“In refugee camps, large NGOs leave when the media arrives”
- Migrants and refugees are crowded in Idomeni (border crossing between Greece and Macedonia), while camps on the island of Lesbos have become detention centres. The European Union has its doors closed and some 50,000 people are in Greece in a situation where they cannot go any further. The Pamplona photographer Dabid Sánchez and the Madrid journalist Laura Vera have witnessed the situation directly.
How is the reception of ships arriving in Lesbos organised?
Laura Vera: Before the arrival of the Catalan rescuers of Proactiva, the boats arrived without heading to places of difficult access, to dangerous areas between rocks. Since there are first responders, ships are towed to the coast.
Dabid Sánchez: The work of these Catalans is vital, the number of migrant deaths has been greatly reduced. They have been around since October, when the massive arrival of boats began. First two Proactive members came and stayed there for 15 days, until the money was exhausted. Lesbos' own neighbours picked up the money for the first responders to stay.
It is striking that in one of the most important issues in Europe there are no official institutions in the arrival of refugees.
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: There are no official bodies in either Lesbos or Idomeni. The only ones we have seen working are the Médecins Sans Frontières, and especially the volunteers from Greece and abroad. We have read the Unhcr logo in several tents, but there is no trace of its workers.
L. Vera: Large NGOs come out when the media comes to make statements.
And what have you seen in Idomeni?
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: Idomeni is a train station, surrounded by growing fields. The only protest that migrants can make is to cut off the train, through which a train loaded with cereals passes every day. The station is a great sea full of tents.
L. Vera: From Lesbos, refugees are transferred by ferry to Athens, where they stay in Athens since Wednesday. And then they look for a way to get on the capital. So far they have travelled to Macedonia, because they want to go to Sweden or Germany on the Balkans route. They do not want to stay in Greece, because the situation is not easy either.
Is there a difference in the treatment of migrants?
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: On the first day we arrived at Idomeni, only the Syrians could pass by and the Afghans or Iraqis could not. On the second day there were also Syrians, but only in areas like Aleppo. The Homs had no right to pass, claiming that there was no conflict at the time. The number of people crossing the border each day was declining.
L. Vera: But they haven't lost hope to enter. Over 10,000 people are in Idomeni, and they are convinced that they cannot remain in this situation for a long time. That's why they don't move from their place. They make long tails and eat and sleep there so as not to lose their turn. They can stay for more than ten days without moving from the line.
What is the coexistence of refugees from different backgrounds?
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: In Idomeni they are organized by countries. Elsewhere, such as the Athens Piraeus, there has been a fight between Syrians and Afghans that has ended with 1-O. The Algerians and the Moroccans are a little further away, as they have no chance of entering the area.
L. Vera: In Idomeni we have hardly seen fights. But also the few organisations that work in the country make distinctions and only provide assistance to those that are registered. If a citizen of Afghanistan, SOMALIA or Algeria was going to ask for food, the Greek Red Cross would deny him the food bag because he was not registered.
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: Migrants do not understand the reasons for separation. The Iraqis and the Afghans told us that they have been in war for years. In Idomeni there are also Palestinians from the Gaza line. Or the Kurds in Turkey ... And now they also want to stop and leave the oppressed Kurds in Turkey in the hands of their enemies!
Do the Mafias take advantage of the need for migrants?
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: The amount is EUR 800-2,000 to travel from Turkey to Lesbos, on a boat that carries between 15 and 20 passengers, and in which some 70 or 80 people are eventually boarded. Refugees are hiring the entire journey that will take them to Germany in Turkey, in exchange for an amount of EUR 12,000. But the business doesn't do it alone, taxi drivers also have benefits. We had trouble getting some refugees on the road and helping us by car, the taxi drivers told us they were going to report for illegal traffic.
In what spirit do the refugees who have seen in Lesbos arrive in Idomeni?
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: In Lesbos or Idomeni, the faces are very different. They arrived in Lesbos cheerfully, after one of the hardest stages. Idomeni's face overshadowed them.
L. Vera: It also has to do with the place. The worst of idomenis rain: they are wet with the wood with which they heat up, put water in the tents, fill their clothes... Living in this situation is very hard anímically. In addition, there are a lot of people who are amputated, or who are moving in a wheelchair, and it's almost impossible for them to move in the mud.
How is the Greek Government responding?
L. Vera: The situation has overwhelmed them. More than the government, it is civil society that is responding. It is they who give the basic aid.
"Wow, sir!" Sánchez: There are many refugees in Athens and there are only volunteers in Piraeus, there are no government representatives. Refugees from Greece have been welcomed thanks to the organization of the general population.
The victims created by the IAP are not only functionalized teachers thanks to the stabilization process brought about by the IAP Law, but much more. Some have been given some media visibility as a result of Steilas's appeal, but most of them are invisible. All the victims of the... [+]
In recent weeks we have been reading "proposals" for the recovery of the railway line Castec-Soria and the maintenance of the Tudela train station in its current location, or for the construction of a new high-speed station outside the urban area with the excuse of the supposed... [+]
Year of War, year of lie!
That is what the phrase says, and that is what reality confirms.
Given the situation of war in the world and in Europe, its constant upturn and the possible consequences that this has had and will have in Euskal Herria, last December several citizens... [+]
The restoration of the natural characteristics of the beach of Waukee began three decades ago and continues without interruption in the staged restoration to counterclockwork.
Samuel (Bizkaia) is an exceptional space, very significant from the natural and social point of view... [+]
After so many years of struggle for it, 34 years, precisely, we are very pleased with the decision taken a few days ago, on 28 December, Innocent Day, in Pamplona, at the assembly organized by the International Federation of Basque Ball. Well, from now on we will have the... [+]
Jar gaitezen 2025erako proposamen politiko gisa, Espainiako Auzitegi Kolonialaren (AN) epai guztiak berrikusten hasteko eta makila bakoitzak bere belari eusteko.
Unionismoarekin lerrokatutako alderdi, sindikatu eta gizarte-erakunde gehienek, eta ez bakarrik horrela... [+]
