- Title: EUROPE-MIGRANTS/ATHENS Migrants sleep rough in central Athens square
- Date: 12th September 2015
- Summary: ATHENS, GREECE (SEPTEMBER 12, 2015) (REUTERS) AFGHAN MIGRANTS LYING DOWN OR WALKING AROUND VICTORIA SQUARE, INCLUDING SEVERAL CHILDREN MIGRANTS SEATED ON THE GROUND / WOMAN CRADLING BABY BABY IN WOMAN'S ARMS MIGRANTS, INCLUDING CHILDREN, SEATED OR WALKING AROUND SQUARE MIGRANTS LYING DOWN NEXT TO TREES / YOUNG GIRL WALKING AROUND WOMAN HOLDING BOTTLE OF WATER AND BABY WHILE COUGHING BOY PLAYING WITH MICKEY MOUSE DOLL (SOUNDBITE) (English) REFUGEE FROM AFGHANISTAN, ALDAT, SAYING: "There is no accepting by the government of Yunan (Greece), yeah? So, it's better here that we should leave the Yunan and we should go far away. So, we don't know which country will, we will be accepted by them. So, we will go else. So, we shall see by that time. Yeah." WOMAN HOLDING BABY AND SURROUNDED BY CHILDREN WOMAN AND THREE SLEEPING CHILDREN LYING ON BLANKET THREE SLEEPING CHILDREN (SOUNDBITE) (English) REFUGEE FROM AFGHANISTAN, FAYAZ, SAYING: "Why the people of Greek and the European countries don't listen in our sound? Okay? I don't have anything (to say) about else. Just, we want and the Greek people of, in here, they must, they must see and listen our sound." MEN WASHING PIECE OF CLOTH WITH BOTTLED WATER WOMAN AND CHILDREN WITH THEIR LUGGAGE NEXT TO TREE RESIDENT OF ATHENS, STAVROULA SPYROPOULOU, HANDING OUT SHAMPOO TO MIGRANTS WOMAN EATING AND FEEDING BABY ON HER LAP (SOUNDBITE) (English) RESIDENT OF ATHENS, STAVROULA SPYROPOULOU, SAYING: "We're listening in the TV what's going on and, I think, I came with a friend of mine. I think it's our duty to come here, for every Greek who lives in this city to come and help out. I wasn't expecting this. We just thought nobody would be interested. We just brought some, some shampoo, and some crackers." (SOUNDBITE) (Greek) RESIDENT OF ATHENS WHO WORKS IN VICTORIA SQUARE, ANASTASIOS POUMPALOS, SAYING: "What's most upsetting is that the state does not prevent this situation from happening. The locals are all anxious and under tremendous pressure because there is great uncertainty." VARIOUS OF TODDLER LYING ASLEEP ON PAVEMENT REFUGEES SEATED UNDER TREES
- Embargoed: 27th September 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Greece
- Country: Greece
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVACIMCC2CPF48Q2M80Q9P5SX9JR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Migrants and refugees, mainly from Afghanistan, camped out on the sidewalk of a central Athens square in squalid conditions on Saturday (12 September), as they waited to move on to the next leg of their journey.
The migrants remained stranded in central Athens after being ferried to the Greek mainland from Aegean islands, because most of them could not afford the trip north to central Europe.
Migrants, including women and young children, slept on blankets a stone's throw away from busy cafes and eateries.
Alda, an 18-year-old refugee from Kabul, Afghanistan, said that the Greek government had provided no real support and hoped that things might look up for him and his family in a different country.
"There is no accepting by the government of Yunan (Greece), yeah? So it's better here that we should leave the Yunan and we should go far away. So we don't know which country will, we will be accepted by them," he said.
Fayaz, a 20-year-old refugee from Kunduz, Afghanistan, said he wanted Europeans to pay attention to his people's struggle.
"Why the people of Greek and the European countries don't listen in our sound? Okay? I don't have anything (to say) about else. Just, we want and the Greek people of, in here, they must, they must see and listen our sound," Fayaz said.
Volunteers have been distributing food, water, and other supplies to the migrants over the past few days.
"We're listening in the TV what's going on and, I think, I came with a friend of mine. I think it's our duty to come here, for every Greek who lives in this city to come and help out. I wasn't expecting this. We just thought nobody would be interested. We just brought some, some shampoo, and some crackers," said 41-year-old Stavroula Spyropoulou, a resident of Athens.
But Anastasios Poumbalos, who works in a kiosk on the square, said that locals were not happy about the situation.
"What's most upsetting is that the state does not prevent this situation from happening. The locals are all anxious and under tremendous pressure because there is great uncertainty," he said.
So far this year, a record 433,000 refugees and migrants have crossed the Mediterranean to Europe, more than double the total for all of 2014, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Friday. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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