Aid packages to cover their basic needs were distributed Monday morning to the 87 of the 115 refugees from Syria, hosted at the Refugee Reception Centre in Kokkinotrimithia, near Cyprus’ capital city, Nicosia.
The refugees, after three days at sea in a small boat, were rescued by the Cypriot authorities off the southern coast of Larnaca early Sunday morning and they have been accommodated at the Kokkinotrimithia camp. Among them are 29 children and 19 women. Twenty people have applied for political asylum and they have been accommodated at Kofinou reception centre, while five unaccompanied children were placed under the protection of the Welfare Office in Larnaca.
Cyprus Red Cross volunteers distributed the aid packages to the refugees in Kokkinotrimithia and its Director General, Takis Neofytou, has appealed to the public to offer more help to meet the needs of the refugees in clothing, baby food, milk and toys. The aim of Red Cross volunteers is to provide a comfortable, under the present conditions, living for these people, he added.
According to Neofytou many of these refugees paid an amount of 4,000 euros to traffickers in order to reach Italy, as they have said to the Cypriot authorities. “Unfortunately, the smugglers after the first day they abandoned them in the middle of the sea to fight with the waves. An Egyptian merchant ship approached their boat but did not collect them, sending an SOS to the authorities of the Republic Cyprus instead, which mobilized immediately and managed to rescue the refygees early Sunday morning,” he added.
Deputy Director of the Civil Defence, Loukas Hadjimichael told CNA that due to the expected high temperatures they have already installed fans in each tent in Kokkinotrimithia and refugees can also use the restaurant and the sheds that were added today to shelter from the sun.
The refugees have also undergone medical tests, while those found in need for medical assistance were treated by medical staff both in Larnaca upon arrival and the reception centres in Kokkinotrimithia and Kofinou, he added.
Red Cross Director General appealed to the public who wants to help to proceed to the centre offices in Nicosia and not to Kokkinontrimithia, or contact them on the numbers: 22664988 and 22666955.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Cyprus has requested the transfer of all the refugees to the Hospitality Centre for Asylum Seekers at Kofinou where the living conditions are better, Emilia Strovolidou, Assistant Public Information Officer, has told CNA, noting that among the 87 people currently hosted in Kokkinotrimithia camp there are families with children and infants. She also said that Cyprus, as an EU member state, needs to improve the reception conditions for refugees.
Previous experience has shown that refugees did not wish to apply for political asylum in Cyprus after their were accommodated in Kokkinotromithia, Strovolidou said and went on to explain that this comes in no surprise as the thousands of refugees decide to embark on such a journey aiming to reach European countries where better living conditions are prevailing and they can easier being integrated into the hosting societies.
“This crisis must be confronted by all EU countries as a humanitarian issue and an effective joint response must be given from Europe and the involved countries,” she pointed out.
The office of UNHCR in Cyprus has been in contact with the refugees in both centers and has been taking their details. The best and most safe choice for the protection of these people is to apply here for a political asylum and this is what we advice them, she concluded.