Last Stop: Erding

My last stop on the journey from Lesbos to Germany was at the camp at Erding Airforce Base near Munich.

Located about forty minutes from the city it's a very isolated spot, with the large tents, that collectively could accommodate perhaps 5,000 people, ringed by fences and fields.

The site is run by the Red Cross and I was told that the refugees here are exclusively from Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq. They only stay for about 24 hours after arriving from Austria before the German Government distributes them to smaller camps across the country.

Germans I spoke to seemed proud of their country's extraordinary efforts, having taken in about 1 million refugees, but also concerned that the rest of Europe isn't sharing the burden. They say that if other countries don't step up soon then the mood in Germany could quickly change. It's clear that if the German border was closed then the entire route across the Balkans would very quickly collapse and be overwhelmed.

It's now time for the UK to step up and share this responsibility before such a catastrophe is allowed to happen.

Happy to be in German Classes

Sulaiman, Kiarash and Ahmad are all 16 and have been at the Bayernkaserne refugee camp, a former barracks in northern Munich, for the last month.

Sulaiman and Ahmad are Afghan, whilst Kiarash is from Iran, and they're funny and charming guys who travelled independently via Turkey and Lesbos.

I asked them how the camp was. "It's great" Sulaiman replied "it's not cold and we all get our own bed.They have grouped us by nationality, the Afghans in one place and the Syrians in another, and we're allowed to go out the camp during the day. We are getting lessons in German so we are not bored. And I am not having to be afraid of suicide bombers here. "

Ahmad and Kiarash have been told they will be resettled in a more permanent camp on Wednesday. "We don't know where yet, it's somewhere in the forest" Ahmad told me.

Also at the camp I met lots of other nationalities, including Somalis, Malians and Gambians who had made the journey through Libya and across the Mediterranean to Italy. Many people I met were just teenagers.

Mahmoud and Family Arrive in Germany

Mahmoud, who is from Afghanistan and who we met in Macedonia and then again in Belgrade, has made it safely to Germany with his family after travelling through Croatia, Slovenia and Austria.

He sent me a photo of the tent at the large refugee camp in Erding near Munich where he was staying. "It's great to finally arrive" he told me "but it is very cold and there are so many people here".

He and his family are now heading up to Berlin by bus where they have friends.

A Deadly Crossing over Treacherous Water

Sulieman last saw his wife Tamanna, a teacher also from Afghanistan, two months ago on the boat from Turkey to Lesbos, moments before it broke apart underneath them. She was pregnant with their first child.

After trying twice to cross the Turkish border with Bulgaria, and getting arrested each time, they had wanted to go home, but having sold all their possessions and nearly bankrupted themselves to pay the smugglers, they had no choice but to continue. The smugglers had told them the land crossing would be easy and, after that failed, they promised the journey across the water would be in a ferry. 

In the end, over forty of them were packed into a small and decaying fishing boat. As the boat pushed off, the smuggler jumped out of the boat and waded back to the shore, leaving the refugees to fend for themselves at night in the choppy water.

After an hour they realised they were lost and, with waves coming over the bow, they tried to turn the boat. It split apart and plunged them into the water beneath. Sulieman was separated from his family in the chaos and, after three hours, he was rescued along with some other members of his extended family. He identified the bodies of his wife’s father, mother and sister at the morgue the next day. His wife is still missing and he hopes she might be amongst the 11 people that he heard were rescued and taken to Greece, but he is stuck in Turkey and he can’t find her.

Also on the boat was Mujtaba, whose wife and two small children are also missing. 23 people on the boat survived and 12 died that night. The whereabouts of the rest are unknown.

Whilst the conditions for refugees travelling between Lesbos and Germany might have improved, the boat journey from Turkey to Greece continues to be deadly. The boats are weak and normally heavily overcrowded, usually piloted by one of the refugees themselves. The boats we saw on Lesbos were all shallow inflatable rafts rather than boats. They are forced to pay criminal smugglers hundreds, sometimes thousands, of euros each to take the journey. Their possessions, often all that remains of their family history, are routinely thrown overboard. Many of the lifejackets are reportedly fake. Drowning and hypothermia remain serious risks, especially for the many young children who take the crossing.

