Panorama 2020 E18
Category
🦄
CreativityTranscript
00:00My name is Reza.
00:10I'm an Afghan journalist and one of thousands of refugees locked down in Europe's migrant
00:15camps.
00:16I saw many people who are worried and they are terrified, they don't know what to do,
00:20what not to do.
00:21For two months, I have been investigating camp conditions aware fear of the virus spread
00:26like wildfire.
00:28Most of the people are afraid too much, too much.
00:32Social distancing and regular hand washing are difficult here.
00:45Drinking water and food in short supply and seeing a doctor can be a daily struggle.
00:53It's heartbreaking Reza, it's difficult, it's heartbreaking.
00:58Some of Europe's most desperate at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
01:16I don't know what's going on here and I'm so worried about that.
01:21Around 2,000 people are living here and we have lots of children, lots of children.
01:29This is my home, Malakasa camp near Athens.
01:33I fled Afghanistan and the TV station I worked for five years ago after receiving death threats.
01:40My family and I were finally granted refugee status last year.
01:46Do you know coronavirus?
01:49Yes.
01:51There's that.
01:54Do you wash your hands?
01:56No.
01:58Greece is one of the first countries in Europe to close its public spaces and restrict crowds.
02:04They are closing all shopping malls, all cafes, bars and cafes, libraries, museums and archaeological sites.
02:34Some are receiving allowance on a cash card, others are much worse off.
02:48Hundreds who arrived recently and don't have permission to stay in the camp live in tents.
02:55It's very bad here.
03:03Families living squashed together, idle conditions for a virus to spread.
03:10Look, there's no social distance here.
03:15What can they do? What can they do? Nothing.
03:19In another part of the camp, I find a small group of families in an even more desperate situation.
03:33The tents are wet and there's no water.
03:38The tents are wet and these innocent children are like this. I don't know. Oh my God. Oh my God.
03:45I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
03:53For most refugees and migrants heading to Europe, Greece is where they arrive.
03:58There are around 60,000 held in 37 camps, while their immigration status is processed.
04:0545% of recent arrivals are from Afghanistan.
04:11At the end of March, the first coronavirus case in the camps is confirmed here in Eritrea.
04:18The first case is in the city of Toulouse.
04:22At the end of March, the first coronavirus case in the camps is confirmed here in Arizona.
04:31Hi, it's Hossein.
04:35Arizona camp, close to Athens.
04:40Fellow Afghan Hossein lives there and sends me reports on his mobile phone.
04:46Informed us that one Afghan woman got the coronavirus in the hospital.
04:53Testing reveals 23 more cases.
04:57And after that, they quarantined all of the camps. All of the camps.
05:03When cases are confirmed, camps go from lockdown to full quarantine.
05:09No one comes in or out, unless there is an emergency.
05:12Fear of the virus and being locked in with it means some people ignore the order not to leave.
05:43Stay in your connects.
05:51Five days later, coronavirus arrives in the camp where I live, Malakassa.
05:56We too are put in total quarantine.
06:00Those who leave the camp are not allowed to come in or out.
06:05The rest of the people are not allowed to leave the camp.
06:09The camp is in quarantine for 14 days.
06:13No one is allowed to go out and no one is allowed to come in.
06:16They say that we will provide you food and medicine.
06:21The coronavirus is inside Malakassa camp. Oh my God.
06:25A 53-year-old man has tested positive. Police are now at the gate.
06:34That's the voice of a local police officer you can hear.
06:46The man who tested positive is now in hospital being treated for COVID-19.
06:54He went alone to the hospital.
06:57They take him inside and they find out with a test that he is...
07:04This is the camp medical centre.
07:10For the next 14 days, please stay in your houses.
07:15Please keep the social distance and only you can come to the clinic when you have a serious issue.
07:22The man with COVID-19, Mr. Alemi, was unwell when he went to the medical centre.
07:28I speak to him from his hospital bed.
