It's very early morning. A boat with Syrian and Iraqi refugees lands on a beach on Lesbos.
Saved! Finally! Europe! But in a moment they'll find out that nothing lives up to their dreams
Politiken staff photographer Jacob Ehrbahn has traveled to the Greek isle of Lesbos where refugees come ashore in boats every day – only to be forced out on a 60-kilometer-long walk. No one is allowed to help them. Not even the Danish tourist vacationing on the island.
From Assad. From Islamic State. From Syria and the four years of
civil war. And from Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. They are
all in search of a different future.
They come from Turkey to Lesbos in small, overcrowded boats that
are constantly in danger of taking in water and capsizing.
They shout with joy when they arrive. They kiss, dance, sing and
shake each other’s hands.
Europe. The EU. Finally, finally, finally.
But then they receive the message that everyone – babies, women,
children, the old and the disabled – have to walk 60 kilometers to
reach a refugee camp, where they will be registered. And they have to walk – they can’t take a bus or hire a taxi even if they have
the money – because Greek law prohibits any person from aiding
them.
At the end of the walk is a camp built for 500 people, but it
now houses around 3,000. And every day new boats and new refugees
arrive.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
It's very early morning. A boat with Syrian and Iraqi refugees lands on a beach on Lesbos.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
They've had a tough crossing, the engine died twice.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The boats arrive night and day. And many have feared for their lives on the journey.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
When the rubber dinghies become overcrowded they have difficulty staying afloat when the engine dies.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Many of the refugees have traveled in dinghies lying so low in the water that they were only a couple of centimeters away from taking in water.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
They've come ashore now. But out on the open water, the slightest movement could cause the boat to capsize.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The strait separating Turkey and Lesbos is about 10 kilometers wide, and the journey takes about an hour and a half. When the refugees arrive, they puncture the rubber dinghy so as not to be sent back to Turkey. To them Greece is the gateway to Europe.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Kanbar, 29, has fled here from Aleppo, Syria, where he was an aid worker. He hugs Husam from Iraq and massages his foot to get the blood circulating. Husam sat in an extremely uncomfortable position, two children in his lap, when the engine died. He had to stay completely still, or the boat would take in water. When they reached shore, he had to be carried onto the beach.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
When his circulation is restored, his six-year-old daughter Nawras is carried over to him. Husam's wife and three-month-old daughter are still back in Turkey. They couldn't afford to bring the whole family on the journey. His plan is to go to Germany and apply for family reunification.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
During the past six months, 78,000 boat refugees have arrived in Greece. That's more than six times the number for the same period in 2014.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
A group of people from Syria and Afghanistan walk ashore on a beach near the town of Molyvos.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Many shed tears of joy ...
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
... and one man lights an emergency flare while others dance and sing.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
For others the first task is to call their so-called trafficker, giving him a code that releases money for the crossing from a bank account. A spot on the rubber dinghy costs $1,000 and a life jacket goes for $30.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
What most refugees do not realize is that the closest camp is 60 kilometers away. And that they will have to cover that distance on foot.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Many of them have money and expected to be able to jump on one of the island's buses. Or to hire a taxi, perhaps.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
But a law prohibits Greeks and tourists on the island from aiding the refugees.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The taxis can't take them, the buses are not allowed to let them on, and the hotels can't give them a room.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
If you do help, you risk being charged with aiding and abetting the human traffickers, a punishable offence.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The result is that all refugees are sent off walking 60 kilometers in the scorching sun. Here Afghan refugees are on their way from Skala Sikamineas til Kara Tepe, a temporary camp outside Mytilini, Lesbos' largest town.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Planning the walk from Molyvos to the refugee camp.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
For the fleet-footed - young men walking alone for example - the journey lasts from early morning till late at night.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Elderly refugees and families with children struggle to make the trip in less than two days.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
This man has walked about 25 of the 60 kilometers before he gets a lift in Politiken's car. Struggling with polio, he has travelled from Tehran in Iran and hopes to get to Germany, Denmark or Sweden.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The refugees receive nothing from the authorities until they are registered in a camp. They are considered illegal immigrants with no right to assistance. Some of the locals, however, give the refugees food and drink before the long walk. In this case an Australian restaurant owner in Molyvos.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The inhabitants of the island often fear that the refugees will scare off the tourists, Lesbos' main source of income. A group of Pakistani men have just come ashore and are on their way to Molyvos. A German tourist is the first person they meet. He gets a handshake.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The Fallah family from Ringkøbing in Denmark are among the vacationers who suddenly find themselves face to face with refugees from the Syrian civil war. And they decide to help.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Among the 77,000 refugees that came to Greece in the first six months of 2015, 32,000 arrived by boat to Lesbos.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
A group of refugees on their way to the camp Kara Tepe spend the night on the street in a small town. They have covered about 16 of the 60 kilometers.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Going to the beach - and going to the refugee camp.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Finally in Kara Tepe. It's a provisionary camp that houses refugees waiting to be sent to another camp where the official paper work gets underway.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
No one knows how many people live in Kara Tepe. It might be 3,000 crowding a place built for 500 people.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
There's not food enough for everyone. This group of refugees has just been asked to sit down while they wait for some soup.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Things are not as civil in another corner of the camp. A fight breaks out when a man tries to dole out soup and a group of hungry men push him up against a fence. Some are fed, others walk away hungry.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The camp has 16 toilets for 3,000 people. Few use them because there is feces everywhere. Nearby, 19-year-old Navid gets a shower with a garden hose. The 'real' showers are next to the toilets, where the stench is unbearable.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
If they want shelter, most refugees are forced buy their own tents in town. They say the water is dirty and that many are ill in the camp. There's no medicine.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
"The fact that women and children live here is completely insane," says a Syrian man. "I want to work. That's why I came. Because of the chance to work and because of human rights. But I'm angry now. We should enjoy a bare minimum of human rights, but that doesn't exist. This is too much. There are too many of us."
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The refugees are only supposed to stay at the camp for a few days before moving on. They relate that many have waited much longer than that. Hassan, 22, has fled Syria where he studied engineering.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The makeshift charging station for mobile phones always attracts crowds.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Syrian and Afghan refugees are all ears, hoping their name is called. That means they are on the list of those going to the next camp, where they will be fingerprinted and receive a temporary residence permit.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Syrians get a six-month permit ...
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
... while other nationalities are only allowed to stay for a month.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
When the paperwork is done, the refugees go to the Mytilini harbor and wait for a ferry to Athens. The cheapest ticket costs 43 euro. Very few apply for asylum in Greece, they want to go somewhere else. This group of boys comes from Afghanistan.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
Meanwhile the dinghies keep floating ashore on the beaches of Lesbos.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
The refugees still have to walk long distances through the hot summer landscape.
Foto:
Jacob Ehrbahn
And thus people vacationing keep meeting people fleeing their homelands. This group of Danes waits for the bus that will take them to the airport. The holiday is over.