Turkey has a land border with Greece, and also an airport. Regular ferries do the journey safely every day. All of these options are barred to refugees however. This unnecessary Russian roulette is both shameful and unnecessary. All of us in Europe need to take a stand and insist that a humane alternative be provided to these families that are fleeing from violence back home.

Mehdi the Documentary Film Maker

Mehdi, a documentary film maker from Tehran, has been at the Ferry Dusika Stadium now for two months. He’s waiting for his asylum claim to be dealt with, trying in the meantime to learn German. 

When forced to leave Iran, Mehdi chose to come to Vienna as the cultural and artistic centre of Europe. His face lit up as he told us of the magnificent Viennese conservatoire and the classical music greats who originate from Vienna. “You must visit Karlsplatz” he insisted, “it’s really wonderful”.

Mehdi made the journey from Turkey, via Lesvos, through the Balkan states to Vienna before the cooperation between countries that we have witnessed existed. He recalls how, back then, police “treated us just like meat” and how they were forced to walk over 50km between countries. 

He was glad to hear how conditions for refugees have improved, though concerned that his fellow Iranians might no longer be able to cross the Macedonian border.

Sami in Vienna

We met Sami queuing for his monthly allowance outside the Ferry Dusika Stadium in Vienna, wearing just shorts and flip-flops in the freezing cold because he'd rushed out when his name was called.

Sami is from Logar Province in Afghanistan, where he worked as a translator for an American NGO working to reduce violence against women. He left when it became unsafe for him, travelling through Iran and Turkey.

"I was arrested after I arrived by boat on Chios for entering the country illegally, and spent 11 months in a Greek jail" he told me. "I was only released after Alexis Tsipras became Prime Minister and changed this law."

He's been in Austria for three months waiting for his asylum claim to be processed. He wanted to go to the UK because he speaks perfect English and all of his extended family are there, but was warned by friends that the British don't accept any refugees, so chose a country where he'd have a better chance of being accepted.

His application is made harder because he destroyed his Afghan passport in Turkey after being told that he'd be immediately deported if he was found in Greece with it. Misinformation like this is a major problem for the refugees.

Stadium in Vienna

Ferry Dusika Stadium in Vienna has recently been turned into a refugee centre for those seeking asylum in Austria.

About 320 people, mainly Afghans, Iranians and Syrians, have been there for the last few months - down from an overcrowded 750 several weeks ago. There are two halls, one for single men and one for families and the elderly.

Conditions seemed okay with heating, food and medical support. An Austrian medical volunteer we met was frustrated with the delays however. "These people have been here for months and by law they should already have a proper house and a health insurance card. The bureaucracy is overwhelmed and too slow".

We met Abu Tahir outside as he received the back pay of his monthly allowance, which we think is €40 per month - known as the joker of the camp he was pretending to give his money away and said he was off to buy cigars. The reality however is that although the refugees are free to leave the stadium they can't afford to, with many referring to the €103 fine that some had received for taking public transport without a ticket - which one person described as the "death penalty" before quickly correcting himself to say "penalty fare".

Medics in Dobova

Dr Jan is leading a team from his University in Slovakia that is running a clinic at the transit camp in Dobova.

He's an assistant professor in emergency medicine and general practice and his team are equipped for emergencies, with an ECG and ultrasound in their high-tech medical tent, but have mainly seen colds and other minor illnesses so far.

We were inspired that their university had found a way to help in this way. They need more doctors to volunteer so get in touch if you're interested in going out, they're a lovely group!

Edgard and his sidekick Dumbo

We met Edgard at Belgrade Station - “are you volunteers?” he asked emerging from the many refugees wearily filing off the overnight train. 

