Sep 17, 2017

A refugee journey to Greece

1. Finding a trusted local smuggler: no mechanism for exposing fraudsters. (pay $$$)
2. Avoid local authorities: risk of facing prosecution and prison terms
3. Traffickers abuse: risk of forced labor, rape (women, children, or men), sex slavery, or murder for organ trafficking
4. Shooting by border guards from both sides: instant death, or prison sentence if caught (torture is complementary)
5. Finding a smuggling broker in Turkey (yes there are brokers to find local smugglers) to cross the sea. (more fraudsters + pay $$$$)
6. Crossing from Turkey to Greece in a 2x2 meters dinghy along with at least 60 persons.
7. Waiting for the right moment to sail could take a week with tens of failed attempts (risk of being caught by coastguards, losing your belongings while drowning, losing someone dear) simply facing death.
8. Arriving to hell aka the Greek islands (usually prison sentence until asylum response, or put in camps no different than Nazi concentration camps)
9. Apply for asylum and wait for a response forever (depends on luck (6 months, 1 year, 1.5 years..)
10. If accepted (don't forget that family reunion do not include siblings or relatives! only parents, partner, children.
11. If accepted in Greece (Good luck living with 200 euros a month)
12. If rejected, you are sent back to hell (Turkey) to camp/prison/torture/slavery work.
13. Welcome to the second millennia of humanity.

These are according to facts and stories of refugees in Greece.