THE HEAD OF BULGARIA’S REFUGEE AGENCY: THE COUNTRIES OF SOUTH EAST EUROPE TAKE THE PRESSURE OF REFUGEE FLOW

The refugees who have already been granted formal status will be moved from 'Voenna Rampa' refugee camp in Sofia to the camp in Harmanli in the South-Central Bulgaria, even if it becomes necessary to use force, said the Head of Bulgaria’s State Agency for Refugees, Nikolai Chirpanliev on 22nd of July for BNT. In the BNT morning programme he again insisted on amendments to the Dublin Regulation which, according to him, places the burden on the countries in South East Europe to absorb the refugee flow.

The Head of the Refugee Agency said that the Dublin Regulation did not function properly in its current form. He called for amendments to take into account economic factors, like the GDP, in the allocation of refugees rather than on geographic principle. According to him, Bulgaria cannot take the economic burden of all processes for integration of the Syrian citizens.

The Bulgarian Refugees Agency was informed in a letter that in the following months, 3,000 refugees would be returned to Bulgaria from Germany. Chirpanliev said that Bulgaria would take them back and added that the refugee influx at that moment was the same as in the peak months during 2013. Over 600 Syrians arrived in Bulgaria in June this year. According to Chirpanliev for the time being refugee centres can accommodate new arrivals.

Regarding the other hot topic – moving refugees from 'Voenna Rampa' refugee centre to Harmanli – Chirpanliev was firm that the transfer would take place and the Refugee Agency would receive support from humanitarian organizations.