More migrant action needed
Greece has to take the initiative in dealing with the influx of migrants from Asian countries because guarding borders and offering incentives for repatriation are not enough, according to a study made public yesterday by a Stockholm-based research institute. The Institute for International Economic Studies (IIES) recommended that Greece take an active role at a European Union level to promote measures which will help the smoother integration of migrants, such as combating the inequalities between immigrants and locals. IIES also found that Greeks have little knowledge of the cultures, customs, religions and languages of Asian migrants even though some 50,000 Pakistanis, 20,000 Chinese, 20,000 Filipinos, 15,000 Indians and 12,000 Bangladeshis – among others – live in the country. The head of the IEES Asia Unit, Plamen Tonchev, said at a conference in Athens yesterday that the Chinese and Filipino communities in Greece appear to be the best organized and most affluent.
