Photos from the presstrips © UNHCR/Mira Banerjee

Stepping into the harsh refugee reality

Even though wars tend to find their way to the headlines, the human tragedies often remain untold. In order to bring more attention to the harsh realities many refugees have to cope with, UNHCR office in Stockholm has started to take Nordic journalists regularly to meet refugees in the field and to bring their stories home.

So far two press trips have taken place, one to Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2006 and another to Syria in 2007. During the one-week trips, the journalists met with NGOs, government officials, ministers and UNHCR staff. And, most importantly, they spent time with refugees, visiting their homes and listening to their stories. It was indeed the individuals that made them understand the tragedy, and these experiences became the very core of the articles.

“I could not stop wondering how the people can keep smiling while living in the middle of snow, mud and extreme poverty. One mother of five children explained it to me. There is no other choice: the ones who stop smiling go nuts in a week”, said one journalist after meeting with returned refugees in Kabul.

Tough everyday of refugees

Refugees living in the three countries have different problems, but definitely something in common - a very tough every-day life.

In Afghanistan, refugees had returned home after many years in exile, and had nothing to begin with. Some of them had sold all they owned to pay the smugglers; others found their homes destroyed upon arrival. Many of them were struggling to keep alive in the freezing winter weather.

In Pakistan, the journalists met Afghani refugees who had lived there for years, even decades. Some of them lived in conditions that almost resembled slavery; but preferred that to what would be waiting for them in Afghanistan. Their biggest concern was that there would be a day when they would all be deported to the other side of the border.

In the capital of Syria, where 1,4 million Iraqi refugees live after having fled the violence in their home country, few optimistic future prospects could be heard. Iraqis live with three-month residence permits and without permission to work. Furthermore, many of them have very traumatic experiences behind them and fear for their relatives back in Iraq.

None of the journalists were first time travelers, but what they experienced was striking. “This trip really opened my eyes to what it means to be a refugee”, one of them expressed.

Mira Banerjee