THE REFUGEE BACK – SCRIPT
00:27:26.24
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT HE DOESN’T LEAVE US ALONE BEFORE WE LEAVE
ABU HAMED, WHERE ARE YOU? PLEASE CONTACT ME
TOMORROW I’LL BE FLYING AND I WANT TO KNOW
WHAT’S THE PLAN
PLEASE CALL ME BACK
TITLE: Syria’s Returning Refugees
I THINK IT IS A BORDER PATROL
IT SOUNDS LIKE AN AIRPLANE
I DON’T THINK SO
I CAN’T SEE IT, BUT THE SOUND COMES FROM THE RIVER
00:28:20 I am tired. I am not good.
00:28:23 Are you afraid?
00:28:24 Are you afraid? Are you nervous?
00:28:31 No.
00:28:36 Essen,
Germany.
00:28:57.16
00:28:38 We are on our way to meet a man who fled from Syria two years
ago.
00:28:42 But now he plans to return home. Illegally.
00:28:50 It is here so it is somewhere. Yes, it is here somewhere, yes.
211.
00:28:57 I am accompanied by Brandpunt-collega
Sakir Khader.
00:29:01 It must be
here.
00:29:01.20
00:29:29:05 Yes.
00:29:07 Sakir made contact
with the man weeks ago.
00:29:12 Tomorrow the Syrian wants to leave and
he has agreed to let us go with him.
Two years ago, the 38 year old Aboud and his family fled IS.
00:29:28 The journey through Europe was
life-threatening. 00:29:28.18
00:29:36 So that is on its way to Macedonia?
HERE WE WERE IN SLOVENIA
THERE WE STAYED ABOUT…
LESBOS, MACEDONIA, SLOVENIA
SERBIA. I DON’T EXACTLY KNOW THE ORDER, BUT THIS WAS IN A CAMP
WE WERE STUCK THERE MORE THAN TEN DAYS
THESE ARE MY CHILDREN. THIS WAS JUST BEFORE WE WENT TO GERMANY
OF COURSE I LOVE ALL MY
CHILDREN JUST AS MUCH
ALL THE TIME I WAS THINKING: WHO DO I HAVE TO SAVE?
I CAN SWIM MYSELF
BUT IF SOMETHING HAPPENS, WHO DO I HAVE TO SAVE?
ABDUL RAGMANI OR ABDUL RAHUF, LUJAIN OR SIHAM?
THAT WAS VERY DIFFICULT
THE MOST DIFFICULT MOMENT OF MY LIFE WAS ON THE BOAT WITH MY CHILDREN
I THOUGHT OF WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE BOAT WOULD SINK
THESE ARE RUSSIAN BOMBS
RUSSIAN?
BOMBS BY RUSSIANS AND ASSAD ON CIVILIAN POPULATION
THIS IS THE TOWN MY MOTHER LEFT
00:30:51 Aboud’s mother stayed behind in
Syria.
00:30:30:54 But the war got so bad that she too has fled.
I LAST SPOKE TO HER THE DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY
THEY WANTED TO CROSS THE TURKISH BORDER
THEY WERE CAUGHT BY THE TURKISH BORDER POLICE
…AND SENT BACK TO SYRIA. THE NEXT DAY THEY WERE BACK AGAIN.
HAVE YOU TRIED THE OTHER SMUGGLAR?
HE DIDN’T REACT EITHER
00:31:24 To take care of his mother, Aboud
wants to travel to Turkey .
00:31:27 And he is not the only one. It seems as
though networks exist throughout Europe.... 00:31:28.04
00:31:32 to get refugees back to Turkey and Syria illegally.
00:31:31:38 Okay, what do we see here? This is a Facebook group....
00:31:42 in which people inform.....
00:31:44 to the route back home. Where do those people come from?
00:31:48 From all over Europe. I have spoken to people from Germany... 00:32:00:00.09
00:31:51 Netherlands, Sweden, Norway.
00:31:54 Yes, in fact, everywhere.
