![]() Read more: On the edge of the EU, refugee flows flood a river "We will have refugee teachers in the Greek class, then eventually we will mix the two groups," he explains. Two camp residents, Thierry Harbonimana and Kwizera Ahmed Aimable (photo at top), both from Burundi, are working as teachers alongside him. One solution Zeivekis and MOTG are working on is twin digital learning labs - one at Moria camp and another in the island's main town of Mytilene, teaching IT skills to both migrants and Greeks. "I wanted to see if I could get involved and help both somehow." ![]() "I'm from here and grew up here, so I understand both sides of the problem," he explains. Every time they play together, it gets a bit easier and people relax more."Īnother Lesbos resident keen to build bridges is Adonis Zeivekis, 25, from the village of Thermi, a few kilometers north of Moria. But my son enjoyed it and he made friends with some of the kids. Spyros Lalos, whose 10-year-old son plays in the tournament, says: "I think a lot of people were nervous at the idea, both parents and the children. "Most parents here have just been thanking us for starting a sports league, as it's not something they would always be able to afford to send their kids to." Greek and refugee kids are coming together over football Image: DW/J. If a family's goat is stolen because people in the camp are so desperate, that has a big impact. "Moria village is not wealthy, most people are in day-to-day survival mode. "Kids don't care about labels, they make friends with anyone," says Tanja Matijevic, an environmental scientist now working as a soccer coach. Read more: Melissa Network: A hive built by migrant women The tournament aims to bring children together first - and, through this, their parents. The forced ghettoization of camp residents, along with cultural differences and fears of crime and violence, means building trust between the communities is no easy task. One of the most successful projects has been a football tournament for children from the camp and from Moria village. ![]() He explains that, when he first asked Nikos Trakellis, the president of Moria village, what might benefit his community, he burst into tears because "no one had ever asked him such a question before." "Hundreds of volunteers from northern Europe and America came here, but none were listening to the local community and what they felt was needed," says Adil Izemrane, co-founder of grassroots NGO Movement on the Ground (MOTG), which is supporting a number of such projects. ![]() This is why, on the ground, focus is turning to projects that can benefit both refugees and the local Greek community and help revive this small island that has shouldered far more than its fair share of a global issue. As Panos, who runs a local food wholesaler, says: "The EU and the Greek government have turned this island into a warehouse of lost souls." Locals like Panos feel like the island has been left alone Image: DW/J. Local villagers, who were often first responders at the height of the crisis, have grown to feel bitter and ignored. Tourist numbers on the island remain 50 percent of what they were at their peak, many local businesses have closed, and petty crime such as theft has stoked community tensions. The notorious Moria camp, built to house 2,500 people but currently holding almost 8,000, has been declared "the worst refugee camp in the world" by aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres, with high levels of violence and children as young as 10 attempting suicide.Īnd it's not just impacting those housed there. But although the hotels have emptied of journalists and visitors are once again strolling around the pretty harbor, the crisis hasn't disappeared. It's been three years since the picturesque Greek island of Lesbos was thrust into the world's spotlight, when around 3,000 people arrived on its beaches every day during the height of the refugee crisis.
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