Hope away from home: Marking World Refugee Day 2023 in Greece

Each year on 20 June, we honour the strength, the courage and the resilience of millions of people around the world that have been forced to flee their homes. In the aftermath of the tragic shipwreck off Pylos, UNHCR in cooperation with refugee and host communities, authorities, non-governmental organizations and local actors, commemorated World Refugee Day 2023 in Greece with the profound acknowledgement that this world is tragically short on solutions for people forced to flee.

Calling for a world where refugees are always included, the events organized across the country highlighted the need for more hope and opportunities. Through exhibitions, discussions, screenings and participatory activities, refugee voices and creativity came to the fore, while participants shared moments of compassion and solidarity. Refugees do not want handouts, they want the opportunity to live, the opportunity to be heard and the opportunity to belong.

Athens

Hope Away from Home: Event under the Refugee Week Greece Festival

On World Refugee Day, UNHCR, along with refugee communities and partners, hosted an event at T.A.F. / The Art Foundation, as part of the Refugee Week Greece festival.

During the fourth session of the “Refugees Speaking to Refugees” open discussions, focusing on women’s empowerment and inclusion, Yana Danyu talked about her career path in Ukraine and how she came to have her own collection of clothes and jewellery before the war. Yana pointed out that the main challenge she faced in Greece was the language barrier, as well as the bureaucracy that is needed to start a new business. While she is trying to revive her own business with the help of a counselling programme run by Nostos NGO with the support of UNHCR, she explained that refugees need financial support and a way to certify their skills.  Soodabeh Balesini from Iran, who left behind her life and studies some 27 years ago, spoke about her journey in Greece and how she came to work as an interpreter “feeling proud to have helped so many people at every stage of their reception”. While there were no support schemes for refugees when she arrived in Greece, as she explained, she kept hope alive through the support she had from people around her. “We should look back to the past, to the obstacles we managed to overcome and take strength from that. Nothing is impossible,” was the message she wanted to send to other refugees.

“Refugees Speaking to Refugees” session was followed by screenings presenting the “Video and Storytelling Lab“, implemented by Karpos, Center of Education & Intercultural Communication, with the support of UNHCR, the film ‘Only My Voice’ by Myriam Rey and two films by Karpos produced within the ‘Speak Up! Media For Inclusion’ project. During the discussion that followed under the moderation of Natalia Galgos, two participants of the “Video and Storytelling Lab”, George Chalakheshashvili and Ornela Ntokο, trainer and film director Maria Leonidas, and filmmaker Myriam Rey shared their experiences about the complexity and ethics of filming on social issues and how filming can be a vehicle of compassion in action.

At the same time, the audience had the opportunity to visit the exhibition “Living in-between”, hosting artworks on the refugee past and presented by nine art groups and artists, including with refugee background. A dedicated “Makers Market” space hosted handmade creations and jewelry by displaced women from Ukraine and Iran, as well as a workshop on how to make handmade pins. Children enjoyed recreational activities by childcare assistants, refugee and migrant women who have been trained in the context of a project by METAdrasi and UNHCR.

 

Cooking #WithRefugees Festival

Athenians enthusiastically embraced the Cooking #WithRefugees Food Festival, that returned to the city from 18 to 22 June, highlighting the power of food to bring people together, inspire and create bonds and opportunities.

Greek and refugee chefs joined forces at Shedia Home, Lontza tis Geitonias, Lost Athens and Stoa Kerameikos to serve dishes inspired by Syrian, Afghan, Ukrainian and Cameroonian cuisine. Mariia and Kostas, Diane and Agapi, Roya with Eleni and Myrto and Adel with Gogo showcased what coexistence and inclusion mean in practice, and how much we can learn about people through their food.

The Cooking #WithRefugees Festival was organized with the support of METAdrasi, Saffron Kitchen Project and Elahe Penhan.

Evros

On the occasion of World Refugee Day, Alexandroupolis Demokritos Airport hosts as of 23 June 2023 the exhibition “Memories and Emotions”, which presents original texts, daily photos from mobile phones and sketches made by refugees who have crossed through Evros region.