He is a Brazilian human rights lawyer who has given up his life in Sao Paulo to travel alongside the refugees from Turkey to Germany. “I want to understand this crisis from their perspective, to feel what it is like, so that I can help to find a solution” he explained. “Everybody I touch is a human - travelling through Europe is like a marathon for refugees, you can’t complete it without supporters along the way.” 

Edgard has some extraordinary stories from his trip. He relies on a cuddly Dumbo toy, which he carries with him everywhere, to help him look innocent and disappear from authorities and traffickers alike amongst a refugee crowd. In Serbia he was saved by a photo on his phone of him with Novak Djokovic, after his passport and a strip search failed to get him released from detention by the police. 

By walking across borders, taking long and unpredictable bus and train journeys, and often sleeping in minus temperatures, Edgard helps articulate the exhaustion and bewilderment felt by people following this route. “The most difficult thing of all”, he remarks, “is having all choice taken away from you. You feel like nothing. And it’s hard not to shout or get angry.”

Dobova Camp in Slovenia

The Dobova Camp, just inside the Slovenian border, is where refugees arrive by coach or train from Croatia.

We heard that just a couple of months ago the Croatian government was dropping off refugees by bus on the edge of their own border throughout the night, only pointing them in the direction of Slovenia and not warning the Slovenian government. They would have to cross through the fields and villages on foot on their own, and many would wade through the deep icy river because they didn't know about the nearby bridge. The Slovenian government had to deploy helicopters to try to find them.

Cooperation has now significantly improved however and refugees arrive at the train station at designated times. They're brought by local bus to Dobova where they receive food, heated shelters and medical care before swiftly departing on different buses to go to Austria. The camp is well staffed by civil volunteers who have now been directly employed by the government.

Barbed wire has been put across 140km of the border now, although many Slovenians oppose this and are decorating it with Christmas tinsel in protest. There's also a strong army and police presence, not just Slovenians but also Czechs, Austrians, Germans, Hungarians, Romanians and other nationalities who have provided extra manpower to help.

Rapid Transit on the Balkan Route

The train and bus system for refugees taking the Balkan Route is very efficient and we've found it hard to keep up with the refugees we've met on our journey.

At Šid, a town on the Serbian border with Croatia, trains and buses from camps near the Macedonian border in the south are timed to arrive just a few minutes before the train to Croatia leaves, so that refugees don't have to wait for long in the cold.

The Serb official at the Šid Transjt Camp forcefully told us "The Serbian Government is absolutely in charge here. The UNHCR, UNICEF and MSF are just minor partners". Those agencies clearly had a significant presence however. There were hot showers, supplies and medical teams there.

The Serbian Police were also present and prevented us from entering the camp. They told us that they recently caught smugglers trying to enter a nearby camp posing as humanitarian volunteers. If true, it's a reminder of how refugees need to be protected along their journey from people trying to take advantage of them.

There's no doubt that the camps along the route are increasingly professionalised and securitised, with independent volunteers finding it difficult to get permission to work at them.

Vladimir and the Belgrade Refugee Camp

Vladimir works for the Serbian Ministry for Refugees running the Krnjača camp in northern Belgrade.

The camp was built as worker housing over 50 years ago and is still used to house Kosovan and Croat refugees. There are about 100 others staying here at the moment, including two young Nigerian women who we met at the entrance coming back from the shops. Most of these people don't have papers allowing them to continue their journey as refugees, so it isn't clear what they will do next.

We weren't able to go inside but were told that there is no heating or hot water at the moment due to a cracked pipe.

Most refugees wouldn't come to this camp though but get a train directly out of Belgrade or, more often, bypass the city entirely.

On a lighter note - Refugee Couture

On a lighter note, and in honour of Jo Dunlop's Freetown Fashpack blog, which was an inspiration for ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬, we couldn't help commenting on this season's refugee couture which Rehan (from the last post) is sporting.

This currently includes striking red jackets from Coca Cola and some hardy and popular brown leather shoes donated by the Serbian Orthodox Church. 

