Movement Ban Worsens Migrants’ Plight in Serbia, Bosnia

"Since the crisis began, for almost a month, access has been denied to anyone providing psychological, legal or other assistance, so they have no activities and are locked in the camps," Djurovic told BIRN.

Instead, the camp inmates "receive information through social networks and by phone contact with some of us", he added.

Media reports say at least two violent incidents have occurred in the last few days among migrants and asylum-seekers in centres in Serbia, one in Krnjaca and the other in Obrenovac, both in the wider area of Belgrade. Reports said police and the army had to intervene to calm things down.

"The problem here is that these people have been quarantined for 24 hours a day for almost a month now," Djurovic told BIRN. "These people are completely shut inside in all the centres … and they have needs that can hardly be met in this way, so it causes a lot of fear and … affects their psycho-physical condition," he added.

A group of migrants rest at the Serbian village of Kelebia, bordering Hungary. Photo: EPA-EFE/ZOLTAN BALOGH HUNGARY OUT.

The number of people affected by the quarantine measures in camps in Serbia is not small. On April 4, Serbia's Commissariat for Refugees and Migrants said the camps in Serbia hosted a total of 8,703 persons.

Djurovic said the measures imposed or recommended for Serbian citizens, especially when it comes to social distancing, were clearly not being applied to migrants and asylum-seekers cooped up in close proximity to one another in camps.

"This is a group that is completely sidelined. Measures are being implemented for them that at first glance are the opposite of what our citizens are told, like [the need for] social distancing," he said.

"Everyone is put in one...