For many years, a silent war has been waged along Europe’s borders, but this war has left the majority of the continent’s population seemingly untouched. This contrast has become even starker in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, during which it has become clear that the sensibility to life that is being so widely touted does not extend to everyone; the thousands of migrants amassed on both sides of the European border are, apparently, exempt from it.

Those who manage to cross into Europe end up confined in modern-day concentration camps. Subjected to appalling living conditions, they face complete uncertainty about the future and are, moreover, stripped of their most fundamental rights. At the same time, their presence is used by governments to push through policies that galvanize national(ist) unity and broader interstate competition.

Policies that are currently implemented as part of the global campaign against COVID-19 treat migrants as collateral damage. It is evident that protective measures against the “threat” of the virus are not concerned with the health of all, but rather just with the health of some. While public discourse is awash with ever more hateful and xenophobic rhetoric, authoritarian and repressive measures targeting migrants are being put in place.

The Greek state has a long track record of anti-migration policies. Located along the main eastern Mediterranean migration route, Greece has taken the lead in the dehumanization and disciplining of migrants who try to cross into European territory. Despite the variety of policies that have been pushed by successive governments over the years, certain key aspects remained unaltered: the diversion of migration routes from the land borders to dangerous sea crossings, which has resulted in over 1,600 deaths since 2015; the incarceration and violent devaluation of the lives of those who manage to get across and their subsequent marginalization in camps and urban ghettos; the creation of divisions within migrant populations through legal or other categorizations (refugee vs migrant, vulnerable vs non-vulnerable, skilled vs unskilled worker, etc.) and finally, the practice of dealing with migration as a security, rather than a social issue.

The EU-Turkey Agreement of March 2016 allowed for vast resources to be funneled to the Greek state and businesses, to turn the five islands of the eastern Aegean — Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Kos and Leros — into sites for the territorialization of anti-migration border policies. The land border with Turkey at Evros was fortified as part of the same strategy, and a large number of military and police forces were deployed along the naval borders.

The Greek Coast Guard and navy, together with Frontex and NATO forces are conducting border patrols and actively deter boats carrying migrants trying to reach Greece. At the same time, Turkey has been offered political and economic incentives in exchange for curbing migration and for re-admitting some of those who had managed to cross into Greece.

This agreement, however, constitutes yet another instance of diplomatic arm-wrestling between Greece and Turkey in which migrants continue to be instrumentalized in the interminable conflict between the two states searching for increased benefits from allies and international organizations.

The crisis at the Greek-Turkish border

In late February, border tensions between Greece and Turkey peaked at dangerously high levels. The government of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan transported thousands of migrants to the border with Greece, under the false promise that the crossing to Europe was open. This led to violent clashes in the border zone which resulted in at least two deaths from gunshot wounds, a child drowning in the Aegean and dozens of injured migrants. Large contingents of military and police forces, with the backing of armed militias, took up positions “to protect the borders.”

Greek security forces used tear gas, water cannon and live ammunition to “restrain” the crowd trying to cross the border in the Evros region. At the same time, the Greek army announced that for the first time in many years it would be using live rounds of ammunition as part of a training, from both light and heavy weapons, in the sea between the Aegean islands and Turkey.

These operations at the border were broadly supported: Greek businesses provided material and financial support, civil groups and churches offered their “blessings” and sympathetic media referred to them as a legitimate response to an asymmetric threat Greece faced by in the context of a “hybrid war” with its “timeless foe,” Turkey.

Arguing that the organized transfer of a large number of migrants to the Greek border was an attempt to violate both the country and the EU’s territorial sovereignty, the Greek government wasted no time to suspend parts of the Geneva Convention for a month, and to refuse any new asylum applications by newcomers — a decision which later had to withdraw due to the strong opposition from solidarity and legal groups.

Meanwhile, it received full political, economic and operational support from the EU, which pledged €700 million in financial aid and immediately deployed Frontex’s rapid intervention team (RABIT) along the land and sea borders. Turkey however, was also handsomely compensated, receiving substantial political and economic rewards in exchange for a commitment to deescalate tensions at the border and remove the thousands of migrants who have set up makeshift camps along its land border.

The conflict on the islands

These escalations at the border came at the right time for the Greek government. Weeks prior to these events, a decision by the government to push ahead with the construction of new migration detention centers on the islands caused a complete rupture with the communities there. When the government requisitioned areas destined for the construction of the new centers, local discontent turned into violent unrest as the government sent in police to ensure construction could advance as planned.