You can often guess what route a refugee has come by from the clothing they have picked up along the journey.

Rohan from Afghanistan

We met Rehan at a drop-in centre in downtown Belgrade earlier today, where refugees can come for a hot drink, some warmer clothes and medical advice.

Rehan left Kunar Province in Afghanistan three months ago, where he had previously worked as an interpreter for the US army. 

I asked him why he'd left. "The US army base moved so it was no longer safe for me or my family, we were threatened by the Taliban" he said. "So I moved my family to Jalalabad where they should be safer and I am hoping to get to Sweden to find work. There is a US scheme for interpreters like me but it takes two years to apply and I wouldn't have lasted that long".

Reunited with Mahmoud & Family in Belgrad

We we reunited with Mahmoud and his family from Syria as we got off the overnight train from Macedonia to Belgrade - after a bus journey from inside the Serb border, where we left them yesterday, to Preševo where they registered with the government and bought their tickets for the train.

There were about 15 families on the train with us - mostly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan but also from Tunisia and other North African countries.

There wasn't much of a welcome for them at Belgrade station though - unlike other places we've been there were no agencies or volunteers to meet people and provide advice, food or other supplies. 

It was incredibly cold while we were waiting to catch the train ourselves so we can only imagine what these families are experiencing in the sub-zero temperatures. There was also no information available on where to go next or how to get there, leaving many confused and vulnerable to predatory taxi drivers.

Most refugees were planning to catch a train later today on to Croatia where we hope to catch up with them again.

Miles & Maja from Macedonian Red Cross

We met Maja and Milosh, a Macedonian paramedic and doctor, working for the Macedonian Red Cross at Tabanovste today. It was minus 6 degrees celcius when they started their shift this morning. 

They've been at the post for the last 4 months, treating respiratory tract infections, chronic cardiovascular conditions, and severe complications of uncontrolled diabetes, and even occasionally helping women in labour. Food poisoning and infected wounds are also common. They have the support of the hospital at Kumonovo to which they can refer patients for inpatient treatment, paid for by the Macedonian health system.

As the train pulled into the platform worried mothers brought small children with coughs, red cheeks and wide eyes to the tent. A husband brought his heavily pregnant wife. And old lady brought her limping husband - Milosh gently dressed his foot ulcers and checked his blood sugar. Maja prescribed a cuddly frog and some protein biscuits for another little girl - they seemed to do the trick. 

Faces relaxed as anxiety was relieved after seeing the medics, and people smiled outside the tent before beginning their 2km walk to the border. Many may not know when they'll be able to see a doctor again, but Milosh reassures them where necessary by writing them letters detailing his diagnosis and treatment plan for the MSF medics waiting at the next border. 

They enjoy their work, but are frustrated - the transitory nature of their patients prevent them from being able to help with serious conditions requiring daily medication. Giving nebulisers to a 2 month old with bronchiolitis in the freezing cold is not a simple task, and yet is only a temporary fix. Still though, sometimes just a kind word, a warm hand, and simple advice goes a long way. 

We take our hats off to you Milosh and Maja.

Mahmoud & Family from Syria

I met Mahmoud (centre) as his family got off the train at Tabanovtse transition camp with his mother, grandmother and brothers.

They are from Damascus and came via Turkey and Lesvos, heading to Germany. Mahmoud is a financial accountant with perfect English and is excited about being able to work again. 

I asked him why his family had left at this time. "My family home was completely destroyed three years ago, nothing was left"
he told me "and soon after that my older brother, who was an engineer, was abducted by the government one night and we haven't seen him since. Recently the government soldiers have been robbing and attacking people in their homes at night, it isn't safe".

Mahmoud's mother insisted on sharing their limited rations with me and wouldn't let me decline, so I accepted an orange soda from them. Despite the hard times, the deep generosity and warmth for which Syrians are known, remains.

Tabanovtse Transit Camp

Tabanovtse, on the northern border of Macedonia with Serbia, is one of several transit camps along the refugee route.

