Recent refugee movements and the response of the Islamic Community in Croatia

Europska unija je u ožujku 2016. odlučila implementirati mjere zatvaranja humanitarnog koridora duž čitave Istočnomediteranske i Balkanske rute. Tijekom sedam mjeseci (rujan 2015. – travanj 2016.) hrvatski je teritorij bio područje tranzita za mnoge izbjeglice i druge prisilne migrante. U tom su razdoblju brojne nacionalne i međunarodne organizacije civilnog društva, ali jednako tako i vjerske zajednice te karitativno-humanitarne organizacije, bile uključene u pružanje pomoći i podrške izbjeglicama. Ovaj rad u osnovnim crtama daje sažeti prikaz recentne problematike nastanka Balkanskog koridora te kretanja izbjeglica i drugih prisilnih migranata njime. U središtu pozornosti su aktivnosti Islamske zajednice u Hrvatskoj vezane uz pružanje pomoći i podrške izbjeglicama na hrvatskoj dionici Balkanskog koridora, u prihvatno-tranzitnim centrima u Opatovcu i Slavonskom Brodu, kao i promišljanja sugovornika o ulozi Islamske zajednice i islama kao religije u kontekstu izbjeglištva i pružanja pomoći raseljenima u svijetu. Kroz intervjue s predstavnicima vjersko-karitativnih organizacija prezentiramo njihove institucionalne odgovore na ovaj fenomen te analiziramo logističke kapacitete Islamske zajednice u Hrvatskoj kod pomaganja izbjeglicama. Zaključujemo da u nošenju s izazovima prihvata i integracije izbjeglica u društvo državni i civilni akteri, vjerske zajednice i vjersko-karitativne organizacije igraju neizostavnu ulogu.In March 2016 the European Union decided to implement measures of closing humanitarian corridor along the Eastern Mediterranean and the Balkan route. During seven months in which the Croatian territory was a transit area for many refugees and other forced migrants, numerous national and international civil society organizations, altogether with religious communities and charitable and humanitarian organizations have been involved in providing help and assistance to refugees. This paper gives a brief overview of emergence of the Balkan Corridor and refugees and other forced migrants mobility through it. The focus is on the activities of the Islamic Community in Croatia in regards to provision of help and assistance to refugees on Croatian part of the Balkan Corridor, within the reception and transit centres in Opatovac and Slavonski Brod, as well as discussing the role of the Islamic Community and Islam as a religion on the topic of refugees and need for helping the displaced population in the world. Through interviews with representatives of religious and charitable organizations we present their institutional answers on this phenomenon and we analyse its logistical capacities of some members of the Islamic Community in Croatia in assisting refugees. We conclude that in handling the challenges of reception and integration of refugees into society state and civil actors, religious communities and religious and charitable organizations would have an indispensable role