UN calls for immediate escalation of tensions on Belarus-Poland border
Concern from the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration about what is happening on the Belarus-Poland border with the refugees.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) are concerned about the latest reports from the Belarus-Poland border and urge states to ensure that security and human rights are respected and refugees.
On November 8, reports surfaced of a large group of migrants and refugees , including women and children, on the Belarusian- Polish border crossing at the Bruzgi International Border Crossing and appear to have settled in a makeshift camp. near the border at night.
UNHCR and the IOM have contacted both governments and called for an urgent solution to the situation and immediate and unhindered access to the population to ensure that humanitarian aid is provided and those in need of international or other forms of protection are identified. to apply for asylum they can do it where they are.
With several tragic deaths reported in the border region in recent weeks, UNHCR and the IOM remind states of the urgent need to prevent further loss of life and to ensure the humane treatment of migrants and refugees is a top priority.
The two organizations have stated publicly on several occasions that the instrumentalization of migrants and refugees for political purposes is unacceptable and must stop. Exploiting the despair and vulnerability of migrants and refugees by offering them unrealistic and misleading promises is unacceptable and has serious human consequences.
The two organizations have repeatedly reiterated to the Belarussian authorities the need to maintain the well-being of the people and to avoid creating difficult humanitarian situations.
UNHCR and the International Atomic Energy Agency are ready to support the Belarussian authorities in providing advice and assessing the personal situation of these people in appropriate locations away from border areas.
In view of the worrying situation at the border, both sides must live up to their obligations under international law and guarantee the security, dignity and protection of the rights of people stranded at the border.
The IOM and the UNHCR also urged the authorities to investigate all humanitarian options to respond to this situation, tailored to the individual circumstances, human rights and international protection needs of this group of individuals, including voluntary returns.
UNHCR and the IOM are also ready to provide humanitarian assistance to migrants and refugees on both sides of the border.
