'The number
of homeless people has risen to unprecedented levels for a European country:
unofficial estimates put them at 40,000.
European
societies typically assume that humanitarian crises only take place in the
aftermath of natural disasters, epidemics, wars or civil conflicts.That such a
crisis could happen in a European country, especially one that is a member of
the European Union, seems out of the question to many of us.
And yet a
number of experts would maintain that Greece is currently in the centre of a
humanitarian crisis. The head of Médecins du Monde, Nikitas Kanakis, the
largest and most prominent NGO in Greece, was among the first to declare it
openly. The port area of Perama, near Athens, in particular, is in the midst of
a humanitarian disaster. The Medical Society of Athens, the largest
professional body of its kind, has even sent a formal letter to the UN asking
for intervention.
If this
humanitarian crisis has so far been little talked about, there are political
reasons why. By acknowledging the severity of the situation, the Greek
government and the EU would also have admitted that the current state of
affairs has been brought about by the so-called economic "rescue" of
Greece. So the authorities have chosen to keep quiet.
It is true
that there is no general agreement on what constitutes a humanitarian crisis.
But the definition used by those with experience in the field is practical and
straightforward. A humanitarian crisis is usually marked by rising poverty,
heightened inequality in education and social protection, and lack of access to
social welfare services. Particularly important indicators are loss of access
to primary health services, medical examinations, hospitalisation and
medication. In other words: when you see a crisis, you will not mistake it for
anything else.
Greece
never imagined that it could face a humanitarian crisis. According to the UN
Human Development Index, in 2008 Greece was ranked 18th in the world. No one in
the country really thought that this could change so dramatically.
It was
false security offered by the institutions and mechanisms of the EU. Member
states had to pay for this imaginary security by meeting demanding economic and
political criteria. The paradox is that even the EU, the supposed guarantor of
the security and prosperity of member states, has well-defined ways of
measuring poverty, both absolute and relative, which show that a humanitarian
crisis exists in Greece.
On the
basis of the criteria and the data of the EU, Greece is a country in serious
poverty. In 2011, 31.4% of the population, or 3.4 million people, lived on an
income below 60% of the national median disposable income. At the same
time, 27.3% of the population, or 1.3 million people, were at risk of poverty.
There is no data yet for 2012, though things have certainly got worse.
Using further EU indicators, a large proportion of Greek
households currently live in conditions of "material deprivation". A
little more than 11% actually live in "extreme material deprivation",
which means without enough heating, electricity, and use of either a car or a
telephone. It also means having a poor diet, devoid of meat or fish on a weekly
basis, as well as total or partial inability to meet emergency expenses or
payments for rent and bills.
The ineffectiveness of European programmes for reintegrating
the unemployed into the labour market and the lack of national social
protection programmes have pushed Greece even further down the ranks of
poverty. The adult unemployment rate stood at 26.8% in October 2012. This
level, although huge in comparison to the recent past, still does not give the
whole picture.
It misses, for instance, unemployment resulting from the
failure of thousands of small businesses. To the unemployed should be added the
working poor, ie, workers with such low wages that they cannot meet basic
needs. At 13% of the workforce they represent the highest proportion of the
working poor in the eurozone.
There are three more indicators that point to a humanitarian
crisis. First, the number of homeless people has risen to unprecedented levels
for a European country: unofficial estimates put them at 40,000. Second, the
proportion of Greek beneficiaries of NGO medical services in some urban centres
was recorded at 60% of the total in 2012. This would have been unthinkable even
three years ago, since such services were typically provided to immigrants, not
Greeks.
Third, there has been explosive growth in soup kitchens and
general food distribution. The levels are not officially recorded, but the
Church of Greece distributes approximately 250,000 daily rations, while there
are unknown numbers of rations distributed by municipal authorities and NGOs.
By recent government order, municipal rations will be expanded further because
of rising incidence of children fainting at school due to low calorie intake.
There will also be light meals provided to young students.
The
evidence of poverty, inequality, and inability to access primary services
confirms the increasingly desperate statements by people at the frontline. The
country has become a field of humanitarian action, and should be treated as
such. It is shameful for the Greek government and the EU to turn a blind eye to
it. The international humanitarian community should respond with
urgency.
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