To avert a humanitarian and public health crisis in Vucjak migrant centre in the north of Bosnia, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic said on Thursday, urging State authorities to urgently relocate all the migrants currently in the camp to facilities with adequate standards in the Federation (FBiH) and Republika Srpska (RS) entity.
“The living conditions in this camp, which is close to land-minded areas, are already deplorable, without running water or electricity, and poor sanitary conditions. With winter coming, the situation cannot but worsen,” Mijatovic said. “The Vučjak camp should not have been opened in the first place, and must now be closed. I also urge the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina to uphold their responsibilities to handle migration in a human rights compliant way and provide the necessary help to local authorities who have been dealing with this issue by themselves for so long.”
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She noted that the situation nothing new, recalling that she sent a letter to Bosnian authorities some 18 months ago, in which she urged them to spare no effort in order to improve their handling of migrant arrivals.
“At the time, there were about 300 migrants in Bihac and Velika Kladusa. Today, the estimated number is between 4,000 and 6,000,” Mijatovic said.
“I call on the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina to address this issue in close co-operation with international organisations and NGOs working in the field of migration. It is high time that the authorities treat migrants with humanity and according to human rights standards,” Mijatovic concluded.
Suhret Fazlic, the Mayor of Bihac, said Tuesday in Sarajevo that the migrant situation in this town is escalating fast and if the State authorities do not provide additional financial aid to this canton, he said he will lead a protest of USK residents in front of the Bosnian Parliament building in Sarajevo.
He warned that this winter could prove to be a humanitarian catastrophe for the migrants who have nothing but blankets on them.