07:31I felt really hopeless. It was sad. There were times I saw myself close to death.
07:40He says the medical centre didn't help.
07:43So his son pleaded with the police to call an ambulance to take him to hospital.
07:48I knew my situation and also that they will not care about me.
07:52If I don't save myself, I will die.
08:00This is Europe's biggest camp, Moria, a refugee and migrant reception centre on the island of Lesbos.
08:10Built to house up to 3,000 people.
08:13Around 20,000 are now cramped in here.
08:173,000 arrived this year.
08:20Two students with an organisation called Re-Focus Media Labs also sent me reports.
08:27My name is Milad. I'm from Afghanistan.
08:30People here are frightened. Coronavirus is a threat for refugees.
08:37Hi, I'm Masoud. I live in Moria.
08:40I want to show you the situation in Moria, who are in danger of coronavirus.
08:50This is the first line where people are very close together.
08:56And some people have a one metre distance, some people don't have any distance.
09:02There are no confirmed cases of coronavirus, but people with coughs and fever are worried.
09:09How long have you been here?
09:12How long?
09:14Two hours.
09:16What's your problem?
09:18I have a sore throat.
09:21You have a sore throat?
09:23Yes.
09:26Several NGOs have doctors here, but say more are needed.
09:31And they are called for the camp to be closed.
09:34It's heartbreaking. It's difficult. It's heartbreaking.
09:39I fear the worst if there would be an outbreak of corona in Moria.
09:44Moria is the biggest refugee camp in Europe, which means that it is a European responsibility.
09:52I cannot ask people to stay home when there is no home.
09:56When in a tent of less than three square metres there are six to seven people.
10:00I cannot ask people to wash their hands when there is one water point for 1,300 people.
10:06And I cannot ask people to isolate themselves or call a doctor when there is no doctor.
10:12The EU says it's provided 2.5 billion euros since 2015,
10:17and has made 700 million more available since March to help Greece improve conditions and medical care.
10:24And that 1,000 vulnerable people were relocated last month with plans to move more.
10:31Those white tents, no one is allowed to go there.
10:42Migrants who crossed Greece via Turkey in March are put into quarantine in a new camp close to mine in Malakasa.
10:51It's impossible for me to film inside.
10:55This is Massoud. He is from Iran. He is filming for me.
11:01One of the biggest problems we have here is that we don't know what to do.
11:09There's no medical facilities inside, so people have to shout for help.
11:30If you see a man with a mask and a mask, call the police immediately.
11:35If you see a man with a mask and a mask, call the police immediately.
11:47One night Massoud sees a man collapsed on the ground.
11:51He says an ambulance is only allowed in when the police agree.
11:56The man has a fever, but doesn't have the virus.
12:00He also tells me later that restrictions have been relaxed here.
12:09In my camp, there's a protest at the gate.
12:12The families living in tents are running out of food.
12:24The people are so angry. They are asking for food.
12:28The gate is closed. It is the second day.
12:32They did not have any kind of food, any food.
12:36They have nothing to eat.
12:39The UN is now supplying food to Malakasa, but today nothing is coming in.
12:45Because I speak English, the crowd asked me to talk to the police.
12:50They are asking about the food.
12:51They are asking about the food.
12:53If not tomorrow, in two days, they will give you food.
12:58Believe me, there are many tents here. It is the second day that they don't have food.
13:03I will give you an answer, let's say in one hour.
13:09Please tell them to go inside. It's not good. It's very cold.
13:15A few hours later, I'm back at the gate.
13:18I'm told there will be food, but not yet.
13:22Please, don't make problems.
13:26Otherwise, it's going to be difficult.
13:30I hope they do something, because the situation is really, really tough and difficult.
13:43Two days later, the UN delivers food.
13:46But overnight, there's trouble.
13:52Because of quarantine, those of us with cash cards can no longer get money in town to buy food and supplies.
14:00It was a shop here, and he was selling something to the people.
14:05And I heard, I'm not sure.
