The gate closes and the ferry sails away from Lampedusa en route to Sicily.
On board are over 80 children who 12 days ago survived one of the most treacherous sea crossings in the world, traveling on rickety boats or rubber dinghies from lawless Libya to seek asylum in Italy. They came to Italy in search of a better life, a future in Europe. Like all children they are full of dreams and hopes but many grew up in very difficult circumstances and lost the chance to have a childhood.
Some of them, like 17-year-old Yusuf* from Gaza, have “lived by the [sniper] bullet.” He tells me that he never had a childhood, that he never had any toys to play with and that every second in Gaza he feared that he would be killed by a bullet. Escaping from death, from persecution, from extreme poverty, is what drives these children to risk their lives to come to Europe.
January and February 2015 showed a staggering increase of 69% more migrants arriving than in the same period last year. Children have seen fellow travellers thrown overboard just for being seasick, they have seen waves “10 storeys high” buffet their boats, and the whole time, crammed in with hundreds of other people, they don’t know if they will live or drown in the Mediterranean. But they know they have to escape the “hell” they have left behind.
I have spent this past week in Lampedusa to document some of the stories of children on the move who travel unaccompanied to Italy. At the invitation of the Italian authorities, Save the Children works in partnership with UNHCR, IOM and the Red Cross to monitor the first reception centre set up on the island and to address the immediate needs of children. Save the Children’s role is to explain to children the legal process and their rights, along with assessing any specific needs they may have, whether health or psychological, referring them to the relevant social services.
The island of Lampedusa is so small it’s not even shown on the map used on the main Italian evening newscast, but Lampedusa has a big heart and despite recent reports of increasing anger towards migrants I have seen nothing but a warm welcome extended to them. Children amble through the town, the islanders yell out in greeting, and local restaurants provide them with free meals. I a nine saw a year old Somali girl who came back to the centre, her plastic bag filled with clothes, books, games and a new doll clutched in her arms. She was beaming.
Yusuf* and his best friend fled Gaza together. They have known each other since they were very young and together they made the journey through Lebanon, Sudan Libya and to Lampedusa. They tell us they were put in jail and beaten. A video of the beating was sent back to Yusuf’s* family to extract a ransom for his life. The money was wired over. His life had a price: $4000 dollars.
When asked what their dreams are now that they are in Italy Yusuf* breaks down and says:
“I want a future, I just want to be human.”
To get to Italy the child migrants I spoke to have all told me the same horrific stories – they have in effect been treated like human cargo, been put in jail, beaten, and abused; all verbally and some sexually.
Our team in Lampedusa is a small one but has huge responsibilities. This team usually works in Sicily but in February thousands of migrants landed on the island so they were deployed to Lampedusa as an “emergency” measure. There is a cultural mediator, Aman* who is trained in child psychology, who speaks 5 languages and provides translation services for the minors. He was a refugee himself: he came from Eritrea and created a life for himself in Italy. He knows what it is like to arrive here, with no money, no documents, driven by hope. Then there’s Lisa, a legal advisor who ensures that minors know what rights they have here in Italy, that they receive basic services, that the most vulnerable cases will be monitored, and that the legal process of reunification with family members living in Europe can begin.
Aman* and Lisa are on call 24 hours a day. They are the first faces children see when they disembark and are the last ones waving goodbye today when the children sail away by ferry to Sicily.
At the reception centre I have watched in awe as Lisa, standing in a dormitory and with the help of a cultural mediator explains to about 80 boys what they can expect from their new life in Italy. She opens a map of the world and shows them where Italy is located, she helps them comprehend the process of what will happen next: they will go by boat to Sicily where they will be put in another centre, but one better equipped for children. Then, when possible, they will be moved into children’s homes. And then she explains to these children what rights they can expect in Italy. For example, they have a right not to be expelled, a right to go to school, a right to be safe and to live without persecution.
She ends with this “Education is the most powerful tool you can have for your future. It is your right.”
The boys, ranging from 13 – 18 years old give her their full attention; it’s a new reality and it’s hard to comprehend. They haven’t understood all of the concepts and many do not even know what she means by “rights”, but over the next few days Save the Children staff meet them individually and will go through this again and again until it’s clear.
There is one child that stands out from the others – he inspires confidence in the other children, is a beacon of calm, and wise beyond his young years. This is Ismail* and he’s captured our hearts. When I first meet him he is explaining to other Somalis why they need to learn Italian, why they should stay in Italy and go to school.
He says he fled because he wouldn’t have survived in Somalia, he feared he would be made to join a militant group and be forced to kill people. But he never thought the trip to Lampedusa would be so dangerous. He was kidnapped, he was beaten, he saw a pregnant woman raped, he was held in a cell for a month and he was passed from trafficker to trafficker until he reached Tripoli. He is only 16 years old.
As I walk around the reception centre I see on a bed a tiny bundle wrapped in bright blankets. This is 4 month old Alma*. Her mother, Fatima*, 23, gave birth to her in a cell in Libya. Fatima had no access to any health care, and when I asked her who helped deliver her baby she points to a young woman sitting across the room. “My friend”, she says.
They were terrified the baby would cry and be killed for crying. The traffickers showed little mercy to other women, there was no reason her life would be spared. But she is a survivor. Fatima* has four children waiting for her back home in Somalia. They are 6, 4 and 2 years old. She was able to call them last week after an absence of nine months. “Why did you leave? When are you coming home?” they asked her. “Soon” she told them, “soon.
Today I watched as these children boarded the ferry to Sicily where they will begin their long process of cultural integration into Italian life. Many are anxious to find a job so they can bring their families to Europe. It’s heartbreaking to know that legally this will not be a possibility and that it will be another disappointment they will have to face.
But right now they are excited, smiling, they walk on board laughing, they wave to the Save the Children team, hugging them, thanking them and telling them to come and visit them in Sicily, in Rome, in Germany, in Norway. It’s an emotional time for the team and I feel very proud of the work Save the Children does here. It’s our mandate to help the most vulnerable and this is such a vivid reminder of the difference we make to children’s lives.
The number of migrants heading to Italian shores is unfortunately expected to increase over the summer months and, just as the ferry departs, we get word that another boat carrying migrants might be on its way.
The deteriorating situation in sub-Saharan and West Africa and conflict in Syria is fuelling this migration flow, it’s a global problem and not one that Italy should shoulder on its own.
Meanwhile, as a helicopter heads out to sea to search for the boat, I know that Save the Children will be back at this quayside as soon as needed, to welcome the child minors to Italy. This incredible team will be with the children in the coming days, months and years to help them recover their sense of normalcy, and to give them a chance to be children again.
Additional notes:
Save the Children works in Sicily (including Lampedusa), Calabria and Puglia. In 2014 we worked with almost 26.000 children who were rescued at sea by the Italian Navy and brought to these regions through the operation known as Mare Nostrum. The Save the Children teams in Sicily, Puglia and Calabria consist of legal advisors, cultural mediators and program advisors. Save the Children works closely with our partners UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), IOM (International Organization for Migration) and the Italian Red Cross. The project to assist migrants is known as the Praesidium project, coordinated by the Italian Ministry of the Interior and financed jointly by the Ministry of the Interior and the European Union.
Save the Children focuses on accompanied children (who have come with one or more family members) and unaccompanied children with the aim identify the children’s needs and refer them to specialized services or organizations, to ensure that the correct identification and protection services are implemented, monitor the standards of service in the various reception facilities where minors are transferred to and to facilitate where appropriate the reunification of children with family members who are residents in Italy or in other European countries.
*Name changed to protect identity
– Sarah Tyler, Head of Communications, International Programs, Save the Children
