Housing and Social Policies for Unaccompanied Refugee Minors in Greece

Abstract

This article examines the housing and social policies for URMs in Greece. The main argument is that the social policies pursued have residual characteristics and focus on emergency housing services, a form of management that does not favor the social integration of URMs. Instead, it traps them in dismal conditions that violate the human rights. The findings of the scholarly review and the field research shed further light on another aspect of the shrinking of the welfare state which, along with the EU refugee repression policies, trap a vulnerable group in extreme forms of marginalization.

Keywords:

• Emergency housing
• Southern Europe
• EU
• unaccompanied minors
• refugee management

Notes

1 In this article, the term unaccompanied refugee minors (URM) is descriptively referred to the entire population of unaccompanied asylum seekers and refugee minors who have arrived in Greece since 2015.

2 According to EKKA (2020), in 2013 there were 189 unaccompanied refugee minors, while in April 2020 they reached 5,099. Of these, 92.9% are boys and 7.1% are girls. 8.6% of them are under the age of 14. http://www.ekka.org.gr/images/%CE%A3%CE%A4%CE%91%CE%A4%CE%99%CE%A3%CE%A4%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%91_2020/GR%20EKKA%20Dashboard%2030-4-2020.pdf

3 http://www.ekka.org.gr/images/%CE%A3%CE%A4%CE%91%CE%A4%CE%99%CE%A3%CE%A4%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%91_2020/GR%20EKKA%20Dashboard%2030-4-2020.pdf

4 https://greece.iom.int/el/news/%CE%BF-%CE%B4%CE%BF%CE%BC-%CF%80%CE%B1%CF%81%CE%B5%CE%AF%CF%87%CE%B5-%CF%83%CF%84%CE%AD%CE%B3%CE%B1%CF%83%CE%B7-%CF%83%CE%B5-%CF%80%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%83%CF%8C%CF%84%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%B1-%CE%B1%CF%80%CF%8C-1000-%CE%B1%CF%83%CF%85%CE%BD%CF%8C%CE%B4%CE%B5%CF%85%CF%84%CE%B1-%CF%80%CE%B1%CE%B9%CE%B4%CE%B9%CE%AC-%CE%B1%CF%80%CF%8C-%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BD-%CE%B1%CF%81%CF%87%CE%AE-%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%85-2018

5 https://metadrasi.org/campaigns/supported-semi-independent-living/