14:07I heard that because he didn't give the people something that they could pay them later,
14:14and they fired him.
14:22Things get worse when quarantine is extended.
14:26I get a phone call. There's another protest at the gate.
14:36They're telling me a shopkeeper's been beaten by the police for sneaking out of the camp.
14:42I'm handed a phone.
14:44How are you? Can you hear me?
14:49He says he broke quarantine so he could get cash for himself and others to buy supplies.
14:55He says that suddenly the police beat out uniform, came to me, and now the real police is coming.
15:18And told the shopkeeper wants to go to hospital, but the police sent him back to camp.
15:26They're all alive?
15:28Yes.
15:55The Greek government denies allegations of police brutality.
16:06It says migrants break in quarantine or return to camp.
16:18In Moria, Europe's biggest camp, life was already tough.
16:22Coronavirus lockdown has made it worse.
16:28There are long queues for food and water.
16:45From my camp, I speak to the Greek migration minister.
16:49I accept that we have more people than we can cater for in the islands.
16:53We have had more arrivals than we were able to provide for, but we have managed.
16:58There is food given every day and there's water in all the camps in the islands.
17:02In the camps on the mainland, people receive a cash subsidy which allows them to go for shopping.
17:08But in the few sites that we had to quarantine, we provided adequate food.
17:14Fear of the deadly virus and anger at camp conditions are beginning to boil over.
17:22I'm told a 16-year-old called Amanullah has been killed in a row outside a shop in Moria.
17:31I got home and then someone told me my son was stabbed with a knife.
17:36Everyone here knows he was not a troublemaker because he was a very good boy.
17:43His father, Mr. Muradi, says Amanullah was stabbed when he asked to buy a lighter and pay later because he didn't have any money.
17:52People didn't come here to fight every day.
17:55They came because this is Europe and they want to be safe here.
17:59Back in Malakasa, I'm told by the charity Doctors Without Borders there are now ten new confirmed cases here.
18:06Children are playing games in the playground.
18:20I'm not sure if it's for my son's safety.
18:27The police have hired an operation team in order to check if Amanullah is a real murderer.
18:36Mr. Karimi has just tested positive, but he doesn't believe it.
18:53Together with his family and friends, he's still to quarantine in this disused school room.
19:06The problem for this family is that there is no toilet inside, there is no kitchen inside,
19:17and there is no, I think, electricity inside, and I don't know how they can provide their food, their daily food.
19:24With no taps or shower inside, they say they have to share with their neighbors.
19:29They're not happy. It risks spreading the virus.
19:36This is corona.
19:39It has so much to do with us.
19:41For all of us, what is corona?
19:44They only gave us a bottle of water.
19:47This is also a bottle of water for that woman.
19:53There is also a corona connexion.
19:58I have to come and tell you that you shouldn't come.
20:01This boy is wearing a mask. I haven't woken him up since this morning.
20:06They tell me they're scared.
20:20At the medical center, people are turning up worried they may have coronavirus.
20:26This is Mrs. Rahimi. She says she has a heart condition and a sore throat.
20:41As I'm recording their complaints, I'm told to stop filming.
20:56I'm frustrated. Every time I come here, it's the same story.
21:01People telling me they're waiting for help and not getting it.
21:05The people are patient. They need medical care and you didn't.
21:10All the people have a problem. They don't care about the people.
21:16In a pandemic, or in fact in any disease outbreak,
21:20we talk about these facilities as institutional amplifiers,
21:25essentially because people are in such close proximity.
21:28So we absolutely need trust that people are going to obey
21:33and comply with the advice that they're given.
21:36We're working with a number of international organizations
21:39to ensure that we provide appropriate health conditions
21:43for people affected and for people not affected in the camps.
21:47Our instruction is that people that are infected should be kept separate.
21:51We have dedicated containers for that. We have medical staff for that.
21:57Then I hear about an 8-year-old girl who is in hospital with COVID-19.
