Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights – YUCOM
Human Rights House
Kneza Milosa 4, 11103 Belgrade, Serbia
Project Progress and Financial Report – No 9-10
Date of the visit: 28-29/01/2016
Place of the visit: Policijska stanica u Dimitrovgradu – mesto privremenog prihvata i registracije izbeglica, Republic of Serbia
Project: “Aid to refugees and migrants – from legal aid to conditions assessment”
Persons responsible for reporting: Ana Janković Jovanović and Momčilo Živadinović
Project Progress
General impressions:
A team consisting of Momcilo Zivadinovic and Ana J. Jovanovic, accompanied by an interpreter for Farsi, conducted a two-day visit from January 28th to January 29th 2016 of the Police station in Dimitrovgrad – a temporary shelter and registration office for refugees.
Refugees entering into Serbia from Bulgaria are registered and provided with temporary shelter in Dimitrovgrad. The local police station conducts the registration of the present refugees and provides them with temporary shelter seeing how no separate shelter has yet been established.
The conditions for the sheltering of the refugee are inadequate, i.e. there is not enough space. Four containers have been erected as improvised shelter, each with four beads and a heating unit. Apart from those accommodations, we were told that there is room for around ten more refugees within the police office building but we weren’t allowed to see these additional facilities for ourselves.
A Red Cross container can be found in the yard, where the refugees/migrants can receive the necessary aid in the form of food. There are also additional containers, a donation of the Ana & Vlade Divac Foundation, with doctors and additional medical staff along with stores of clothing and footwear for the refugees, most notably a substantial number of boots and jackets, which is very commendable. Medical aid is on standby 24h per day and works in two shifts.
According to the information we received, Info Park secured the daily presence of interpreter at the police station but we couldn’t acquire exact details pertaining to when he is present and what language is he translating from, seeing how most the refugees located here require an interpreter for Farsi, while at the time of our visit an interpreter for Arabic was needed.
Several mobile restrooms, with rather appalling hygienic conditions, can also be found in the yard.
All respondents wish to continue their journey towards their desired destination, mostly Germany or Italy. They cited busses, cars, trains and ships as means of transport to Serbia. Based on the information we received, their travel expenses to reach Serbia amounted to about 1.200,00 EUR.
Project Progress Report No9-10 28.29012016
