The French foreign minister on Monday criticised Hungary for its move to erect a fence on its border to stop people as Germany and Britain joined in to call for action to defend the "dignity" of refugees ahead of fresh emergency talks on September 14.
The three Western European nations have pressed for better processing of refugees arriving in southern Europe, as countries such as Greece, Italy, and Hungary have struggled to cope with the influx of refugees. Some 300,000 people have crossed this year alone.
In an interview with French radio on Sunday, Laurent Fabius, the French foreign minister, said the measure was "extremely harsh. Hungary is part of Europe, which has values, and we do not respect those values by putting up fences that we wouldn't even use for animals".
Razor-wire fencing
The interior ministers of France, the UK, and Germany, stressed the need to set up "hot spots" in Greece and Italy by the year's end to ensure refugees are fingerprinted and registered, allowing authorities to quickly identify those in need of protection.
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| The French foreign minister on Monday criticised Hungary for its move to erect a fence on its border to stop people |
Hungary later on Sunday lashed out at Fabius, accusing him of "shocking and groundless judgements".
Many refugees say the journey to Serbia had been relatively problem free, they do, however, fear what awaits them at the Hungarian border.
"Other people who went ahead of us were told by Hungarian officials that if they didn't give a fingerprint, they would be hit and thrown in jail. Now we are scared to go to Hungary," said Lokman, a Syrian refugee.
Source: Agencies