Three days of unprecedented clashes ensued between islanders and the police, forcing the government to temporarily suspend the construction of new detention centers on the islands of Lesvos and Chios, as well as to open a new round of consultations for possible alternative solutions.

These confrontations caused a serious rift in the relationship between the government and the island communities on which it depends for the smooth implementation of its authoritarian border policies. It became a priority for the government to fix this broken relationship as soon as possible, and the border crisis that was soon followed by the COVID-19-induced health crisis provided ample opportunity to do so.

The resistance of local communities may have been large scale and intense, but it proved too reactive and fleeting to constitute a meaningful milestone on the road to social emancipation. Furthermore, the language used by many locals showed that their priority was to get their islands “back” from the migrants; their opposition to the new centers was based on the perception that they would increase the number of migrants on the islands.

Despite the presence of a diverse international migrant solidarity movement on the islands, especially on Lesvos, which participated in the “three day uprising,” the unrest was marked by conservative, racist and xenophobic overtones. Moreover, migrants themselves were blocked from participating in the struggle, and there was a turn against any prior protest by migrants for their release from the island.

Conditions on the islands

As border areas, the islands have always been “sensitive zones” in which daily life is permeated by different forms of militarization. Faith in the nation and its interests are compulsory, and whoever questions this state of affairs must be prepared to face instant ostracism and persecution as a foreign and hostile member of the homogeneous national body.

Migrant solidarity struggles against borders and nationalism are red flags, both for official bodies and their civil allies. Attacks on migrants and solidarity activists are not a new phenomenon in Greece. Political, police and judicial tolerance and cover-ups of attacks, as well as the support that attacks enjoy among wider parts of the society, offer fertile grounds for raid groups to grow in strength and operate without restraint.

The profit generated by the vast industries of border surveillance and protection and the management of migrant populations, provide a strong incentive for the compliance of local island communities with anti-migrant policies. However, in such small and closed communities, things are more complex. The poor living conditions in the camps also started to affect the surrounding communities in negative ways.

Local communities surrounding the camps as well as the island population in general were discontented with changes that they perceived as having a negative impact on their daily lives. But rather than realizing the common grounds they share with migrant communities in this context, islanders instead identified them as the source of the problem. Over the years, a simmering anger has been cultivated, finding fertile ground among localist, populist and far-right circles.

During the three days of conflict between islanders and security forces, this rage was a driving force, and it was soon redirected from the police to migrants, solidarity activists and journalists. NGO workers were among the main targets, because they were held responsible for the deteriorating situation on the islands.

“Professional humanitarianism” has played a key role in normalizing detention centers’ exceptional conditions. From the “crisis” of 2015 until today, NGOs have increasingly played an active role in the management and operation of detention centers. Many have assisted the EU and the Greek government with their anti-migration policies.

Yet, at the same time, many provide much-needed medical and legal support for migrants, as well as food and shelter. Apart from that, a significant number of NGO workers and volunteers participate in and strengthen the solidarity movements that are active in these remote islands. These seem to be the reasons why NGO staff have been targeted by both state institutions and various far-right groups.

Emboldened by the political support from the local government on Lesvos, actions by local far-right groups since the start of 2020 have intensified. In Moria, there have been roadblocks and attacks preventing migrants and NGO workers from passing through areas adjacent to the detention center. At the same time, migrants protesting against confinement and their poor living conditions have been met with severe repression, both by the police and “outraged citizens.”

The climate of “emergency” that originally formed around the protests and later the “border crisis” with Turkey, provided local far-right militias with the necessary space and time to further strengthen themselves and to continue attacking both migrants and solidarity structures. More roadblocks were set up between the detention center and the city of Mytilene, targeting anyone perceived as “foreign.” Exhausted migrants who reached the islands’ shores by boat were prevented from disembarking, and in Chios and Lesvos, there were arson attacks against buildings and structures belonging to NGOs as well as the UNHCR.

The material damage caused by these attacks was significant and hindered the distribution of aid to migrants. But the subsequent climate of fear had an even more devastating effect. Public space and discourse was dominated by racism and xenophobia, exerting considerable pressure on solidarity movements. Many organizations were forced to suspend their operations and many workers left the island. The detention centers, which “host” many times more people than their official capacity, found their already inadequate services and infrastructures further weakened. The migrants were, as always, the victims.

As a large number of workers and volunteers are forced to leave the islands as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation continues to deteriorate.