Refugees: their Camps and their Lives

The lives of those living in refugee camps are devastating, depressing, and to the outsider and the insider often hopeless. Those who live as refugees leave their homes, mostly through military or governmental force, thinking that their situation is a temporary one. They are, for reasons of religious discrimination, economic status, or any other cultural identifier, made social and political outcasts. They are often forgotten, neglected, and harassed not only by their oppressors, but by their own (if there is one) governments and also by the world community (make sure to LISTEN!).

Buildings and schools are erected with the mind-set that they won't last long, because they won't need to. In several cases the simple and cheap buildings and infrastructure created for and by the refugees has to last longer than intended. Many of the structures are 30 years overdue. Just as the peace talks and governmental assistance for their refugees are long overdue also. External support often comes too late as well. In the Rwanda situation for example, external support was minimal and fooling to the desperate victims.
Refugees do a lot of waiting... waiting... waiting.

Interview with a Lebanese Refugee:

Q: Why did you have to leave Lebanon?
A: Because of the war. There was a civil war between several Lebanese political parties and Israel.

Q: How old were you when you left?
A: 21

Q: How did you get to Berlin?
A: I applied for a visa to West Germany. I was told to get to Cyprus and a man would give me my Visa there then. So I went there with a group of refugees. Some of them didn’t bring any money with them, thinking that the visa would be there waiting for them. But it was not. We had to go to a hotel and we put all of our money together. It wasn’t a lot. When the man came to give us the Visas, he asked us for more money than we had expected. It turned out he needed the money for another group. We hardly had any money left for food. I lost a lot of weight in that time. In Cyprus there was a cab driver who would help us by driving us to the embassy for a lower rate. After awhile were granted our visas and we traveled into Germany. This time was very difficult and tiring, especially because we had no way of returning home, we had no money, and we had waited endlessly for those visas.

Q: Why did you choose to go to Berlin?
A: Because I had a brother who already lived there. I knew I would be safe and that I could live there normally. Those are some of the reasons.

Q: How did you learn German?
A: In School, at work, and through the family. When I arrived I immediately began taking a German course, and later I took 2 more. I always carried a dictionary in my pocket.

Q: How long were you in Germany before you met your wife?
A: One year.

Interview of 2nd Lebanese Refugee:

Q: How old were you when you came to Germany?
A: Around 6 years of age

Q: How did you travel into Germany? Did you fly?
A: Yes, we flew. We fled from Lebanon into Libya and then from Libya to Germany.

Q: How was it when you came to Germany?
A: I learned German very quickly.

Q Now that you are an adult man, how does it feel for you today? Do you think it was a good decision to have come to Berlin? Or would you rather have stayed in Lebanon?
A: I am happy to be here. I actually canceled by last trip to Lebanon because I thought it would be lame to go back. I find more corruption in Lebanon than I can see here (in Berlin). I don’t feel very connected to Lebanon anymore.

Q: Could you tell me a little bit about your school experience in Berlin? How was it different from Lebanon?
A: I actually didn’t attend school in Lebanon. I was just 6 years old at that point. In the beginning it was very difficult for me, because I transferred schools 7 times in one year. It was that way because my family kept being moved into different homes for asylum seekers. I didn’t get much support from anyone. The last elementary school that I attended made me take a test and they told me that I was too stupid to attend a normal school. So I was sent to a special school. Once the administration realized that I was too good for this kind of school I was sent to the next highest school, the “Hauptschule” (similar to alternative schools here). The administration there realized the same thing. I then transferred into the next highest level, the “Realschule.” After I graduated from there I furthered by education at a “Fachhochschule. “ Today I am waiting to be accepted into the Police Academy. I’ve had many boulders set in my way. Sometimes I feel like I’m still planning my life, rather than being allowed to simply live it.

They mostly hope to return to their lives and land as it was before the conflict that forced them to leave, if they have not found a different way out of the country and the refugee life yet. Unfortunately however, only 1% of the world's refugees receive the chance for a different and possibly better life over-seas. The remaining 99% has to see for themselves how to work and feed themselves. Realizing this concept creates another dilemma: Fleeing refugees leaving their families, friends, and homes behind. And with some places, such as Palestine, it's a whole different situation. Many refugees are forced to flee from their homes, but instead of leaving the borders of their country they become internally displaced, meaning, they live in refugee camps, inside their own countries. How would that feel?

It is global issues, like wars, that effect all humans, in one way or another. For some it may result in skyrocketing gas prices, for others it may mean living as a refugee. To name only a few issues that make the life for a refugee difficult are the infrastructure, sanitation, hygiene, space, housing, water resources, and the security in a camp. These are simple issues that many people can take for granted, but they are essential for survival.
Simply realizing that these issues are being taking for granted and expected by many creates an understanding of the inequalities and corruption of the world. It is important to understand that the devastation of others can affect the entire world community. A far-away conflict may impact the world's financial market or it could influence a family member or friend in one way or another.
The life of a refugee is frightening, devastating, and often tiering. The causes of the need for refugee camps are corruption and ignorance. The outcome of these features are immense for refugees, the internal camps and it residence, as well as the external world.