20/06/2023
When we found the group, we were immediately taken to the only building. There were dozens of people in a moldy and windowless room. Women and children. Mothers frozen in stillness and little ones, sometimes even a few months old, playing with sticks and empty food wrappers. A tangle of legs on the muddy and sticky floor. Seven pregnant women. Hidden from the rain and the police.
When we look at photos from the Turkish border we still smell the scent that anyone who has ever been in such a temporary shelter knows. The smell of bodies and fires burning with trash. The smell of resignation and fear.
“After taking each photo, I showed them to the children. A faint smile appeared on the faces of the mothers, saying, 'Thank you for keeping my child entertained for a while.' I don't like it. I don't like disappearing from such places. I don't like this overwhelming helplessness.”
Few days later, the whole group tried to reach the border crossing. Someone (?) informed them that it was the safest solution. Some people were beaten by Turkish officers. Some lost their belongings and personal items. In the live recording we watched (IG LIVE), I recognized familiar faces of children and terrified parents.
Report
Photography Graphic design .dabrowskim
Statistics via UNHCR