“We have found hell”: trauma runs deep for children at dire Lesbos camp
In the
Moria camp there are more than 9,000 people who came from war-torn countries.
They came there searching for help but they only find violence and other problems.
Moria camp
is in Lesbos, Greece, and it’s like a prison for all the asylum seekers, forced
to live in a place that was designed to hold the third of the number of the
actually people there.
The biggest problem of the camp is the mental
health condition of all the children there. Most of them suffer from
depression, self harming and psychological problems which lead them to suicide.
Approximately 3,000 minors live in the Moria Camp and they come from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. They arrive in dinghies from Turkish towns of Ayvalik or Canakkale.
Approximately 3,000 minors live in the Moria Camp and they come from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. They arrive in dinghies from Turkish towns of Ayvalik or Canakkale.
The drawings made by Sirian and Afghan children
show us war scenes, shipwrecks and eyes that dripped blood. They are the proof
of all the trauma and terrifying things that those children have passed during
their lives.
The only moments of normalcy for Moria’s
children are at the small play area situated 200m from the camp. There are some
inflatable castles and a small football pitch where kids can play and have fun,
at least for a few hours.
MSF (Médecins
Sans Frontières) organised a therapy session for a dozen of children who
attempted suicide or were suffering from depression or self-harming. The
therapy was divided into more phases,
one of them consisted in a storytelling activity in which kids tried to create
a story with no words, only drawing.
honestly, I don't want to be one of those Moria camp's psychologists. I would be sad to see those horrible drawings, when I was a child I drew cars and astronauts instead they draw the war and death. Certainly, the children should be happy all the time not only some hours a day. Stories like these make me think that I'm very lucky to have all this beautiful things around me becuase there are so many suffering people in the world.
ReplyDeleteGirolamo, 17, Palermo
Reading this, I remembered when we talked in class about Moria camp, when we read the article from the Guardian by Lorenzo Tondo. After becoming aware of these stories we all (in particular westerns) go on with our lives and pretend that nothing is happening, because "it's far away from us". I didn't have forgotten about it, but reading again our texts about the article makes you remind.
ReplyDeleteEven if we are in quarantine and in a difficult situation, most of us are living peacefully and serenely in their sweat homes, but people in Moria camp are struggling for survival.
didn't have forgotten ??sweat homes?
ReplyDelete