Fear to the “other”

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For ages, mankind has always had fear. A sense of mistrust to light, darkness,  nature,life, death and even to themselves. Nowadays, like in the past 20 years, fear has taken on certain people, certain governments and certain countries. The fear to "foreigners" is the one to blame, the one who speaks a different language, the one whose skin looks different, the one who has different costumes, worships  a different god, and comes from a different place to live among us; in your city or country, in other words fear to "the other".

Migration is leaving a long list of deceased bodies in the Mediterranean sea, in the italian and spanish coasts, in Greece, United Kingdom, Malaysia; Syria, Libia, Irak, Albania, Kosovo and even in Hungary, Poland and Roumania. There is still a lot to learn about the Latin American migration from Venezuela to Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in order to get to Chile, Argentina or Brazil. There is also very little information about Bangladesh, the mexican path or the border between Russia, Ukraine and Kazajistan, just to mention some more examples.

According to a report from the Migration international organization (IOM), more than 2000 people have died and 188.000 migrants were rescued in the Mediterranean sea this year, trying to get to Europe. The IOM states that in the same period last year, the number of victims was 1,674, while in the entire 2014 3,279 people died. The EU has agreed to divide and share 40,000 refugees for this year. Nearly half of all international migrants live in 10 countries only, buth the highest number (46 million) lives in the United States.

Fear to your neighbor

In Antofagasta, fear to black colombian people is common; It is also common for spanish people to fear the Africans  crossing the fence, just like Russians fear the ucranians reach their country and also germans fear the arrival of at least 450.000 refugees or as they call them "Flüchtlinge", as planned for this year that will double the figure from 2014. Some 180,000 refugees have arrived in the first part of the year, Germany set a whole new record in refuge applications: 79,000 according to the  Migration and refugees department.

Precisely, in Staffel, a little district 77 km away from Frankfurt, the local   government has set a refugee camp, in which children, teenagers, families and elder people can be found. There are 633 people in the campo who come originally from Syria, Irak, Afghanistan, the Balkans (Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia), Eritrea and Ethiopia. This camp, locked and fenced enclosure, has the minimal conditions to host around 650 people total and it's one of the first ones in its kind in this part of the contry. While the inhabitants of the enclosure spend their time playing games, dealing with the high summer temperature and waiting for their future to be settled. The neighbors nearby are astonished   and forewarned.

Niños refugiados en Staffel

Some of them are resistant to speak about it and some others assume that their prejudices and fears come from the fact that "these people are going to live out of charity or because the german society will have to pay for all the expenses. Another woman argues they take care of these people and asks who will protect them against them?". Despite all of this, solidarity can be witnessed as people drop by to help in any way they can. Doctors, psychologists, nurses and volunteers advice families in english or with gestures to make themselves clear. There is even an NPO in charge of aids distribution from the surrounding districts of Staffel, Limburg and Hadamar.

Despite all comments or previous ideas, usually for lack of information or unawareness of people's situations, the camp in Staffel is taken care in a pretty decent way, and the refugees themselves admit they have been treated real nicely, and are greatful to the germans for letting them come to live in their cities. However, serenity in Staffel is not common in other camps around the country. The decision of welcoming the refugees has enraged the radical right wing xenophobes.

Attacks or solidarity?

The german government is concerned about the constant attacks to welcoming houses and even migrant camps, leading to discuss about the possibility of altering the migration law by the politicians. The german president, Joachim Gauck, has referred to the racist attacks as "disgusting" and the ministry of justice, the social democrat, Heiko Maas, has stated  that this kind of violence is an "attack against all german society". Even the local media has initiated a campaign to let people know about the life stories of migrants. TV programs and documentaries are broadcasted on daily basis showing the real situation the countries are going through.  Away to raise awareness in people and above all to inform them about how much it will cost the government to help these people.

In Dresde, birthplace of the Patriotic Europeans against the Islamisation of the west (Pegida), peolpe are living in fear and tension given the fact that xenophobic acts have been taking place. Reports indicate that in the first part of the year 199 attacks to refugee centres have occurred, twice as much as the same period in 2014, according to the ministry of interior and the criminal federal police (BkA). This ministry has records of 341 suspects responsible for those attacks and some 148 fully identified, names and last names. Only 41 of all the suspects are repeat offenders in acts of xenophobe, which could indicate that these kinds of discriminatory actions are becoming extensive.

The challenge for the ruling classes is to deal with the migration issue as it has to be, a human catastrophe that is taking its toll on people´s lives. On their journeys full of danger and pain, migrants live stories full of violence, exploitation and abuse caused by traffickers, who often charge for small fortunes for every journey. Many of them try to leave behind old conflicts, wars to come or prosecution, poberty or hunger. No one leaves their country because they simply want to. It is a human need and has to be seen as one.

After continuos debates on migratory movements around the world, it has become necessary for governments and society to become aware that migration is part of the current globalized world of the XXI century and that it has always been this way. Just like birth rate and mortality in a country.

Fears and prejudices are acceptable as long as they don´t lead to intolerance or radical acts. Xenophobia, fear for the other, the foreigner, the outsider, might be a shadow that projects aspects that are meant to be rejected, the are in the uncounscious of people, and that has to be torn down.

In Staffel (Germany), Calais (France), Folkestone (UK), Rosarno (Italy), Almeria (Spain), Iquique (Chile), Kota Kinabalu, or in any other place around the world, the fear to the other is nothing but the fear to oneself. To quote a reknown poet: "the one who dwells in me, angel or demon, is also me."

Rafa Cely Ulloa

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Staffel-Alemania

Julio-agosto/2015