In 2015, 856,000 people passed through the Greek islands, and in 2017 and 2018 only just under 30 thousand (according to UNHCR). But 2019 brought already a growth – over 60,000 newcomers. Today, boats coming to Greek beaches are back again, and practice shows that you can get stuck in Lesbos for a good few years. Nikos and Katerina run a small restaurant on the island, where every refugee can feel at home and eat a meal for free.
22.07.2021
“In Nigeria I was a metalworker, here I am nobody,” says John, a resident of one of the tents in the camp on the Greek island of Lesbos.
“I have travelled all over the world with my artworks, organizing exhibitions in the United States and in many European capitals. I also visited Krakow once. To where would I like to return? Most of all to Nigeria, to my home, but it is impossible,” he explains, completely resigned. He invites us to sit in front of the tent where he lives with his wife and a-few-month-old baby. When Ola, the doctor joining us on our mission in the camp, examines the child, John tries to host us by organising a few plastic chairs and a stool. He hurriedly tidies up a pile of various items, some of them broken and useless at first glance, but that’s all they have. They have been collecting them for the past months. “During the winter everything was lacking here. With difficulty we managed to find some wooden pallets and made them into a floor in the tent so that we would not have to sleep in the huge puddle which formed in the middle of the tent every time it rained,” he explains, trying to clarify at the same time why there is a pile of all sorts of objects in front of his tent: these might also be of use in a difficult moment.
John’s baby son has been waking up crying at night for several days. His mother suspects that something is wrong with the child’s tummy. The parents are grateful that we want to help and that we found them ourselves. John tells us how they ended up here, how by fleeing they saved their lives and at the same time lost everything else that was important to them.
“My job gave me many opportunities. I lost everything when my government forced me to flee. I do not blame Europe for receiving me very differently from the way I used to be welcomed. I blame my country’s authorities because they took away my dignity, my opportunities and my future.”
Last year alone, nearly 170 000 Nigerians and almost 10 million people from other countries shared John’s fate, having been forced to flee their homes because of conflict and violence. They used to be teachers, students, farmers, pharmacists, mechanics, artists, scientists, hairdressers etc. Today they are simply referred to as refugees. “This is very hurtful to us,” says John.
Together with you we are reaching out to them. Our goal is to restore their dignity. Visit GoodWorks 24/7 and donate at least a hot meal or health care package to people who have lost everything in life.
20.06.2024
A refugee I am Forced to flee, I become someone I am not These few lines from a Lao Che song have been on my mind all morning. The World Refugee Day, which we celebrate today, could easily be called World Day of Helplessness, Lack of Solidarity, Fences, Barriers, and Lack of Hospitality. “In Nigeria, […]
27.08.2023
The unpaved road stretches for kilometres and winds down the mountainous slopes. It cuts through bone-dry pine forests. From here to Mitylena, the island’s capital, it is more than 40 kilometres. To any sign of civilisation – more than 10. Out of sight, out of mind of all outsiders, a gigantic new refugee camp is […]
14.08.2023
Onur was a baker in Kurdistan. He is not afraid of any job. Stately, broad-shouldered, hands like vices. They have strength and feel. He arrived in Lesbos eight years ago. Abdul got off the boat on a Greek beach a year later. In Syria, he was a mechanic. He has fixed up his decrepit old […]
