Life in Calais for people on the move is a near-constant battle against police harassment and violence, and the message from the French government has never been clearer; violence from the state is not only tolerated, it is rewarded. As temperatures dropped below zero in late November, France’s notorious riot police, the Compagnie Républicaine de Sécurité (CRS), and border police, the Police aux Frontières (PAF), geared up for an eviction more devastating than usual.
On the morning of October 20th, Khaled was jolted awake by loud shouts and screams from outside the dimly lit room he was sleeping in. The other men and boys sharing the room at the temporary living site near the Hungarian border began to get up to investigate the noise. Suddenly, the door was smashed open, revealing three masked men dressed all in black and brandishing batons.
Read MoreIn the last few weeks, the situation for people on the move in Northern Serbia has become increasingly difficult and tenuous. On October 28th, the Serbian Minister of the Interior Bratislav Gašić held a press conference announcing a sweeping military and policing campaign focusing on Northern Serbia. This special operation joins together police units from Serbia and Hungary, and includes the involvement of heavily armed Serbian Gendarmerie special military units. During the press conference, Gašić stated that the special operation will not stop “until the last perpetrator of any criminal act, causing any incidents, shootings and everything, is removed from the territory of Subotica, Kikinda, and Sombor.”
Read MoreTucked away in the back corner of an informal living site in Northern Serbia, a time honored tradition takes place. A small barbershop has been set up under the shade of a tree, complete with a dedicated wooden seat and a small table where electric razors, scissors and small combs are carefully laid out. A group of men sit nearby, sipping sugary tea brought by Collective Aid volunteers and await their turn to be called for the next haircut slot.
Read MoreSeeking asylum is a universal human right. But for years, European countries have pursued harsh policies designed to deter people from exercising this right. Governments refuse the duty of search and rescue along dangerous sea routes. Detention of asylum seekers is common practice, often for long periods and in poor conditions. And people on the move face police aggression and constant pushbacks— measures to force refugees back across borders to avoid responsibility for their asylum claims.
Read MoreThe United Nations (UN) is an international organisation consisting of states from across the world. At the UN, member states discuss, negotiate, and pledge action on issues like climate change, peace, and human rights. Guaranteeing the implementation of these commitments, however, proves tricky.
Read More
In Belgrade, Collective Aid volunteers often meet individuals arriving in Serbia for the first time after long journeys through Turkey and Bulgaria. This was the case for Sayeed*, a 26-year-old graduate of mechanical engineering. Sayeed comes from Afghanistan, having fled after the Taliban’s takeover in 2021.
Read More
In recent weeks, Collective Aid has witnessed regular taxi stop-and-searches. These often take place on the outskirts of Subotica on the way to the Serbian-Hungarian border and living sites. They even occur at the entrance of Subotica’s reception centre. We have received reports recently that people on the move are being stolen from taxis by the Serbian police conducting these stop-and-searches.
Read More
“In camp, they feed us pork… do they not know we are Muslims?”
Ahmed*, a Moroccan in his early twenties, asked me this outside Collective Aid’s WASH centre in Belgrade. The centre is a unique spot in the city for people on the move, where we offer laundry services and hot showers for free to those passing through Serbia’s capital. It was not the first time I was asked a question like this, nor was it the first time I was stumped for an answer.
Read More
In the months of April and May, Collective Aid saw 28 reported evictions in the region. However, since June, there has been an increase in violent evictions across the northern Serbian border, which leads to personal property being destroyed and psychologically and physically harming people on the move.
Read More
There were only about 20 people this time, all men and one 9 year old boy, Aamir. His uncle told us how they walked 20 km in sandals until 1 am, how he was arrested by Hungarian police and held in jail for two days with no food before being dropped back over the border.
Read More
Camps designed to accommodate refugees ultimately exercise containment and control over camp populations, who are effectively excluded from society and rendered as bodies that must be governed and regulated.
Read More
Earlier this month, the UK drafted a bill to make asylum applications from people who enter the country illegally inadmissible. This bill is an apparent attack on the right to asylum, and many associations have taken up this issue. Collective Aid joins these denunciations.
Read MoreI’ve spent the last 2 months or so volunteering with Collective Aid in Sarajevo. Although I'd been keeping up to date with the migrant crisis, before I arrived here I didn't know quite the extent of the issues here in Bosnia
Read More