatment of refugees/migrants including minors continue
to pose a pressing problem and require responses of all relevant stakeholders and the entire international
community. Hence, we recommend the introduction of preventive measures against future violations and
mandatory training on European and international human rights and refugee law.

 It is imperative that the authorities establish age determination procedures by adhering in practice to the
principle of the best interest of the child in all phases of their stay in Serbia. In particular, we suggest that
the reception capacity for child asylum-seekers be increased as to ensure adequate arrangements for the
reception of child asylum seekers as well as to ensure their education and safety. In addition, the insufficient
number of interpreters during the process of identification increases the risk of not recognising the child as
UASC. This leads us to suggest the advanced training of all relevant personnel involved in asylum procedure
of child asylum-seekers to increase understanding of their needs and to secure adequate responses.
Moreover, we suggest securing effective guardianship, preferably with a single guardian throughout the
asylum process. Also, as the best-interest assessment most often boils down to the referral of UASC to an
asylum or reception centre with the currently available capacity, we deem important to secure a dedicated
budget for all needed services relevant to the well-being of child asylum-seekers.

This report was prepared by non-governmental organisation Praxis, as part of the project funded by
Save the Children and aimed at providing protection monitoring and assistance to refugees and
migrants in Belgrade.

The views set out in this report are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of
Save the Children.

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