• An extraordinary EU Summit is required to resolve the humanitarian disaster in Moria

• The new “Pact on Asylum and Migration" should be based on a mandatory and automatically triggered relocation system of asylum seekers to all EU Member States and on a fixed and predetermined refugee distribution rate

During her speech at the Plenary of the European Parliament, MEP Elena Kountoura from GUE/NGL (SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance, Greece) called on the European Union to rise up to the occasion regarding the humanitarian crisis surrounding Moria, and to assume its responsibilities on the refugee issue.

While addressing the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson and the German Presidency, Ms. Kountoura stressed that the European refugee policy has failed and that the responsibilities of this deadlock policy are shifting from the EU-27 to the EU host countries.

"Caring for asylum seekers is not the responsibility of Greece or Italy. It is a European responsibility. And the EU must assume its share of responsibility. For how much longer will we accept the fact that the Greek islands bear the burden of responsibility for the refugee issue? "
Referring to Moria, she complained about the competent European authorities setting up a form of informal prison, in clear violation of International Refugee Law.
And she emphasized:
"The solution to this humanitarian crisis is not another Moria. We need a European solution based on true solidarity! "

Ms. Kountoura noted it is an urgent need to arrange an extraordinary EU Summit dealing with the humanitarian disaster and on decongesting the Greek islands.

MEP Kountoura also called on the Commission to ensure the mandatory and automatically triggered relocation system of asylum seekers, with a fixed pre-determined refugee distribution rate in all EU countries, which will serve as the basis for the new " Pact on Asylum and Migration ", expected to be presented at the end of September, in order for the Pact to be sustainable and fair.

Commissioner Johansson agreed with MEP Elena Kountoura

Commissioner Johansson made special reference to Kountoura`s intervention. Commissioner Johansson completely agreed with the absolute statement made by the Greek MEP that there should be no more Morias, and added that mandatory solidarity will be part of the new Pact.