Photos & Short Story by Zak Varvaresso
The Port of Piraeus, 20 minutes away from Athens, is well known to tourists for the scenic route to the white and blue islands of the Aegean Sea. But during the last year the port which is one of the major sea-hubs in the Mediterranean -a strategic passage of great importance owned recently by the Chinese authorities- has been hosting a different type of travelers as it has been transformed into one of Europe’s most crowded temporary camps with 5,000 people taking shelter.
As the refugee crisis in Europe marked the celebration of the “World Humanitarian Day” a great range of volunteers took up positions along the port: from big “fat” NGOs, to highly-respected organizations such as the Medecins Sans Frontieres, to self-organized solidarity teams and individuals carrying out the most difficult tasks especially during the night shifts where the most of the Ngos where absent .
After March 2016 when Greek army authorities took the refugee crisis management, the NGO circus has dismantled leaving only the solidarity teams fighting alone, being targeted instantly as “instigators of terrorism” by the media. The officials gave an ultimatum to thousands of refugees and migrants living in the port to move to the newly army-built camps around the country or being removed by force.
As the summer edition of Greece is coming to life, the port of Piraeus has been in a evacuating process and most of the migrants fear being abandoned in a long term hiatus of imprisonment in the camps or worse, face survival in the streets of a poverty ridden country.
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