Impression of the Situation in Greece Interview with Napuli Paul, activist from the refugee movement in Berlin and Germany

You have been for six or five days in Greece and you also went to tthe border in Idomeni what were your impressions there?

First of all it was good that we are here and to see the situation. And the situation was really hard. You can not take it, you know. first of all different things that we never, you know, given through the media that the people are sick, and that the people are not taking shower for month and that also create sickness, lets say the situation is not good. The second day when we were there, there was a pregnant woman and the media was blocking to make picture. They don’t care of saving her before, in that situation was not ok and then the children. You don’t really focus on yourself, it needs time that we can come to the point what really should we do.

And now what do you think what needs to be done?

I think for me it’s good that we are there, because what i saw from the people and i also ask the people and they are like, you know what, it´s good that you are here and you share with us, you know, the pain. The time they speak to somebody and they where complaining that the media are not talking to us. They are just coming to see the situation. They see how we eat how we cook how we sleep but the inner problem they don’t know so we know they are having very distant to them. So i think its good if anybody can go there and at least share and if you know he or she make one person smile, I think that would be the point that we are there. Because we don’t have kind of open the border or not, the border that will not give information, if it is opening the border or not opening the border, if we are there just to be with the people and also to raise our voice to the EU people, why you are not giving away the people, like for example, the Greece they are leftists, and we were like, it will be special situation but they are giving people away. And the other people are crapping like they are animal so that could be our voice to say, “look here, open the border what you are doing is killing and its the third world war now we are in. so we will not leave that and that will be our starting point for fighting, you know, for the borders to be open.”

So yesterday there was a meeting with the migrants and refugee mainly people who are living here in the house in the squat in Thessaloniki, so what was your impression after the meeting, how you people are organized, how is there political spirit?
I was happy that we share first of all different experiences and we also hear from them whats the situation here as you dont have the permission to stay or you have limited time or something like this. And they were all like, you know, most of the people say when we go out from here then everything will be ok. So we have to be open so this is the starting point, the thing is if you make it from your country to here then you have to know that there are also difficulties maybe more then what you, passed through so its not over yet. So as you are doing by yourself you always can do it, so I can not be here to tell you what to do. I think you are here. And for me also I can not take you somewhere, because you know I am also not trapping the system that yes I do have my passport to go but I will still leave you here. But don`t give up yourself. Just be yourself what you are doing. And this and that and then we had different stories. And they were really happy and I also learn a lot from them and at the end it came to conclusion how can we work together. And this is also the suggestion that they were like, ok we came from different countries or different continent and we don`t know how can we fight for our rights. And we gave our experience how we, the refugee organize in Germany, fight for our rights and this was a really good thing. Some people now think we are now in power and now i think they know what to do and we will think and organize because before they don`t know what to do and who are they and they forgot even themself. So i think and they also demand that if you can come the next time and then we can put politically and what they were doing was just like individual thinking this and that but now they are thinking more of organized, selforganized and to do things politically as well.
Today you are going back to Berlin, what will you take back there, like to your groups to your fellow activist.
As we are no the movement in Germany, what I will take from this is, what they suggested to us. One of them was suggesting that if we can communicate through mailinglist, emails or telephones. and also if we can combine the demonstration Europe wide, at the same time and at the same day, so I will also take this back to Germany and discuss with the people. This is what we brought from there, how can we strongly connect to other country, so that we can become politically. Because i think its our time to fight from inside. You know European countries, those who are like Germany and Italy and Austria. Those I mean like the inside peopel, who say “close the border, close the border”. I think this is our time to fight inside to outside. And i see here the, what do you call, the supporters or activist they are really strongly doing things. Compare to Germany we were always occupy, right now we occupy as a symbol because police will not leave us. And here they really mean to occupy and occupy whether with police or not with police they succided to occupy the place. This is also what i can take like, we don`t have to make things symbol. You know like we make symbolic things. I think this time its not symbolic thing, we have to mean it like we stand here until we get our, whatever we want.

Anything you want to add you want to say?

I just want to give my message to European activist, whatever you call yourself this is also our responsibility. We don`t have to say “hey politican, politican”. We have to do, because i am feeling that the change is coming from the people, its coming from us. If your belief is strongly that we can do something, we always can do something. So it is. We now need to organize ourself, wherever you are to connect then we will do it, if not tomorrow we will do it. So we aware and think who you are and what are you really fighting for and why. You know, ask yourself evaluate yourself. So you don`t do this because the people are there and you want to do something. I think its now time to überleg and fight for what you know.