It will no longer detain refugees heading for Germany, while Slovakia says Schengen travel zone has effectively collapsed

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

The Czech Republic will no longer detain Syrian refugees trying to reach Germany, police have said, making it the latest country to abandon European asylum rules in the face of an overwhelming migration crisis.



Authorities had been detaining refugees, who had applied for asylum in Hungary but were trying to travel onwards, for up to 42 days.



The policy announced on Wednesday was prompted by Germany’s declaration that Syrians who reached the country would be allowed to stay, regardless of their route, and Hungary’s reluctance to take back refugees registered in the country.

“We reacted to the positions of Hungary and Germany,” police spokeswoman Katerina Rendlova said in a television interview. “We consider it ineffective to keep these people in detention centres.”



Czech authorities had been struggling to deal with the numbers of arrivals and had been drawing criticism for writing identity numbers in pen on the arms of hundreds who were intercepted and pulled off trains.



A tweet by Andrew Stroehlein, Human Rights Watch’s European media director, was shared more than 1,000 times.

Hungary, meanwhile, has struggled to deal with thousands of people stranded at Budapest’s main international railway station after authorities decided to stick to European Union rules and prevent refugees and migrants leaving for other countries in western Europe.

On Monday, the country unexpectedly allowed anyone with a ticket to board trains travelling to Austria and Germany without visa checks, prompting chaos at the station and long lines for tickets that can no longer be used.

The closure of the station to refugees and migrants appeared prompted in part by pressure from other EU countries trying to cope with arrivals from Hungary.

About 3,000 people were camped at the Keleti station in the Hungarian capital early on Wednesday, many sleeping outside the main entrance guarded by police, who said citizen patrols were assisting them in keeping order.

Hundreds of refugees and migrants gathered in front of the station, and shouted: “Freedom, freedom”, and demanded to be let on to trains bound for Germany, but it remained closed to them.

Volunteer groups accustomed to providing food, clothing and medical assistance to a few hundred people at a time struggled with the large number of people staying in the station’s sunken plaza.

More than 150,000 refugees and migrants have reached Hungary this year, most coming through the country’s southern border with Serbia.

Refugees outside the station complained they had bought tickets believing they would be able to travel on to Germany. Some may now attempt to travel north to Czech Republic, although the countries do not share a common border, so travellers would have to pass through Austria or Slovakia.

Rafir Kozma, 30, from Syria, said: “I came here and bought a ticket for three people to Munich. It was €370.20 [£272]. My train was at 7am this morning and the police didn’t let me into the station.”

“Why have they sold us return tickets? We are refugees, we are one-way,” said Mohammed, who had travelled from Damascus with his uncle and cousins. “These people are thieves.”

Slovakia has not said whether it will allow onward travel, but its foreign minister criticised the confused European response to the escalating migration crisis, saying the continent’s passport-free Schengen travel zone had effectively collapsed.



“Schengen has de facto fallen apart,” foreign minister Miroslav Lajčák told reporters in Bratislava. He added Slovakia was ready to offer personnel and resources to increase border security for the 28-member bloc.

“Under normal circumstances, it’s difficult to get a Schengen visa, and now there are tens of thousands of people walking around here without anyone checking them,” Lajčák said. “So, do we have Schengen, or don’t we?”

Italy has also said it is ready to impose identification checks on the border with Austria to help slow the flow of migrants through to Germany, the northern province of Bolzano announced on Wednesday.

The German region of Bavaria had asked for logistical support and there was a precedent in temporary controls “reactivated” for the G7 meeting held at Schloss Elmau in June, the province said in a statement. Bavaria’s ministry of social affairs said it welcomed the support.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Hungarian government has defended travel restrictions as thousands of refugees continue to protest.

The Schengen agreement requires refugees to seek asylum in the first country they enter under the EU’s Dublin accord. However, last week Berlin said it had suspended the requirement for Syrians, who would now be permitted to stay in Germany and apply for refugee status.

The move has angered Hungary, which said it would encourage more migrants to make the journey to Europe.Asked if Hungary would again let migrants board trains to Germany as it did on Monday, a spokesman for the government said it would observe EU rules.

“In the territory of the EU, illegal migrants can travel onwards only with valid documents and observing EU rules,” he said. “A train ticket does not overwrite EU rules.”

Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party – led by Viktor Orbán, the populist prime minister – has taken a tough stance by constructing a fence along the country’s border with Serbia, the entry point for the majority of refugees and migrants.

A pro-refugee demonstration is due to be held in Budapest on Wednesday evening by the group Migration Aid, which accuses the government of “demonising certain groups of people to generate fear and justify security measures”.

Orbán is scheduled to meet EU leaders on Thursday to discuss his country’s handling of refugee arrivals to Europe.