India |
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The Netherlands |
Human rights interview
We chose to interview Joy’s mum, who helped out in a refugee’s camp last month. She came back as a changed person, because of what she had seen. In this interview I (Joy Schroevers) will ask her about the situations in such a camp and how the refugees react to certain things.
November 2015
“Hi Johanna. A while ago you helped out at a refugee camp in Middelburg.
Did you meet a lot of people and how did they look? What kind of emotions do they experience there, happiness, sadness, anger…?”
“Hi. Yes, as I work for the Zeeuws Museum. I have been asked if I wanted to volunteer at the entertainment / craft programma, which was organized by Kunsteducatie Walcheren.
My first shift there was on Friday afternoon. The people were very quiet, but they did look very sad, and absolutely not angry or aggressive.
In the room there were small groups of people, many women and children. There were games and toys, and a group of volunteers had even brought makeup and books about makeup where the children could choose a fancy makeup design for example. Boys and girls loved these activities, and there was much laughter. There was one child who had chosen a ghost makeup with scary black eyes.
A little boy taught me to play checkers the “Syrian way”, which was fun, as I don't speak Arab, and he didn't speak English. His father helped him.
There were also groups of women who took language classes. Women who could speak English were the translators. The women were all eager to take notes in Dutch.
Sunday afternoon the “Sjoel Vereniging” came along and a completely unplanned group of men (of various ages), played a tournament – which was tricky, as the counting of the points is quite special.
And on Monday I helped again with another children's activity. The children were making masks with a free design, and again there were very various creative ideas. Again there were language classes, attended by men and women of all ages. On that day, the people were much more relaxed than when they had arrived.
Altogether, the people were very polite and friendly.”
“Of what ages where the refugees?”
“There were little babies, and older people. There was a pregnant woman, she was very anxious about her baby.”
“And were there a lot in one place? How were the refugees treated?”
“In Middelburg there were 200 people, with accommodation for 2 times 72 hours, in a sport complex. With the prolonged time of accommodation, the refugees had time to find some rest and get settled for a short period of time. This is very important because otherwise they have to pack and unpack their belongings every other day, which makes them restless. The refugees were very thankful for that. I didn't go see the sleeping area, to my opinion that was not necessary in order to provide some privacy. There was a big tent where people could eat. There was catering, and the meals that were provided were halal. The people who organized the site were always very kind, and they treated everybody with great respect and politeness.
There was a room, where some men had started a barbershop, which was well attended.
The community had organized a bus trip to the town center of Middelburg, and the activities were well attended, too. The refugees had a large area where they could stay, so everybody could find some space.”
“You said that you have come home as a changed person.”
“My ‘image’ of this time is this pair of sneakers from a child, put on the radiator to dry.
A young woman had shown me photos from her bombed city. Told me about people of her family she had to leave behind, who are too injured and sick to flee and who she might not see again. These shoes tell the story of the hardships a kid had to endure to find safety, that day in Middelburg, another day at another place.”
These shoes (picture at the bottom of this article) tell the story of the hardships a
kid had to endure to find safety, that day in Middelburg, another day at another place.
“Thank you Johanna for your time!”
In this interview Johanna tells about the refugees she met from all over the world. It is easy to say that many human rights were violated in this case. To start with the main reason the refugees fled:
Joy Schroevers, Sanne Franssen, Veerle van Casand, Bart Louwerse and Romy Joziasse V4C
werken.
We chose to interview Joy’s mum, who helped out in a refugee’s camp last month. She came back as a changed person, because of what she had seen. In this interview I (Joy Schroevers) will ask her about the situations in such a camp and how the refugees react to certain things.
November 2015
“Hi Johanna. A while ago you helped out at a refugee camp in Middelburg.
Did you meet a lot of people and how did they look? What kind of emotions do they experience there, happiness, sadness, anger…?”
“Hi. Yes, as I work for the Zeeuws Museum. I have been asked if I wanted to volunteer at the entertainment / craft programma, which was organized by Kunsteducatie Walcheren.
My first shift there was on Friday afternoon. The people were very quiet, but they did look very sad, and absolutely not angry or aggressive.
In the room there were small groups of people, many women and children. There were games and toys, and a group of volunteers had even brought makeup and books about makeup where the children could choose a fancy makeup design for example. Boys and girls loved these activities, and there was much laughter. There was one child who had chosen a ghost makeup with scary black eyes.
A little boy taught me to play checkers the “Syrian way”, which was fun, as I don't speak Arab, and he didn't speak English. His father helped him.
There were also groups of women who took language classes. Women who could speak English were the translators. The women were all eager to take notes in Dutch.
Sunday afternoon the “Sjoel Vereniging” came along and a completely unplanned group of men (of various ages), played a tournament – which was tricky, as the counting of the points is quite special.
And on Monday I helped again with another children's activity. The children were making masks with a free design, and again there were very various creative ideas. Again there were language classes, attended by men and women of all ages. On that day, the people were much more relaxed than when they had arrived.
Altogether, the people were very polite and friendly.”
“Of what ages where the refugees?”
“There were little babies, and older people. There was a pregnant woman, she was very anxious about her baby.”
“And were there a lot in one place? How were the refugees treated?”
“In Middelburg there were 200 people, with accommodation for 2 times 72 hours, in a sport complex. With the prolonged time of accommodation, the refugees had time to find some rest and get settled for a short period of time. This is very important because otherwise they have to pack and unpack their belongings every other day, which makes them restless. The refugees were very thankful for that. I didn't go see the sleeping area, to my opinion that was not necessary in order to provide some privacy. There was a big tent where people could eat. There was catering, and the meals that were provided were halal. The people who organized the site were always very kind, and they treated everybody with great respect and politeness.
There was a room, where some men had started a barbershop, which was well attended.
The community had organized a bus trip to the town center of Middelburg, and the activities were well attended, too. The refugees had a large area where they could stay, so everybody could find some space.”
“You said that you have come home as a changed person.”
“My ‘image’ of this time is this pair of sneakers from a child, put on the radiator to dry.
A young woman had shown me photos from her bombed city. Told me about people of her family she had to leave behind, who are too injured and sick to flee and who she might not see again. These shoes tell the story of the hardships a kid had to endure to find safety, that day in Middelburg, another day at another place.”
These shoes (picture at the bottom of this article) tell the story of the hardships a
kid had to endure to find safety, that day in Middelburg, another day at another place.
“Thank you Johanna for your time!”
In this interview Johanna tells about the refugees she met from all over the world. It is easy to say that many human rights were violated in this case. To start with the main reason the refugees fled:
- Article 3 (Right to live, liberty, and personal security),
- Article18 (freedom of belief and religion),
- Article 19 (freedom of opinion and information),
- Article 25 (right to adequate living standard),
Joy Schroevers, Sanne Franssen, Veerle van Casand, Bart Louwerse and Romy Joziasse V4C
werken.