We know that millions of Syrian refugees are fleeing one of the most deadly conflicts in recent times. They have been forced to desert their family homes and cross the border to escape persecution, violence and in many cases certain death.
What we have been seeing on the news is boatloads of people being lost at see in the Mediterranean as they try and cross the sea to get to Europe. Once they get to Europe were met with (up until recently) hostility and misunderstanding.
But why are they choosing to come to Europe in particular?
A recent Channel 4 report highlights the conditions that families are forced to live in after fleeing Syria. Refugee camps in Turkey and Lebanon have taken in the majority of refugees from the war-torn state. Families live in tent communities where food is scarce and living conditions are crowded.
Lebanon officially has now just over 1.2 million refugees living within the country’s boundaries, though most people in the country reckon that the number is closer to 2 million. With a country of only 5 million people (around the same as Scotland) that is a large percentage of the population who are living as refugees.
But what is life like in these make shift camps? The truth will lay bare the reasons why refugees want to make it to countries in Europe and further afield.
For children, life is particularly hard. According to Channel 4 News, children as young as 12 are forced to work irrigating fields through the night from 7pm. They work for 14 hours before going to school where they are taught lessons in English, despite most of the children’s first language being Arabic.
Would you let your child work all night for what is essentially slave labour?
The youngsters ARE paid. One dollar in ‘wages’ for their work in the fields, which is then used to pay for much needed food and clothing. Food is in short supply, with most families living off just $13 a month according to the UN.
Now it becomes clear why so many refugees feel they need to make the dangerous journey to Europe. After fleeing a war zone where they have lost all their worldly belongings along with their livilihoods, life in a refugee camp probably feels like a hopeless solution for many of these people. Who can blame them for risking everything to escape a hellish limbo?
The UN has described the urgent funds needed to help these families living in refugee camps across Lebanon. With winter just weeks away, families are in dire need of clothing, food, medical and school supplies to help maintain some form of normality as the solution for their displacement is provided by world leaders.
To find out more and donate, visit the UN Refugee Agency at www.unhcr.org.