Serbia, appalling cul-de-sac for refugees
More than 7,000 refugees find themselves stranded in Serbia,
due to the closure of the borders of the European Union.
In Belgrade, the living conditions of some illegals are frightening,
despite the efforts of the local …Refugees are suffering from extreme cold,
disease, lack of medication, water, food.
There are hundreds of underage kids without any support.
 Since the early 2000s, Greece has become the major gateway into the European Union for undocumented migrants and asylum seekers from Asia and Africa. Years of mismanaged migration and asylum policies and, most recently, the deep economic crisis, have changed the demographics of the entire country. The center of Athens, in particular, has a large population of foreigners livin
Dozens of migrants and asylum seekers line up for a meal at a soup kitchen on Sofokleous street in central Athens.
 Since the early 2000s, Greece has become the major gateway into the European Union for undocumented migrants and asylum seekers from Asia and Africa. Years of mismanaged migration and asylum policies and, most recently, the deep economic crisis, have changed the demographics of the entire country. The center of Athens, in particular, has a large population of foreigners livin
GREECE: HATE ON THE STRRET
Xenophobic violence
In a country suffering a deep economic crisis, and after years of mismanaged migration and asylum policies, gangs of Greeks attack migrants and asylum seekers in central Athens and elsewhere in the country with frightening regularity. Human Rights Watch documented the failure of the police and the judiciary to prevent and punish rising attacks on migrants. Authorities have yet to develop a preventive policing strategy, while victims are discouraged from filing official complaints. Greek courts have yet to convict anyone under the country's 2008 hate crime statute. Special Feature:http://www.hrw.org/features/greece-hate-on-the-streets
PATRAS, GREECE –JULY 2011: Chased away by the police from the port city of Patras, many Afghans are hiding into the countryside which surrounds the city. With no access to running water or electricity, here they live on whatever they can find from the city’s garbage, waiting until they find a passage out of the country through the international port of Patras by stowing away in one of the passing traiding trucks heading to Central and Northern Europe. July 2011. Patras, Greece.
ORESTIADA, GREECE – AUGUST 2011: Afghan men just arrived near the border town of Orestiada, after illegally crossing the border between Greece and Turkey. August 2011. Orestiada, Greece.
SIDIRO, GREECE – AUGUST 2011: A wilted sunflower is standing alone on a mass grave for migrants near the town of Sidiro, Evros, the northernmost part of Greece close to the Turkish border. The graves are unmarked, unidentified, and unnumbered. There are currently approximately of 300 unidentified bodies apparently buried at the site.
PATRAS, GREECE –JULY 2011: Chased away by the police from the port city of Patras, many Afghans are hiding into the countryside which surrounds the city. With no access to running water or electricity, here they live on whatever they can find from the city’s garbage, waiting until they find a passage out of the country through the international port of Patras by stowing away in one of the passing traiding trucks heading to Central and Northern Europe. July 2011. Patras, Greece.
Walking in Quicksand:
Afghans in Greece
Ten years after the fall of the Taliban and the intervention of the international community in Afghanistan, Afghans continue to be the most exiled people in the world. In 2010, three out of ten refugees in the world were originating from Afghanistan. Disillusioned and dispirited from a peace that never comes, Afghans are on exile’s road again. Greece, Europe’s first entry point from the East is receiving the biggest numbers of migrants and asylum-seekers from Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East, with Afghans, of course, topping the list of nationalities in need of international protection. Greece has been condemned by almost all international human rights organizations for the most dysfunctional asylum system in Europe, non-existent refugee reception procedures and human rights violations.
©ZALMAÏ 2012
©ZALMAÏ 2012
©ZALMAÏ 2012
©ZALMAÏ 2012
GHOST WAR: PLAYING WITH EMPIRES
dOCUMENTA 13
Over centuries Afghanistan has been the playground of empires, east
and west, looking to reshape its independent and mystical expanse of
land. These ghost wars haunt Afghanistan still, in modern times with
tanks and drones, barbed wire and the fall out from superpowers.
Despite three decades of war Afghans have taken their pain and
sculpted a new existence in the shadow of conflict. Billions of
dollars dedicated to destruction have been the impetus for a new life
force. Thousands of pieces of machinery have been broken down to formthe basis of their slow motion of recovery.
The force of destruction has lead to a rebirth, a reinvention of
identity through the redefinition of war related objects. Military
equipment provides a toolkit for the reinterpretation of war itself,
breaching the imagery imposed by the mind, freeing the spirit.
Afghan FaceBook
ECLIPSE
Return Afghanistan
For more than a quarter of a century, Afghanistan has been ravaged by war, drought, and famine. Afghan-born photographer Zalmaï returns home after twenty-three years in exile to rediscover his homeland at a crucial moment of transition. Working in rich color, and frequently using a panoramic format that embraces the vastness of the sky and sand, Zalmaï immerses us in the ravaged landscape and the bustle of reconstruction. His project tries to capture the resilience of a people who have rarely known peace, their optimism in the face of overwhelming odds and the very real worry that the country remains on a knife-edge and could easily slip back into a nightmare from which it is still trying to escape.environment, many are finding this experience traumatizing.
Colombia
In Colombia, the ongoing internal conflicts between La FARC and other paramilitary groups have forced more than 3.3 million flee their homes and seek shelter elsewhere in the country. Internally displaced people mostly come from the countryside where they have spent all their lives. They move to big cities like Bogota, Medellin, or Cartagena. Struggling to adapt to the unfamiliar urban environment, many are finding this experience traumatizing.
Victims of xenophobia in South Africa
South Africa has yet to recover from the May 2008 upsurge of xenophobic attacks, which spread through most parts of the country, killing more than 60 people and displacing about 100,000 others. Most of the victims were refugees and asylum-seekers from Zimbabwe, Somalia and other African countries. Now most of them live rough on the streets, or cramped in apartments in townships.