Invisibility at the border: the case of migrants on the Evros/Meriç river

Abstract

This MA thesis aims to provide an insight into the migratory situation at the land border between Greece and Turkey, on the Evros/Meriç river since the establishment of the EU-Turkey deal in 2016 to the Evros events in 2020. Greece, Turkey and the EU seem to strategically exploit this area as a buffer zone to silently manage unwanted migratory flows. The weaponization of the river Evros/Meriç as a deterrent, the suspension of human rights and the creation of a state of exception have produced a dangerous border, where migrants and their experiences are “invisibilized”. As a matter of fact, many are the NGOs that have denounced the pushbacks and ill-treatment of migrants at this border, investigation nevertheless seems to disappear. The thesis will be based on quantitative data, research papers and official data of the different actors. It will be divided into five parts, the first and the last being the introduction and the conclusions. The first chapter will present the history and the overall situation of the Evros river from 2016 with the EU-Turkey Deal until the aftermath of the Evros events of 2020. The second chapter will deal with the different narratives of refugees and of the Evros situation. The third and last chapter will discuss the issue of violation of human and refugee rights, while addressing the weaponization of refugees and the river as political means.