Seven days at the Border

As I went back to Vienna mid September 2015 after two weeks at my parents in Belgium, I discovered that a group of citizen called SOS Konvoi was gathering resources for the refugees stuck at the border crossings in the Balkans and were organizing convoys to distribute them where it was needed. I decided to pay them a visit at their “office” in Vienna. I was confident that my skills and experience could be of use. The next morning, I was on my way with eight other volunteers in three cars filled with supplies.

After Hungarians authorities had closed the last gap in their fence near Röszke, the buses coming from the Serbian-Macedonian border were rerouted to a border crossing near the Serbian town of Sid. The first refugees arrived in Tovarnik -a 2000 inhabitant village located 1km from the border- in the morning of September 16th. When we arrived in Tovarnik at dusk the following day, there were about 10.000 refugees camping in the village, contained by the police in two area: the train station and a large empty area surrounding grain silos.

A handful of SOS Konvoi volunteers had arrived the preceding day. After distributing the supplies they brought directly out of their cars, they tried to figure out how they could help but failed to do so due to the overwhelming situation and lack of practical experience. The Croatian red cross had established a base at the train station, but the area was locked down by the police : the refugees couldn’t get in or out the area until they could get on a train to continue their journey and the Red Cross wouldn’t let other volunteers join their efforts.

As for the people in the silo area, no support whatsoever was provided by authorities and NGOs. After distributing the little resources we brought directly from the back of our cars, we decided to set up a proper base during the night for distributing the supplies that we knew would be coming the following days.

Starting with a handful of volunteers and two frail pavilions the next morning, this “distribution center” would become in the following days a massive 30 meter long structure made of tarps and pallets, a buzzing area where tens of volunteers would take shifts in preparing sandwiches, sorting clothes and shoes, distributing food and water, diapers and toothbrushes. Cars and vans would arrive by the dozen from Austria, Czech republic, Hungary, Germany, and even northern England ! Goods would be either unloaded directly at the center and distributed right away or stored in a garage local people lent us for safe storage.

On Sunday, the last refugees were bussed out the silo area and the distribution center had become obsolete. We continued distributing at the train station that night, where some refugees had been waiting outside for days guarded by police in what had become a stinking cesspool covered with garbage.

On Monday, the incoming flow would be held in the five hundred meter No-man’s land between the Serbian and Croatian police control stations. Six thousand people, including children would have to spend the night with temperatures as low as nine degrees without any kind of life support except for an attempt of the red cross to attend to the 1000 lucky ones on the Croatian side.

Being forbidden by the Croatian authorities to operate on the Croatian ground, we had to move all our supplies and volunteers to Serbia through another border crossing. We set up a small pavilion, and distributed tirelessly thousands of meals, water bottles, warm clothes and blankets. By 11AM the next day, the no man’s land was empty, the refugees being bussed away again and moved to the refugee camp of Opatovac, where 2000 refugees would spend the next night outside again, waiting in line to enter the camp. And so we moved our activities over there again and restarted an organized distribution in a few hours.

I came back to Vienna on Thursday 24th, one week after my arrival. As most volunteers, I was exhausted by the tireless work and the lack of sleep. But I was proud of having achieved to coordinate efficiently the efforts of tens of independent volunteers, relocating our activities every 24h for 4 days in a row and providing basic life support more efficiently than any official organization. But most of all, sending a clear message to these human beings we helped : you are welcome.

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