The Austrian authorities have announced a mass invasion of migrants who are making their way towards Austria via the Balkan route, and in this dangerous time the Slovenian police and the Government are talking about a new “migration policy strategy”, which will be based on inclusion and solidarity. The number of attempts to enter through the Western Balkans has increased by almost 200 percent, and the current government is censoring social media in order to hide the fact that the decision to withdraw the wire fence was deliberate and literally an “invitation” to illegal border crossings. Austria has just dealt with a record number of illegal crossings, and the government is talking about solidarity and inclusion. Slovenia is in grave danger, when will the government react appropriately?
While the government and the Slovenian police censor social media and cover up the reality of the new incoming wave of illegal migrants, Austrian authorities on the border with Hungary have registered more illegal immigrants than ever before, after police in the eastern federal state of Graz in just one day arrested 591 individuals, wrote RMX. The National Operations Centre announced that the authorities expect an increase in migration and are preparing accordingly, and they also pointed to an ever-increasing number of arrests, which is incomparably higher than in 2015, when the wave of refugees was at its highest. The number of illegal entries increased to 114,720 in the first half of 2022, which is 84 percent more than last year. The number of attempts to enter via the Western Balkans increased by almost 200 percent.
As if overcoming Russian aggression was not enough of a challenge, Europe is now also faced with rapidly growing new “waves” of undocumented asylum seekers. Given the socio-political upheavals that followed the arrival of 1 million refugees, mostly Syrians, on European shores in 2015, one might expect the current government to react appropriately and ensure the safety of its citizens, but it hides the fact that the withdrawal was intentional. This was also commented on by former Prime Minister Janez Janša, who wrote on Twitter: “Expected? Public recognition by @mnz_gov_si and @vladaRS that they announced the removal of the border fence in order to increase the flow of illegal migrants!!!”
Not to mention that the Slovenian police have limited commenting on the announcement about the migration strategy on Facebook, as they are more than obviously afraid that the citizens will find out the truth, which was also commented by one of the users of the social network and summed up the thoughts of many.
The number of illegal entries increased sharply
Figures published by the EU border agency Frontex show that the number of illegal entries rose to 114,720 in the first half of 2022, an 84 percent increase on last year. The number of attempts to enter via the Western Balkans increased by almost 200 percent. About 60,000 people supposedly crossed the English Channel by boat this year, twice as many as in 2021. Surprisingly, these figures do not include the millions of Ukrainians who have applied for asylum in the EU since February. The majority of non-Ukrainian refugees and economic migrants classified as irregular come from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey, Belarus, Bangladesh, Egypt, and sub-Saharan Africa.
Illegal immigrants have been making their way to Europe via the Balkan route for several weeks, moving through Serbia into the EU’s borderless Schengen area before continuing on to their European country of choice. The primary destination of mass migration is still Germany; since Poland expanded its border capacity, Germany’s eastern neighbour is no longer a transit country, putting more pressure on the Austrian border. Authorities have told German media that the tense situation will worsen and that they expect a significantly larger wave than in previous years.
Tanja Brkic
