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VIDEO: “Displaced” The Syrian Refugees Of Calais, France

February 23, 2015 By Amel Guettatfi Leave a Comment

In Calais, a small industrial city on the Northern border of France, lies a small patch of grass near the port. This was home to around 300 displaced refugees from around conflict zones across the globe including Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. Migrants stay in misshapen tents, on perpetually damp ground, battling the cold with nothing but a few meager layers of donated clothing. Some stayed there for months on end, trying to cross the English Channel by any means necessary.

There was an air of utter desperation at this camp; many Syrian refugees have escaped torture, imprisonment and war traveling by boat, car and even foot. One man at the camp told me they are nothing but pawns in a game of war no one but a few understand. Since the start of the conflict, numbers of displaced Syrians have risen to almost 4 million. Many of whom have relocated to neighboring countries such Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Very few have decided to leave the region and travel to Europe, embarking on what are usually harrowing journeys across the Levant.

“Displaced” follows three Syrians that lived in this makeshift camp on the Northern border of France. Each felt the need to leave home after the uprising in their home escalated. They survived on the bare minimum, living in tents in the winter, and trying to cross to Britain every night. This documentary discusses the human collateral of an ongoing war through the stories of a graduate, a former student and an ex-Syrian Army soldier.

Filed Under: Foreign Affairs, Health & Lifestyle Tagged With: France, refugees, Syria, Syrian refugees, United Kingdom

Hypocrisy Of Free Speech: By The Powerful, For The Powerful, Against The Powerless

January 23, 2015 By Yasmin Ahmed Leave a Comment

It is crucial that we maintain some principles such as the freedom of expression, since the right is, by any means, essential to every individual. As much as we disagree with one another, this fundamental right should be upheld.

The problem however arises when this right is abused and the powerless minorities in an already toxic environment are affected by it. Charlie Hebdo was stigmatising Muslims and, in the West today, there is an apparent normalisation and standardisation of this discourse. In fact, political parties, in particular far right groups, are ‘Islamising’ every issue.

After the tragic events, we saw some of the hypocritical world leaders march for the same free speech which they often oppress. The King of Jordan, who sentenced a Palestinian Journalist to 15 years in prison last year; Prime Minister Netanyahu, whose forces killed 17 journalists in Gaza last year; Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Shoukry, who detained Al Jazeera staff as well as detaining Journalist Shawkan. Surely, if the UK government was any better and truly upholds absolute free speech it would not have forced the Guardian to destroy the hard disk containing the Snowden files either.

Filed Under: Civil Liberties, Foreign Affairs Tagged With: #JeSuisCharlie, Abdullah II, Al Jazeera, antisemitism, apartheid, Baga, BBC, BBC Question Time, Benjamin Netanyahu, Boko Haram, Charlie Hebdo, Edward Snowden, Egypt, France, free speech, freedom of speech, immigration, Islam, Islamophobia, Israel, Je Suis Charlie, Jean Sarkozy, Jordan, Jyllands-Posten, Leonardo, Leonardo da Vinci, Maurice Sinet, Mehdi Hasan, Netherlands, Nigeria, Olivier Cyran, oppression, Palestine, Paris, Paris Attacks, Question Time, racism, Sameh Shoukry, Shawkan, solidarity, Syria, Syrian refugees, terrorism, The Guardian, United Kingdom

Syrian Refugees Live As Second-class Citizens In Turkey

November 25, 2014 By Adam El Nakhal Leave a Comment

I recently visited Istanbul, a Turkish city filled with Syrian refugees. Some old, some young but each with the same horror story of leaving behind dead friends and family in Syria. Their journeys to Istanbul are filled with difficulty and danger. Once arrived in Istanbul, most were not welcomed with open arms. Turkish people have a sense of pride towards their culture and history and many feel that the influx of refugees will change their identity. Many stores in Turkey refuse to speak to you in anything but Turkish for fear of their language being replaced with Arabic. Lots of Landlords refuse to lease apartments to Syrian refugees and most employers will discriminate against Syrians or not hire them at all.

One of the Syrian refugees I met was a young man in his mid-20s, married with two children of his own and supporting four other relatives. He worked 10-12 hour days, six days a week with no benefits for roughly $300 a month. This does not even provide the basic needs for his family, but they survive. His wage is less than a quarter of what his Turkish peers would make for the same job. When I spoke with him he told me he felt lucky and blessed to at least have some sort of income.

The children in the streets of Istanbul are plenty. All wander attempting to sell simple items such as napkins, pencils or candy. Some cannot afford to buy those items to sell so they just ask for anything from any passerby. They wear the expressions of children robber of childhood; their faces tell an excruciating story without uttering a word.

Filed Under: Civil Liberties, Foreign Affairs Tagged With: Arab Spring, Bashar Assad, el Shaam, Human Rights, Iraq, Istanbul, Jordan, Lebanon, MENA, Middle East North Africa, Mohamed Bouazizi, Palestine, refugees, Syria, Syrian refugees, Tunisia, Turkey, UNRWA

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