At the moment only refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan are allowed to cross the border from Greece into Macedonia, where they wait at a transit camp called Gevgelija to catch a special government train across the country to Tabanovtse. Others are classed economic migrants and sent back to Athens.

At this camp refugees are offered food, clothes, clean toilets, children's play areas, free wifi and phone charging stations and family reunion advice. Several thousand refugees pass through here each day and, although there are tents where several hundred can sleep, most depart within a few minutes to walk the two kilometre path into Serbia where they are put on buses to Belgrade.

Overall it was an impressive operation run by the Macedonian government with support from UNHCR, the Macedonian Red Cross and smaller NGOs. The EU has provided significant funding.

Re-Meeting Omar in Athens

We met up with Omar again when he arrived in Athens and were treated to a bit of an archeology lesson from him as we toured the city! He caught us up on what had happened since we last saw him.

After arriving in Athens by ferry he was met by an official and, along with two other families, taken to a hotel downtown.

"The hotel is great" he told us "I've got my own room and they provide free wifi and three meals a day." He'll now wait until his official interview, at which point he'll hopefully be transferred to another European country for resettlement. "I have no idea where I'll be sent but I feel sure I'll find a home soon" he said.

The majority of the people who make the same journey by boat to Lesvos aren't part of this scheme though - either because they're not eligible or because they want to choose which country to settle in - so are making the journey on their own in much worse conditions.

We felt pretty emotional when he came to the train station to see us off, as we make our own way up to Macedonia. He has a special place in our hearts and we look forward to following his progress. 

Update from the Tai Kwan Do Stadium in Athens

At the Tai Kwan Do Olympic Stadium in Athens today there are long queues of people returned by coach from the Macedonian border.

We met a group of young Moroccan men and some guys claiming to be Somali but who we think were Nigerian or Ghanaian. "We're economic migrants, we're in search of a better life, who wouldn't be" one said "and we don't mind where we end up. We'd like to go to Sweden or Norway maybe". One man said he'd made it into Macedonia but was arrested and beaten by the police there and returned to Greece.

We were told there are about 1500 people there, mostly Moroccans, Pakistanis, Iranians, Somalis and Nigerians. There were no Syrians, Iraqis or Afghans, who are being treated separately as refugees. 

Inside the stadium people are being offered food and medical care but everyone talked of the appalling sanitary conditions. Riot police were on standby but there were no signs of trouble yet and a huddle of international journalists were keeping a close eye on the situation from the gates.

Emergency Dental Clinic

This fantastic team of dentists perform tooth extractions and emergency dental care for refugees free-of-charge from their mobile clinic. Backed by their local church and a Christian NGO they are great examples of the effort that are being made by Greeks to help their many unexpected visitors.

It's time the rest of Europe stood beside them.

Afghans in Athens

We met Naqib and his extended family (including women and children) at Victoria Square in downtown Athens today, where hundreds of Afghan refugees gather every day to await buses to take them to a refugee camp before they continue their onward journey.

They left Kunduz Province about a month ago, travelling by car to Iran and then to Turkey before taking the boat to Lesvos. Within four hours they were on the overnight ferry to Athens.

"We're heading to Germany" he said "we're hoping to get the train to Macedonia tomorrow". We're hoping to make the same journey tomorrow but none of us know if it will be possible - most refugees are now being turned away from the Macedonian border, with the refugee camp there having been forcefully shut down yesterday. A convoy of 48 buses took the refugees there to a new camp at the Olympic Tai Kwan Do Stadium in Athens this morning. #Forgotten in Idomeni ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬

Life Jackets on Lesvos

Having left Lesvos for Athens this morning, one of our most enduring memories will be the discarded life jackets that are scattered on beaches, roads and fields across the island. Along with the wrecked inflatable boats they're a symbol of the one-way journey across the water and the risks people are having to take during their journey. ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬

Our Friend Omar

We met Omar at the Pikpa camp yesterday. Having arrived by boat from Turkey on Saturday he was already a central member of the volunteer team by the time we arrived. 

