Fighting has erupted in Southern Greece between strawberry farmers and migrant workers striking for higher pay. According to a Greek trades union support the migrants, about 400 were attacked by farmers and what were described as "hired thugs". Three trade unionists were hurt and one farmer was arrested, police say. The clashes occurred in an area hit by last year's fires, and where slave labour conditions for fruit pickers have recently been revealed. The fighting took place in the village square of Neo Manolada in the province of Ilia - which produces 90% of Greece's strawberries, and whose agriculture was ruined during the fires.
Fighting has erupted in Southern Greece between strawberry farmers and migrant workers striking for higher pay.
According to a Greek trades union support the migrants, about 400 were attacked by farmers and what were described as "hired thugs".
Three trade unionists were hurt and one farmer was arrested, police say.
The clashes occurred in an area hit by last year's fires, and where slave labour conditions for fruit pickers have recently been revealed.
The fighting took place in the village square of Neo Manolada in the province of Ilia - which produces 90% of Greece's strawberries, and whose agriculture was ruined during the fires.
PARIS: The United Nations refugee agency has advised European Union countries to stop sending asylum seekers to Greece until further notice, a step that amounts to a condemnation of Greece's treatment of people fleeing conflict and persecution. In a sharp response, Greece called the agency's criticism of its handling of refugees unfair and said other EU countries needed to share the burden of tackling irregular migration into the Union. Meanwhile, lawyers for refugees said they were concerned that the UN advice would result in Greece's EU neighbors taking even tougher measures to push people away at their borders. The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees issued a statement Friday saying that essential procedural safeguards for asylum seekers were not guaranteed in Greece. "They also often lack the most basic entitlements, such as interpreters and legal aid, to ensure that their claims receive adequate scrutiny from the asylum authorities," the agency said. As a result, "asylum seekers continue to face undue hardships in having their claims heard and adequately adjudicated."
PARIS: The United Nations refugee agency has advised European Union countries to stop sending asylum seekers to Greece until further notice, a step that amounts to a condemnation of Greece's treatment of people fleeing conflict and persecution.
In a sharp response, Greece called the agency's criticism of its handling of refugees unfair and said other EU countries needed to share the burden of tackling irregular migration into the Union.
Meanwhile, lawyers for refugees said they were concerned that the UN advice would result in Greece's EU neighbors taking even tougher measures to push people away at their borders.
The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees issued a statement Friday saying that essential procedural safeguards for asylum seekers were not guaranteed in Greece. "They also often lack the most basic entitlements, such as interpreters and legal aid, to ensure that their claims receive adequate scrutiny from the asylum authorities," the agency said. As a result, "asylum seekers continue to face undue hardships in having their claims heard and adequately adjudicated."
