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.
08.12.2021
We first met Rahimi in July this year. She was living in a completely different place in the camp and under different conditions. However, her situation had not changed. Rahimi has been stuck in the camp for months. Thanks to your support, however, she is not losing hope. A few days ago she met with Pope Francis.
Our meetings with the camp residents usually look very similar. When we meet them for the first time, they are distrustful, they do not believe that we can offer them anything. It is only when we come back again, bring what they have asked for, that they see that we keep our word. In July, Rahimi asked us for a pram. She was in the final month of her pregnancy. She had nothing for the baby that she was about to bring into the world. The next day we came back to her with a new pram, which she still uses today.
In October, we found an empty field where her tent had stood. All the refugees were moved to more comfortable containers in a different part of the camp. It was this part of Moria 2.0 that Pope Francis saw on Sunday. Here he met with the authorities and a select delegation of refugees. Volunteers and organisations that provide daily relief to the camp’s residents – providing basic assistance, supplementing inadequate camp rations, providing medicines, warm blankets and clothing – were not allowed through.
It is not always easy to understand the decisions of the authorities. Nor does Rahimi understand the drawn-out asylum procedures and the increasing number of rejected applications for international refuge. She is happy that she met Francis, that he blessed her son. When she sees us, she throws herself into our arms. She knows that she has friends in this world – people who wish her well. She also knows that all of them, including Pope Francis, are unable to change the rules of this world. Nevertheless, she is grateful for every small gesture that restores her dignity. For not being alone. For having you!
Do not forget the people of Moria. Winter has come here in full force. Intense rainfall and wind are presenting the refugees with further difficulties to overcome. Let us not be indifferent. GoodWorks 24/7 is the best place to do something good in a matter of minutes, to reach out to people with a warm meal or whatever they need at the moment.
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 […]