Omar was 16 and returning from high school when he was hit in the shoulder by a bullet shot from a government soldier, and then in the leg by a ricochet. His grandmother convinced him to leave in order to keep him safe, and he spent a year in Malaysia before visa issues forced him to move onto Turkey alone, working manual jobs so he could learn Turkish and get a job behind a bar. Tensions have increased recently in Turkey for Syrian refugees though, so he decided it was time to leave, even though he was convinced he wouldn't survive the boat journey across to Lesvos, so didn't buy the $50 life jacket.

Leaving at 3am from a Turkish beach, his small inflatable boat was filled with more and more refugee families. At 35 adults, he and another refugee insisted they stop adding more people. It was lucky he spoke Turkish. The captain was terrified, so Omar had work hard to calm him down and give him the confidence to navigate the choppy waves. Near the island the boat hit a rock and they had to swim
ashore and be rescued by volunteer lifeguards.

Omar registered with the Greek government on arrival and handed over his Syrian passport in return for asylum papers. We said goodbye to him tonight as he boarded the overnight ferry from Lesvos to Athens where his application will be processed and he'll be told which country he'll be sent to. "I'd like to go to France" he said "as I speak some French and there are opportunities there. I know there's no hope of getting to the UK". He doesn't think the war in Syria will ever end, especially now that Russia and the US have become involved.

Omar is an extraordinary and inspiring young man. At just twenty and with fluent English he is not just independent and courageous but also highly intelligent and deeply generous and compassionate to everyone else he meets on his travels. It will be Britain's loss of he never makes it to our shores as he has a lot to teach us. For now though, we just feel honoured to have him as our friend.

Unaccompanied Children - A Dilemma

Unaccompanied child refugees on Lesvos are a particular dilemma for the NGOs working here. Officially they should all become wards of the state, but that means handing them over into police detention. ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬

A Calm in the Storm

We met Elton surveying the water with binoculars, looking out for arriving boats. He's been out on Lesvos running a transition centre for arriving refugees (EuroRelief/Samaritan's Purse) since August, when he finished his job at a summer camp. The centre was hectic up to a few weeks ago but is empty at the moment. Elton explains "Since the Turkish government started increasing patrols near this stretch the boats have taken a longer route to the other side of the island, where there are fewer centres to receive them. They had 20 boats at the airport this morning." Elton is heading back to the US in a couple of weeks to finish his degree. ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬

Afghan Family on Arrival

Asad and his extended family arrived this morning by boat from Turkey, having left Afghanistan 2 weeks ago. They're drying their clothes and bags in the sun, and washing and reassuring their children at the MSF transit camp. "When can we go to to register? Do you know?" he asked us. "We're hoping to go to Belgium, my brother is there and says it's good" ‪#‎SearchingSafePassage‬

The Children on Lesvos

A striking feature of the refugees on Lesvos is the number of babies, young children and mothers that are making the journey. 

We heard good things about the secure centres for breastfeeding mothers that Save The Children have set up in some of the camps, for whom privacy can be hard to find.

Dmitri the Fisherman/Lifesaver

Dmitri is a local fisherman at Tsonia who regularly interrupts tending his nets to rescue boats that are in difficulty whilst making the journey from Turkey to Lesvos. He helps bring them safely to shore. "What choice do I have" he said "there are small children on those boats". Sadly this duty isn't new to him; in 2006 he often did the same thing for refugees fleeing the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Safe Passage - Pikpa Refugee Centre

Visited the Pikpa Lesvos camp this morning which is a refugee centre for vulnerable groups (such as the elderly) who can't currently continue their onward journey. So inspired by the tireless volunteers there who come from the island, Syria and all over the world.

Arrival on Lesvos

Arrived on Lesbos Island from Athens by ferry this morning with Chloe Baker to try to understand the journey that refugees are taking to cross our continent to find refuge.