Five Thousand Doctors Call for Evacuation of Moria Camp in Greece

Twenty-two thousand refugees from Afghanistan, Syria, Iran and several other countries have been accommodated in a small camp called Moria on the island of Lesbos in Greece. Five thousand doctors across Europe have called for the evacuation of this camp due to the spread of coronavirus.

The warning from five thousand European doctors comes at a time when Europe is struggling to contain the coronavirus on the continent.

Physicians say that refugees in Greece are at risk due to the spread of coronavirus. According to doctors, maintaining the two-meter distance recommended for protection against coronavirus infection is impossible in the Moria camp, as 22,000 refugees are accommodated in a small area.

The Moria camp had been in the spotlight even before the coronavirus outbreak. Moria was established to accommodate three thousand refugees, but currently about 22,000 people live inside and in the outer area of the camp.

Inside the Moria accommodation, refugees live in tents without heating facilities and are forced to use unsanitary toilets and washrooms. Outside the camp, there are also homeless refugees who are deprived of even these “facilities.”

Doctors who have worked in this camp say that hundreds of people share only one toilet and every thousand people use one water tap, so there is no way to constantly wash hands to protect against coronavirus.

Two Dutch doctors who recently helped refugees in this camp

launched a new initiative with a hashtag called #SOSMoria. This hashtag has been supported by five thousand European doctors.

These doctors, given the risk of coronavirus outbreak in the Moria camp, have called for the immediate evacuation of the camp.

Doctors Steven van de Vijver and Sanne van Dijck are the creators of this hashtag. Vijver is a general practitioner in Amsterdam and recently was responsible for examining sick refugees in Moria. This Dutch doctor worked under difficult and harsh conditions and is well aware of the refugees’ situation.

He, who has worked with Doctors Without Borders in Congo, describes the Moria camp as catastrophic.

This Dutch doctor explains that many in this camp have weak immune systems even without coronavirus, and the virus could lead thousands of refugees to their death.

He says no measures have been taken to protect refugees against coronavirus.

So far, no cases of coronavirus have been reported in the camp, but the virus has spread among the Greek residents.

He says if the camp residents feel threatened by the spread of coronavirus, they will leave the place and seek refuge in various parts of the island, and then it will be impossible to prevent further spread of the virus.

Sanne van Dijck, a gynecologist, explains that many in Moria have mental problems. Children do not speak, women in the camp are unable to care for their children due to psychological problems, and young people have suicidal thoughts.

This Dutch doctor further emphasizes: “As a physician, I have taken an oath to help people and have a duty to save them. European Union countries also have a duty to remove eligible refugees from camps and accept them as refugees. But these countries are not keeping their promises.”

Steven van de Vijver, the creator of the doctors’ protest hashtag, says Moria is not much different from refugee camps in Idlib, Syria and Myanmar, but Moria is located in the territory of a European country.

Source: DW