Meanwhile, on 19 June, UNHCR office in Evros joined the Academies of Orestis Orestiados Football Club, during an event promoting the message “WE PLAY – UNITED – WE SCORE”, while on 20 June families and children had the opportunity to attend a film screening organized at the Reception and Identification Centre of Fylakio.

Heraklion

Heraklion Development Agency, UNHCR’s municipal partner on Crete, released on June 20 the documentary “ESTIA: traces of a journey”, during an event organized at the Youth Centre of the Municipality of Heraklion addressed to refugee communities and humanitarian workers.

The documentary captures the six-year experience developed by Heraklion Development Agency in the field of refugees, focusing on the memories of both the refugees hosted on Crete and the people who supported them in their new beginning. The screening of the film was followed by an open discussion about the common challenges faced by people from different countries, cultures and experiences whose paths cross in the most unexpected ways.

Watch the documentary here:

Thessaloniki

On the occasion of World Refugee Day and the end of the school year, UNHCR and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) organized an event for children and families at the City Hall of Thessaloniki and Pedion tou Areos park, under the auspices of the Municipality of Thessaloniki and with co-funding by the European Union within UNICEF’s “All Children in Education” (ACE) project.

More than 300 children and family members participated in the event which included interactive games, sports, STEM and geography workshops and activities promoting inclusion by civil society organizations and UNHCR and UNICEF partners, including SolidarityNow, METAdrasi, ARSIS-KOYN, the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) and the Hellenic Theatre/Drama & Education Network (TENet). The International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Hellenic Basketball Federation and the Hellenic Olympic Committee also supported the event with targeted activities. The Mayor of Thessaloniki, Konstantinos Zervas, the US Ambassador to Greece, George Tsounis, as well as representatives of the local and central authorities honoured the event with their presence.

Ioannina

The city of Ioannina hosted this year the launch event of the Refugee Week Greece arts festival, with the support of the Municipality of Ioannina in the memory of the late Mayor Moses Elisaf, who promoted during his tenure the extroversion of – the already multicultural – City of Ioannina and ensured the development of inclusive policies for all the communities living in the city.

Honouring the theme of Refugee Week Greece 2023 which is “compassion in action” the city’s residents, various actors and refugees participated in workshops, screenings, an open kitchen event and other activities that took place in Litharitsia Park. The events were supported, among others, by the Cities Network for Integration, which Moses Elisaf embraced from the very first moment he took over as Mayor.

A series of events and activities took place in the city of Ioannina from 20 to 25 June with the support and participation of institutions and organizations including UNHCR,  IOM under HELIOS project funded by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum, and several local organizations and groups.

Kos

On 20 June people on Kos island had the opportunity to watch Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Danish documentary-animation “Flee”, which made history in 2022 Oscar Awards being the first film ever to get nominations on the Best Animated Feature Film, Best Documentary Feature, and Best International Feature Film categories. The film, screened by UNHCR and hosted at the “Orpheus” open air cinema, narrates the true story of Amin Nawabi’s (the name is not real, but the story is) flight from Afghanistan at a young age, on an Homeric journey to freedom. The story is a reminder of the journeys of millions of refugees around the world who managed to rebuild their lives, but never stopped carrying their trauma.

Larissa

Larissa city honored World Refugee Day with an awareness-raising event that included storytelling by unaccompanied minors and artistic activities with the participation of children from the refugee and local community.

The event, which took place on 20 June at the Central Larissa Square, was organized by the City of Larissa Council for the Integration of Migrants and Refugees (SEMP) in cooperation with the Larissa and Koutsochero Refugee Education Coordinators of the Ministry of Education, the Community Centre and the Children’s Creative Activity Centre of the Municipality of Larissa, the Association of Pontians of Larissa, the historical Folklore Association of Larissa “All-memorable Homelands”, the Cultural Association of Asia Minor of the Prefecture of Larissa, the Centre for the Prevention of Addictions and Promotion of Psychosocial Health of Larissa “Orpheus” – Okana, the Ergastirio Zois, IOM’s Helios Programme funded by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum, UNHCR, as well as the organizations SolidarityNow, Intersos, DRC, One – stop – shop, KINONIKO EKAV and KEAN.

The President of SEMP, Dimitris Deligiannis, stressed that World Refugee Day symbolizes “a society of solidarity, a society that respects human life, and defends European values”.