00:31:31:57 And they seek contact with each other, but also with
smugglers?
00:32:00 Yes. There are also many smugglers in that Facebook page.
00:32:32:04 How many people is it about? How many pages are there?
00:32:05.10
00:32:07 I have seen at least five pages, which contains hundreds of
people.
00:32:10 Unbelievable. Look.
00:32:15 Not long ago, hundreds of thousands of people swamped
Europe....
00:32:20 who fled the the violence of war in
the Middle East. Many of them came from Syria.
Two years down the line, some asylum seekers are now trying to leave
Europe, either because they can’t afford settle here, can’t get asylum, or
would rather return to their families.
ARE YOU READY FOR IT?
GOD BLESS US
00:32:40 Over a quarter of an hour, the train from.... five over half
past two.
00:32:45 It goes to Düsseldorf Airport.
00:32:48 And then fly to Thessaloniki, in Greece.
00:32:51 And from there the journey
continues.
00:32:54.14
00:32:57 People like Aboud cannot travel
directly back to Syria or Turkey....
00:33:01 because they do not have the correct papers.
00:33:33:04 So only an illegal trip remains.
00:33:07 This means that they are once again at the mercy of smugglers,
traders and dangerous border crossings.
00:33:13 Just like two years ago, when they came to
Europe. 00:33:14.11
HELLO. HELLO, MY FRIEND
HOW ARE YOU?
GOOD
I AM NOW AT THE BUS STATION. WHERE DO I HAVE TO GO?
SO YOU’RE THERE. GO
TO COUNTER NO. 18 AND BUY A TICKET TO LAVARA
00:33:33:43 I can also buy a ticket and go along, but that is not
allowed. Why?
00:33:33:47 Smugglers are afraid of Westerners there.
00:33:50 They soon think it is someone from the Greek police....
00:33:54 or from another unit.
00:33:33:56 And they are afraid that then the gang will be rolled up. So there is no real trust in a
Westerner.
00:34:01.22
00:34:34:02 So we just have to drive behind and
see how far it goes?
00:34:06 Precise. I don't know yet how it is going to run.
00:34:09 You know, traffickers, they are traffickers in human beings.
00:34:34:13 You do not know what you find there.
IN A COUPLE OF HOURS YOU WILL START YOUR TRAVEL
TO TURKEY
BUT THAT IS DANGEROUS
THE JOURNEY IS DANGEROUS
AND ALSO IN TURKEY THERE
ARE RISKS. AREN’T YOU AFRAID?
OF COURSE I AM NERVOUS
BECAUSE I TRAVEL WITHOUT A VISA
BUT STILL I HAVE TO DO IT, BECAUSE I DEFINITELY
HAVE TO SEE MY MOTHER
I HAVE TO TAKE THE RISK. SHE IS FLEEING FROM
WAR NOW
SHE DOESN’T HAVE A PASSPORT OR VISA TO CROSS THE TURKISH BORDER EITHER
SO I HAVE TO SEE HER
THANK YOU
AT YOUR SERVICE
HAVE A GOOD JOURNEY, GOOD LUCK
THANK YOU, GOODBYE
00:34:58
Success.
00:35:02.01
00:35:01 Well, this is the next step in the illegal return....
00:35:06 to Turkey, Europe out.
00:35:09 It starts at a bus station in Thessaloniki.
00:35:11 Aboud wants to return to Germany
after visiting his mother.
00:35:15:15 But that’s not the case for everyone. 00:35:17.12
00:35:18 We have only just started on our way to the border when we
receive a call via WhatsApp.
I AM IN ISTANBUL
I SAID IN A WHATSAPP GROUP THAT I HAVE A RESIDENCY VISA FOR THE
NETHERLANDS
WHICH IS VALID FOR FIVE YEARS. A REAL ONE, NOT FALSIFIED. I WANT TO SELL
IT
00:35:35:35 Aboud is not the only one.
00:35:38 To finance trips such as these, people will offer their
passports and residence permits.
00:35:43 It is now six o' clock in the morning.
