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UN rights chief warns police agreement by five European countries will worsen refugee crisis http://bit.ly/1oEaqpq  

The top United Nations human rights official expressed serious concern today over security measures adopted last week by the police chiefs of five European countries, which he warned are already negatively impacting the human rights of refugees and migrants in southern and central Europe and compounding the “already exceptionally difficult situation” in Greece.

Urging the five countries that adopted the measures – Austria, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia – to “carefully recalibrate” the approach of their police forces, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein emphasized that the measures are exacerbating “the chaos and misery all down the line,” and especially in Greece, which is already overwhelmed.

“Alarmingly, given the primary duty of the police to protect people, the agreement contains no measures aiming at protecting these extremely vulnerable women, children and men on the move – there is, for example, not even a mention of special measures to protect people who might be particularly at risk of human rights violations, including children, persons with disabilities, LGBT persons, older people, victims of torture, or victims of gender-based violence or trafficking,” Mr. Zeid said in a statement.