Leros

A football tournament was co-organised on 17 and 18 June by UNHCR office on Kos and the Reception and Identification Service of the Closed Controlled Access Centre (CCAC) on Leros island, with the participation of refugees and asylum-seekers and local actors.

The football teams that were formed and actively participated in the tournament included refugees, staff of the Reception and Identification Service, the Greek Police, a security company, and UNHCR. The Municipality of Leros, which offered the local stadium, and the Leros Search and Rescue Team, that supported the safe participation of the players, contributed to the successful implementation of the tournament.

A multicultural festivity was held on 19 June by the Non-formal Education Centre of ARSIS on Leros (LEDU), with the support of UNHCR. The event, addressed to refugees and locals, was hosted in a municipal space near the Lakki theatre and included, among others, a chess tournament, a painting exhibition, children’s workshops, as well as a dramatized narration of the children’s book “The Suitcase” by the theatre group of Leros.

Lesvos

The local community on Lesvos island welcomed an exhibition by children with ceramics, paintings and photography, organized on 19 and 20 June by UNHCR in cooperation with the Mytilene Deputy Mayor of Social Welfare and Solidarity and the primary schools of Loutra, Thermi, Papados and Kato Tritos.

After a moving opening speech by Moad, a refugee from Iraq, who welcomed the visitors and shared the challenges he faced in Greece, the young artists from the refugee and host community proudly presented their colourful creations. Teachers, representatives of the Reception and Identification Service and the North Aegean Regional Directorate of Education, as well as members of the local community honoured the exhibition with their presence, enjoyed the original creations by children and expressed their wish for more such events in the future. 

Samos

UNHCR Office on Samos commemorated World Refugee Day through a variety of events, including a Human Library session, an exhibition of art crafts, clothes and items in fabric made by refugees and the screening of the Netflix film “The Swimmers”, which is inspired by the true story of the athlete and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Yusra Mardini, and her sister Sara.

“I am happy to share my works” said one of the creators of the exhibition, hosted at the Amphitheatre of Samos Regional Unit. “I take every opportunity to learn something new and use my time to keep myself busy, otherwise I think about different things which are not good for me.”

“What gives you the strength to hope?” Refugees who participated as “human books” in the Human Library activity were called to respond to this question sharing their stories with the visitors at the meeting room of the Municipality of Eastern Samos. Stories of hope and resilience, unfolded through the pages of the books creating moments of understanding and mutual respect. “Hope overcomes the difficulty of life,” wrote one visitor after the activity, while another added: “It gave me strength. I hope we can all be so optimistic.”

The Regional Unit of Samos and the Municipality of Eastern Samos contributed to the organization of the events with the allocation of spaces, as well as PRAKSIS, METAdrasi, Eurorelief and ARSIS.

Chios

UNHCR Office on Chios island marked World Refugee Day in cooperation with METAdrasi organizing interactive games for children hosted in the reception centre of the island. The messages and the drawings around this year’s theme “Hope away from Home” created by the adult and minor students of METAdrasi’s classes were exhibited at the Kalos Tea I area inside the centre.

Refugee Week Greece

UNHCR participated for another year in the Refugee Week festival, taking  place for the second time in Greece from 19 to 25 June 2023, on the occasion of World Refugee Day. The Festival included activities from several groups, citizens and institutions across the country. The event is an initiative of We are Community and Athens Comics Library in collaboration with the British organization Counterpoints Arts.

The theme of this year’s festival was compassion calling everyone to honour together the concept of compassion in action and to develop a common understanding and perception around it.

Partners and programmes supported by UNHCR took part in the festival through various activities. Indicatively:

• Photography contest by the Cities Network for Integration (CNI) on the theme “Capturing compassion in my city!” (Deadline: 3 July).
• The Athens Coordination Center for Migrant and Refugee issues of the City of Athens (ACCMR) and the Migrant Integration Center of the City of Athens (KEM) in collaboration with the volunteer group “Bridges” presented at Myrtillo Café the results of the activity “Word Relay”, a three-month writing journey with the final destination of a collective short story-adventure with the title “It’s all Dumas’ fault”. The activity was supported by UNHCR and IOM.

See more: https://refugeeweek.gr

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