00:35:46 We are 400 kilometres further.... 00:35:51.02
00:35:49 and drive behind the bus.
00:35:52 We are now in the last village for the border with Turkey.
00:35:55 And now it is waiting where the bus will stop....
00:35:59 and they let the people out to make them disappear in the
forest.
WE NOW WALK TO THE COORDINATES…
WE GOT SENT FROM THE BOYS…
AT THE CROSSING POINT. I’LL KEEP YOU POSTED
00:36:24 Sakir has arrived.... 00:36:25.19
00:36:27 Somewhere over there....
00:36:30 in those bunches.
00:36:32 There they have to cross the river
somewhere to Turkey.
00:36:35 And that river is the outer border of Europe.
00:36:39 And then the bizarre situation occurs.... 00:36:41.13
00:36:42 that we saw all those people coming here in recent years....
00:36:46 to Europe, and now more and more people are moving in the other
direction....
00:36:51 still illegal, out of Europe, back in Turkey.
ABOUT 200 METERS LEFT
WE’RE ALMOST THERE
WE’RE ALMOST THERE
00:37:12 Sakir filmed Aboud
making contact with the other refugees.
00:37:22 Sakir has a GPS tracker with us, so
we can see where he is. 00:37:22.05
00:37:26 Here we are, in the Greek part.
00:37:30 This is the river, the border with Turkey. This is Turkey.
00:37:33 And there is the boat. They are ready to cross over there.
WHO DOES SMOKE? I HAVE CIGARETTES
00:37:42 We arrive at the river, and 14 other men appear to be waiting.
00:37:47 Not everyone wants to be
filmed. 00:37:48.05
00:37:49 There is even a Syrian from the Netherlands among them.
MY NAME IS ALI. ALI TAKS
I LIVE IN EMMEN
WHY DO YOU WANT TO RETURN?
I WANTED TO GET MY FIANCEE TO THE NETHERLANDS, BUT THIS REQUEST WAS
REJECTED
SHE WASN’T ALLOWED TO COME TO THE NETHERLANDS
I HAVE TRIED A FEW TIMES…
…BUT WITHOUT ANY RESULT. I WAS STUCK BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE
BUT I WANT TO BUILD UP MY LIFE
THAT’S WHY I WANT TO RETURN
I WANT TO BUILD UP MY LIFE
I DON’T WANT TO STAY HERE ALONE. I LIVE ALONE, ALONE, ALONE
00:38:48 All these men say that they want to go back to be reunited with family
in either Syria or Turkey.
00:38:53 last year, 430 asylum procedures for Syrian refugees were
terminated prematurely in the Netherlands.
00:38:38:59 And it is not clear where these people have gone.
00:39:39:03 I called the Ministry of Justice to hear what the government
can do for returnees.
00:39:03.05
00:39:39:07 If you have Syrian refugees who want to return to Syria, to
war zone....
00:39:39:14 is that possible?
00:39:16 According to the Ministry of Justice, asylum seekers who wish
to return voluntarily....
00:39:20 will be assisted by the International Organisation for
Migration, the IOM.
00:39:25:25 But why is the group we have been following have to make the
crossing illegally?
00:39:30 I call the IOM to find answers.
00:39:33 You speak with Tom Kleijn van Brandpunt.
00:39:36 The IOM says that the refugees are offered aid in returning to
either Syria or turkey.
00:39:41 Syria is too dangerous and the
refugees often do not have the necessary papers.
00:39:46 The only option left is to cross borders illegally
00:39:47.08
HE HAS TO TAKE THAT STICK WITH HIM
WHAT’S UP?
WHAT’S GOING ON?
- WE’RE WAITING FOR
THE BOAT
THAT’S GOING ON
WHERE ARE THE SMUGGLARS?
THE SMUGGLAR DOESN’T EVEN DARE TO GET IN THE WATER
HE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT OUR LIVES, HE ONLY CARES ABOUT OUR MONEY
I HOPE ONE OF THESE MEN WILL PICK UP THE LITTLE BOAT IN A MOMENT
00:40:24 The small boat that was supposed to get the group across the
river turns out to be on the wrong side.
