The unpaved road leading to the site of the future refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos is long and winding, snaking through dry forest terrain for roughly ten kilometres. Far from any towns, and adjacent to a domestic landfill site, this remote area, which is at risk of wildfires, projects a far from subtle message: out of sight, out of mind.
The planned refugee camp is one of five new EU-funded, high-security, multi-purpose reception and identification centres (MPRICs), promised as part of the European Union and Greek government’s new pact on migration to replace the current camps on the country’s islands. The agreement was announced in September 2020, just days after the notorious Moria refugee camp on Lesbos burned down.
According to the pact, the new refugee camps must ensure, among other things, the right to “health” and “security” for the asylum seekers living in them. In practice, this has translated into prison-like conditions, with barbed-wire fences and concrete walls surrounding the camps, and 24/7 surveillance.
