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LESVOS， Greece， March 16 (Xinhua) -- EU officials on Thursday hailed the progress achieved in dealing with the refugee influx over the past year.


Ahead of the first anniversary of the signing of the EU-Turkey agreement to stem the refugee-migrant flows to Europe， European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos， Maltese Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela and Greek Migration Policy Minister Yannis Mouzalas visited Lesvos island to assess the situation at the frontline.


During a tour at refugee accommodation facilities on the Aegean Sea island， which received half a million people since 2015， officials said no island or state can cope with the crisis alone， calling on the international community to extend more aid.


"Proof of the successful implementation of the EU-Turkey statement is the comparison with the situation until last year. Instead of the about 10，000 migrants a day crossing the Aegean， we now receive on average 40-50 people a day. The number of deaths has sharply decreased，" Avramopoulos told media.


"We do not want to go back to Turkey， but continue our journey to Europe，" two Afghan women told Abela at the refugee camp of Kara Tepe， which currently hosts about 1，000 refugees and migrants， including 431 Afghans， 200 Syrians and 174 Iraqis.


Following the closure of the Balkan route to central Europe a year ago and the launch of the EU-Turkey deal， about 62，000 people have been stranded in Greece， including 3，418 on Lesvos， according to local police.


Under last year's agreement， all new arrivals must remain on the Aegean Sea islands until their asylum bids are assessed. Those non eligible for asylum are returned to Turkey.


Due to a lack of sufficient asylum service experts and a slow pace of decision-making， it takes up to five months to process each case. As a result， hotspots are overflowing.


The facilities on the islands were built to accommodate about half of the current populace. The situation has improved lately and people have been transferred from tents to upgraded containers， but problems remain， according to Greek and foreign officials.


"Over the past two months， there are 290 prefabricated small homes housing refugee and migrant families，" the camp's administrator Stavros Miroyiannis told Xinhua.


The camp's residents can now attend foreign languages classes， sports training programs and cultural events.


Despite the debt crisis， Greece is fulfilling its humanitarian obligations to assist the refugees， Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos stressed on Thursday.


His statement came as he welcomed the deputy director general of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Laura Thompson in Athens. Both officials underlined the need for further support from the international community to the refugees.




BEIJING， Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Archives and witness statements have indicated that Taiwan's "February 28 Uprising" had nothing to do with "Taiwan independence".


Tuesday marks the 70th anniversary of the uprising.


Some witnesses recalled the occasion， saying that there were no slogans or leaflets advocating "Taiwan independence" during the campaign， and most Taiwan people believed that ideas advocating "Taiwan independence" are false and absurd.


"What the Taiwan people are seeking is local autonomy， rather than separating from the motherland，" Li Wei-kuang， head of a Taiwan people association in Shanghai， was quoted by archives as saying.


As "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces described the uprising as a conflict between provinces， Li recalled that people in Taiwan were not against people from other provinces， but only hoped to seek their help and cooperate with them.


On Feb. 28， 1947， a Kuomintang (KMT) party enforcement team assaulted a woman near Taipei railway station as she was selling contraband cigarettes.


The incident caused a bloody confrontation between Taiwan civilians and the KMT authorities， which developed into an island-wide movement against the despotic rule of the KMT.


The uprising was a spontaneous mass movement of the people of Taiwan for democracy and autonomy， but some people in Taiwan interpret the uprising as a "Taiwan independence" movement， completely distorting the true story.


An Fengshan， spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council， told a press conference last month that "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces twisted the uprising for their own gain， adding that their intentions are despicable.


The Taiwan people have a glorious tradition of patriotism， and participants of the uprising made enormous contributions to territorial integrity.


Japanese organizers of this month's Asian Winter Games have changed the accommodation for Chinese and South Korean athletes after a row over a hotelier's inflammatory war book Adidas Superstar Argento Saldi , officials and local media said Tuesday.


The Tokyo-based APA hotel group and other hotels will welcome some 2 Adidas Superstar Oro Saldi ,300 athletes and supporters from more than 30 countries to Sapporo for the February 19-26 Games.


But APA Adidas Superstar Pride Pack Saldi , one of Japan's largest hotel chains Adidas Superstar 2 Saldi , has triggered an angry backlash from China for a book written by APA's chief executive and placed in guest rooms Adidas Superstar Slip On Saldi , which claims that the infamous 1937 Nanjing Massacre committed by Japanese troops was a "fabrication."


"Considering an instruction from the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and other factors Adidas Superstar Fiori Saldi , we have decided that the Chinese and South Korean delegations will not stay at APA hotels Adidas Supercolor Saldi ," a Japanese official of the organizing committee told AFP.


Local media said the two delegations were originally scheduled to stay at APA hotels Adidas Superstar Foundation Saldi , but the committee official declined to confirm this.


Some 230 Chinese and a similar number of South Koreans are being found new accommodations.


The APA chain insisted it would not remove.