Eida was born 1890, she is Syrian and all her children and grandchildren are in Germany. When they left she didn’t want to go and was taken care by a family in Kobane. When the family decided to go also Eida had no one anymore and decided to follow. After many adventures they arrived in Lesvos and stayed for 1 month in Moria Hotspot without any NGO organizing housing or care for the 126 year old lady. After they finally got their papers they travelled all together to Athens and went to a hotel. The wife and mother of the 4 small kids is giving birth these days and the Noborders Athens group supports the family and asks for financial support to manage to house this unbelievable travel group. Again it is activists that manage to show respect to fleeing people. One of the oldest women in this world fleeing, we all have to support her now!
Continue reading 126-year old woman arrived on Lesvos – fleeing to join her children and grandchildren in Germany→
A talk with a friend from Ethiopia on Lesbos Island…
If you want to run away and you are black they see you from far, White people they can run. Me sometimes i ask where can I get this white skin? For white people it is easy to run away.
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“I am 21 years old. I come from West Ethiopia. I belong to the Oromo. The Oromo are a very big tribe, which inhibits a very rich part of country in the country. This is why we have so many problems.
Before I left I was a student in Adis Abeba and I also used to run. I have a good time: 10 kilometers I used to finish in 33’.
In my university they killed many Oromo students. They used to pick… well, they know us by our traditional names. My name is an Oromo name. They used to pick up all clever students from Oromo tribe and said they wanted to give us money and teach us to teach Oromo people to change their mind. They wanted us to make our people accept to give our land away. They wanted to force us to go and change them. We said: No! We can not do that. We can not change the rules. Continue reading “My shoes burned in Moria. Before my shoes burned I used to run.”→
Just before I went on my trip to Mytilene I saw in Germany the news about refugees in Greece. On TV it was reported on how aggressive and angry the refugees were in Greece (Mytilene). After I saw these news in Germany about the refugees I started to think and worry a bit. Would it all go alright? Would it be right to travel to Mytilene and help the people who require support? Would I endanger myself or not? These questions formed in my mind. I travelled nonetheless as I had already booked my ticket and had promised the group that I would come and participate.
When our ship dropped the anchor in the harbour of Mytilene, I saw from above used rubber vessels and many people (men, women, and children) who did not look well and who had to wait in the heat for their registration. When we went to our camping site (Charamida), somewhere far away from the harbour and the city, we saw families and men, who were lying on the street as they could not walk anymore and were tired. We stopped and gave them water and information. We then quickly went to our camp and unloaded our car. When the cars were empty we drove back to bring the refugees to the harbour to register.
During our journey back to the borders we had to witness for two weeks the situation for newly arrived refugees in Lesvos getting worse day by day.
More and more children, mothers, fathers and grandparents are risking their lives by crossing the Aegean sea.
After arriving and being thankful for surviving they are faced with the unbearable situation in Lesvos.
Walking in the sun for 2 – 68 km, waiting in dirty parking lots, at the port, in makeshift refugee camps like Kara Tepe and outside and inside the Detention center of Moria and elsewhere.
The Situation at other European arrival and transit points like Kos or Idomeni is not better.
It is time for the competent authorities of the European Union to provide for Ferries transporting refugees to Europe in a respectful and save way. Freedom of Movement for everybody!
It was a great journey back to the border 2015. And I got a lot of experience and we did so much together.
It was my dream to help those people that they don’t have any support and are leaving their country because of some problem. All of my us supported each other so we could do the best job possible.
We’re strong together and able to climb every high wall or fence.
Photos by Marios Lolos
