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The police asked them to get out of the car and told them 'Here no asylum, you have to go'

Date & Time 2017-08-30
Location Zagreb, Croatia
Reported by No Name Kitchen
Coordinates 45.15116071, 19.16964537
Pushback from Croatia
Pushback to Serbia
Taken to a police station yes
Minors involved no
WLTI* involved no
Men involved no
Age unknown
Group size 6
Countries of origin Afghanistan, Iraq
Treatment at police station or other place of detention
Overall number of policemen and policewomen involved unknown
Violence used no violence used
Police involved

On August 30th, in Zagreb, the interviewee, an 18 years-old boy from Afghanistan called the UNHCR. He gave them information about him, such as his nationality, the day he arrived in Croatia, and his geo-localisation. They told him that a police car would pick him up and bring him to the police station, to start the asylum procedure.

At the police station he explained his situation, that he arrived in Zagreb after a 9-day trip through the forrest, and that he wanted to ask for asylum and be placed in an open camp. The police explained to him that he first had to spend 5 days in a closed camp, before going to the open one.

Thinking he was going to a closed Croatian camp, he was put in a large car, which included other people-on-the-move, and they left the police station. The group included him, another Afghan and a family with children from Iraq.

After 4 hours of driving they arrived at the Serbian border. The police asked them to get out of the car and told them “Here no asylum, you have to go.” They were forced to cross the border into Serbia.