Greece must bolster border against migration wave—party leader

Conservative New Democracy party head Evangelos Meimarakis answers questions to journalist after his meeting with Greek President in Athens, Friday Aug. 21, 2015. AP Photo

ATHENS, Greece—Greece should strengthen its border defenses to check the unprecedented wave of migrants landing on its shores, the head of the conservative party that could return to power in this month’s election said early Tuesday.

“As regards migrants, the borders must be better protected and Greece should not send the message that ‘it’s good over here, come over,'” New Democracy leader Evangelos Meimarakis said in a television interview.

“Because whoever comes here, sends this message to those waiting,” Meimarakis told Star channel.

READ: Clashes on Lesbos as Britain, France pledge to take migrants

More than 230,000 people have landed on Greece’s shores this year, mostly refugees from wars and violence in Syria, Iraq and other Middle East or Asian countries.

Greek authorities have been overwhelmed by the influx and with few reception facilities set up, many refugee and migrant families have been sleeping outdoors, with minimal access to sanitation and medical care.

READ: Greek island at ‘breaking point’ amid spike in migrant arrivals

Greece’s acting migration minister on Monday said the island of Lesbos was “on the verge of explosion” with over 15,000 mainly Syrian refugees waiting to be registered for onward travel to Athens.

On Monday night, police struggled to control a crowd of around 2,500 waiting to board a government-chartered ship to the capital.

The dozen or so riot police and coastguard members seemed woefully ill-equipped to contain the crowds, screaming “Keep back” as the migrants surged forward, desperate to board the ship and continue their journey.

Meimarakis, whose New Democracy party is running neck-and-neck with the leftist Syriza party in polls ahead of the September 20 election, drew a distinction between economic migrants and refugees.

While advocating a tougher approach on people fleeing poverty he said people fleeing war should be facilitated in reaching their chosen destination in Europe.

He also pushed for a harder stance on people-smugglers.

New Democracy governed until January, when Alexis Tsipras’s Syriza swept to power on an anti-austerity platform.

Under Tsipras’s predecessor Antonis Samaras, Greece took a tough line on migration, rounding up refugees and migrants in detention camps.

READ: Greece’s Tsipras resigns, calls snap polls to beat party revolt

That policy was relaxed when Tsipras took office but his government was brought down by an internal revolt over the country’s new EU-IMF bailout last month, triggering fresh elections.