Afghan referee sees no fair play in EU border policies

3 years ago 253

VELIKA KLADUSA – Ibrahim Rasool loved his occupation arsenic a shot referee due to the fact that of sportsmanship and just play. But the 33-year-old from Afghanistan says there's thing just astir the mode the European Union treats radical flocking to its borders successful hunt of a amended life.

Rasool told The Associated Press that constabulary successful Croatia ignored pleas from a large pistillate and families with tiny children and alternatively deported him and 16 others backmost to Bosnia erstwhile they crossed into the EU state this month.

Rasool provided video that helium said helium had filmed wrong a Croatian constabulary van and successful a wood astatine Croatia's borderline with Bosnia. Croatian constabulary insulted the radical who tried to marque it successful and told them to spell backmost to Afghanistan, Rasool said.

Croatian constabulary person not responded to an AP petition seeking accusation astir the alleged Nov. 10 borderline incident.

“Police didn’t (pay) attraction to kids, to pistillate pregnant, (to) women, nobody,” Rasool said. “They amusement (us) gun, (say) ‘Don’t move. Stop. We are police.’”

The video provided by Rasool showed radical crouched wrong a fenced, moving van that included women and tiny children. In the wood video, men are carrying an seemingly large pistillate successful a blanket. Neither video could beryllium independently verified.

Rasool said Croatian constabulary told the radical determination is nary abstraction successful the EU for radical from Afghanistan, referring to the migrants arsenic “animals” and “dirty people."

Croatian constabulary person faced aggregate accusations of pushing backmost migrants and refugees and utilizing unit to bash so. The European Court of Human Rights past week ruled against Croatia successful a 2017 pushback lawsuit aft which a 6-year-old Afghan miss was killed by a train.

Although Croatian authorities past period were forced to suspend 3 peculiar constabulary officers who were filmed hitting migrants with batons portion forcing them retired of Croatia, they person rejected accusations of a systematic, wide maltreatment of migrants successful the borderline zone.

Rasool and his radical person been stuck successful a makeshift campy adjacent the Bosnian borderline municipality of Velika Kladusa. The campy has nary facilities different than improvised tents but Rasool said it was inactive amended than authoritative migrant camps “because we are free.”

Upon leaving Afghanistan 4 years ago, Rasool archetypal went to Iran, past to Turkey and Greece. He came to Bosnia 2 months agone done Albania and Montenegro aft staying successful Greece for much than 3 years. Despite being turned backmost repeatedly astatine the Croatian border, Rasool and his chap migrants volition effort again to transverse arsenic soon arsenic they can.

Once they scope Croatia, migrants question to spell to Italy oregon Slovenia earlier moving connected toward Western Europe's wealthiest countries. Several 1000 radical stay stuck passim the Balkans looking for a accidental to scope the EU.

“We cannot enactment successful Bosnia due to the fact that the upwind is going (to be) precise cold” soon, said Rasool.

Rasool provided the AP with copies of his FIFA-approved referee certificates and photos from immoderate of the hundreds of matches helium handled successful Afghanistan. He said helium fled his location state implicit disagreements with the absorption of the Afghan shot association.

“I privation to proceed my job, I privation to beryllium backmost to my mean life,” helium said. “It doesn’t substance which country.”

While successful Greece, Rasool coached exile teams, helium said. In Bosnia, helium could beryllium seen playing shot with children and different men successful the camp. Returning location to Afghanistan is not an option, particularly aft NATO troops pulled retired and the Taliban took implicit again.

But Rasool said his hopes of a brighter aboriginal successful the West person been shaken severely by the attraction astatine the Croatian border. The 4th clip helium tried to transverse into Croatia, constabulary took each his wealth and laughed astatine him and others.

“They stole from refugees,” helium said. “They deliberation we are animals, not human."

He said the Taliban, Croatia and different EU governments are each playing with people's lives.

“If European Union judge this" stance by Croatian borderline police, past it is nary amended than the Taliban, helium said.

___

Follow AP’s sum of migration issues astatine https://apnews.com/hub/migration

Read Entire Article