The number of refugees in Greece is increasing, with thousands having arrived over the last two months. The vast majority of them are without any assistance from NGO or government agencies and remain trapped on the islands, prevented from legally travelling to mainland Greece.

In mid-October 2017, I visited Moria and Vial camps onn Lesvos and Chios islands and was utterly shocked to see the conditions in which refugees are forced to live in both camps. In Moria, there are about 7,000 refugees in a space designed to accommodate 1,600 people. Worsening weather conditions and inadequate accommodation mean that most are sleeping on muddy floors (see photo below) and have no access to consistent water supplies (for drinking or bathing), food or medical treatment. Children in particular have no milk, and while I brought suppllies for many, this was far short of the demand. There are a huge number of number children living in both camps and also in the squatted buildings in Athens who require support. Refugees in the camps receive just 90 Euros a months, which must extend to meet all their basic needs, including purchasing food for their families. There is very little help from small NGOs and no government is providing assistance. One of the refugees whose children I bought milk for sent me a message afterwards telling me.

I also met families travelling long distances on foot, as there is little transportation and refugees have to walk for 10kms to reach Mytilene town—or even further on Chios—many carrying small babies or children with them. I bought some families prams for the babies to assist with this burden.

I also met a young Syrian woman of 18, who was being continuously abused by her husband in the camp without receiving any form of intervention or support, despite the clear signs of beating on her face. She was sharing the caravan with 15 other people and at the same time, was forced into physical relations with her husband while everyone was inside. I moved her to a secure flat, away from her husband, where she feels safe and can live with autonomy over her personal space and body. She told me after that, she now feels safe and dignified.

The cold weather is now setting in across Greece and these refugees have nothing to protect themselves against the conditions, relying only on volunteers like myself for help. Many live in tents, or behind strung-up blankets outside warehouses, which provide barely any shelter. A huge number meanwhile live in insecure and crowded squatted buildings in Athens, with zero support except from locals and a handful of individual volunteers. I am now supporting at least four families, renting them flats and covering their monthly costs—among them are families with babies and small children.

Below is a tent in Moria camp, Lesvos

Muddy floor where children sleep

In Skaramangas camp outside Athens, there are hundreds of unregistered refugees, mostly single mothers with children, who have been offered caravans but denied any support from the camp authorities. The camp does not allow small organisations to support residents, so during my last trip I gave financial assistance to a number of families, though there were many more in need.

There are dozens of families and individuals who have been stuck in Greece for over 16 months waiting to be reunited with other family members who arrived in Europe at least two years ago. There is an agonising sense of waiting on both sides and families are becoming desperate. Currently, when a family is offered the opportunity for reunification, they have to pay for their own travel, with the Greek government forcing them to buy tickets from a specific travel centre which is very expensive. Families have nowhere near enough funds to buy four or five tickets (or more in some cases) and many of them wait in vain as there is no chance of raising the money, except though individual donations from volunteers like myself. I have been helping at least five families to travel to be reunited and at present, there are four more families who are in need of help (with a total of 21 tickets needed). I am raising the money to help them as they have no single source of income and the rest of the families who are already in Europe are not able to afford the fares as they are not yet in employment. We will all be hugely grateful for your help to reunite these families after a bitter and cruel period of waiting in harsh conditions in Greece.

I have also been supporting individuals from the LGBT community who have been targeted and abused in the camps in Greece and Turkey. I recently moved a couple into a flat and also offered financial help for three other gay & lesbian refugees as they have no support from any other side.

My next trip to Greece will be in February.