22:02She lives here with her mother in a place called the tea house.
22:18Mrs. Rahimi, who I first met outside the medical center, also lives here.
22:36The tea house is home to 23 families.
22:47They don't do anything for me.
22:57Cough, cough, cough. The people are coughing.
23:17I speak to Sitayesh, the 8-year-old girl with COVID-19 from hospital.
23:22She has a heart condition, so she's vulnerable.
23:27My daughter first had heart palpitations.
23:30She was coughing and had a fever.
23:33Her mother describes repeated trips to the medical center
23:36before her daughter was tested.
23:39When the result of the test was positive, they said,
23:42don't worry, having coronavirus is not a big issue.
23:45She will be fine and it will pass.
23:49But her daughter became so ill, an ambulance was called to take her to hospital.
23:55I have a lot of wishes and dreams.
24:00I don't know. I just hope the virus leaves her alone.
24:07Two days later, people from the tea house are tested.
24:11Seven are positive, including Mrs. Rahimi.
24:16Hello. How are you?
24:21I try to keep my spirits high. Stress will put more pressure on me.
24:26She says problems with the quarantine of infected people
24:29started the tea house outbreak.
24:33When they brought some families with coronavirus to the container,
24:37we complained about sharing the water tap.
24:41But they said don't worry.
24:46This has not been reported to us by the International Organization of Migration
24:50that manages the Malakasa camp.
24:53They haven't told us that there is such a problem.
24:56I'm very happy you are raising it. We will check.
24:58You have no message to those who became sick.
25:01If there was a failure from the management of the camp
25:04in implementing the clear instructions they have had,
25:08this naturally is a very sad incident for which clearly we should be sorry for.
25:15The UN's International Organization for Migration says
25:18it provides site management support for the Greek government,
25:22who are by law responsible for Malakasa.
25:25It says it's followed the government's plans,
25:28including setting up a quarantined area,
25:31and has installed five showers and five taps.
25:36You know, the people are so angry.
25:39All of Greece are free to go.
25:42The only camp is here that we cannot go out.
25:45Unmade at fault, Greece eases its lockdown,
25:48but the camps stay shut.
25:51Tensions are still running high.
25:54Staff have been barricaded into the medical centre
25:57and called on to translate again.
26:01I tell you, my friends, many problems.
26:03You are right, there are many problems.
26:13OK, it's very clear.
26:16What we need now is that the people come out
26:19and then we can discuss more, OK?
26:27After a tense standoff, the medical team are released.
26:34I don't know what to say, but...
26:37The people get so angry, that's not good.
26:40Today was not a good day.
26:42It is maybe, would be the last time
26:45that I'm taking the camera and I'm talking to you guys.
26:54Early government action has helped keep infection rates low
26:58across Greece and in the camps too.
27:01According to official figures,
27:05in Malakausa and Rhizona,
27:08there were more than 50 confirmed cases and none in Moria.
27:12These have been difficult times, not just for the migrant population,
27:16it has been a difficult time for the entire country,
27:19it has been a difficult time for the entire European continent.
27:22Despite having 100,000 asylum applicants
27:25residing in reception facilities,
27:28the total infection rate was 0.2%, which was not high.
27:32The total loss of life was 0.
27:36The Greek government says it's working
27:39to reduce overcrowding in Moria.
27:42My camp Malakausa and Rhizona came out of quarantine last week.
27:46My family and I hope to leave soon for a new life in Finland.
27:52One of the things that we have learned throughout history
27:55is that viruses do not respect borders,
27:58be they national borders or the borders of refugee camps or prisons.
28:04We cannot have a response that leaves some people behind
28:10because that will undermine the response in the whole world.
28:17The world is worried about the second wave of coronavirus infection.
28:22But action is needed now to improve conditions in Europe's migrant camps.
28:29To find out more, visit www.ilo.org
28:35www.ilo.org
28:41www.ilo.org
28:49www.ilo.org
28:58www.ilo.org