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Description
The aim of the project is to prevent violations of refugee rights in Poland in the border area, to document those violations and to help their victims. The project is addressed to foreigners crossing the eastern border of Poland, who were prevented from applying for international protection when they first crossed the border, as well as to those with regard to whom the procedure is already underway and who are staying in the centres of the Office for Foreigners. The international law in force in Poland provides that measures taken to regulate the entry of foreigners must not prevent them from applying for international protection. However, Polish services notoriously violate the applicable regulations, failing to accept applications for international protection and taking refugees out of Poland to the Polish-Belarusian border. They do not provide foreigners with assistance and do not allow people to provide them with legal or medical assistance. Until the state of emergency is lifted, it is these foreigners that we particularly want to help. Monitoring and documentation will make it more difficult for services to break the law and increase the likelihood of these people being allowed to apply for international protection. A patrol will be stationed in the border area to intervene in situations where foreigners'' rights are violated and to provide them with medical assistance and food. Those crossing the border will receive legal and psychological support. The collected evidence showing the situation of these people, the illegality of the actions of the services and the violation of human rights will be described in a report. The interventions will increase the number of refugees who will receive basic or full medical and psychological care, as well as those who will undergo the refugee procedure.
Summary of project results
The aim of the project was to prevent the violation of human rights of refugees in Poland in the border area, document it and help its victims.
The project was divided into 3 activities:
Monitoring - 3-4 were stationed in the border area not covered by the state of emergency
a patrol whose task was to intervene in situations of violation of the rights of refugees.
The intervention was aimed primarily at providing legal assistance and assistance
medical, food, and dry clothing. The patrol will change its composition approximately every 3 days, always
these are people trained to carry out interventions and provide first aid. Persons
these are in contact with translators and specialists.
2) Specialist assistance - legal and psychological support was provided to people
applying for refugee status in Poland. The priority was to help people who were hindered
is to get on the legal path to apply for status.
3) Action report - all evidence showing the refugee situation and illegality
actions of Polish services and violations of human rights, collected during the intervention and from the beginning
the Foundation''s presence in Usnarz Górne were systematized and summarized in the report.
12 - number of people who submitted an application for international protection in Poland in the presence of a person working at the Foundation;
over 100 successful interventions took place, i.e. trips into the area of the patrol group, which managed to locate 678 people in need of support and who were provided with humanitarian aid (basic medical aid, clothes, food, drink, communication equipment were provided), in this group there were 61 women and 153 children;
A permanent intervention group was established consisting of over 12 people, Foundation employees and volunteers, who were trained in 3 training courses and prepared to conduct interventions in difficult terrain;
Reaching vulnerable groups: minors, two people known to be chronically ill, three pregnant people;
A group of over 12 people was prepared to conduct the intervention and for this purpose took part in a series of training courses (pre-medical aid training, training in procedures and principles of intervention and reporting, legal training in safe contact with uniformed services;
A report describing the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border, discussing situations of human rights violations by uniformed services and activities undertaken by the Foundation in this area;
More than 100 people in total were involved in activities at the border;
10 - number of entities cooperating with the Foundation as part of human rights advocacy activities;
523- number of report recipients until the report is submitted;
102 - number of interventions in the field.