00:40:28 One of the smugglers has still arrived.
00:40:31 Together with Ali, the Syrian man from Emmen, he tries to bring
the boat over.
WATCH, THE SMUGGLAR IS AFRAID
I DO THIS FOR A REASON
THIS IS NOT A BOMB. THIS MAKES MY PHONE WATERPROOF
WE IRAQIANS AND SYRIANS ARE SIMPLE PEOPLE
WE ARE DEPENDENT ON OUR PHONES
00:40:58 It turns out that the river is not very deep
00:41:02 but there is a strong current. 00:41:05.23
WE HAVE COME OVER THE WATER AND WE ARE GOING BACK OVER THE WATER
WHAT’S THAT SOUND?
I THINK IT IS A BORDER PATROL
IT SOUNDS LIKE AN AIRPLANE
I DON’T THINK SO
I CAN’T SEE IT, BUT THE SOUND COMES FROM THE RIVER
00:41:40 a false alarm.
00:41:42 On this stretch of the border, the Greek army is in the process
of carrying out exercises and manoeuvres.The
smuggler and the man from Emmen have now almost reached the other side.
00:41:51 The rest prepare themselves for the crossing.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
I AM PACKING MY PASSPORT
AND MY PHONE AND MONEY
FOLLOW IT. CATCH THAT BOAT
DO THEY HAVE TO DROWN BECAUSE OF A BOAT?
THAY HAVE TO CATCH THAT
BOAT
00:42:17 panic strikes. 00:42:18.13
00:42:19 The rubber boat is carried by the current.
I JUST SAID YOU HAD TO ENTER THAT BOAT, ASSHOLE
I DON’T THINK THE SMUGGLAR IS COMING BACK
I REALLY DON’T THINK SO
THEN I’LL KILL HIM
THE SMUGGLARS ARE LIKE ARABIAN LEADERS. ONLY TALKING
00:42:47 There are a number of other spots from
which refugees have crossed the river.
00:42:51 As is common, the bank is littered with possessions abandonned by refugees.
00:42:57 Here are all clothes. I think of people who have arrived.
00:43:02 And here is the river. 00:43:04.13
00:43:06 There is Turkey and there is a boat, for example.
00:43:10 And the hopeless, the bizarre of the story is....
00:43:14 that we have been working in Europe for many years now....
00:43:18 with that very large supply of refugees and all the problems
that that brings....
00:43:23 and now we are on the point that people want to go back....
00:43:32.11
00:43:27 and who can't, or who can't.
00:43:29 And they are ultimately then dependent on swimming or small
inflatable boats such as those.
LOOK AT THESE PICTURES
PEOPLE TAKE THESE WITH THEM AS A MEMORY TO EUROPE
EVERYONE IS TAKING A MEMORY. LOOK HERE
EVERYONE IS TAKING A MEMORY, FROM GERMANY OR FROM THE NETHERLANDS FOR
EXAMPLE
UNFORTUNATELY THESE PICTURES
DIDN’T MAKE IT TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIVER
IT IS EVEN UNSURE IF THE PEOPLE WHO BROUGHT THEM REACHED THE OTHER SIDE
THEMSELVES
LOOK HERE. THESE ARE THEIR CHILDREN THEY NEVER FORGET
BROTHER, PLEASE COME
IT ONLY LASTS A FEW SECONDS
WE DON’T HAVE A BOAT
00:44:14 Now that the dinghy is gone, the group looks for other ways
across
00:44:20 A Turkish fisherman sails by, ignoring the refugees’ calls for
help.
00:44:25 The smuggler does not dare to show himself and remains on the
opposite other side.
00:44:30.03
WE ARE HERE NOW, AREN’T WE?
ANSWER ME. WHERE DO WE HAVE TO GO?
DO WE HAVE TO WAIT OR NOT?
ARE YOU ABLE TO TAKE US TO THE OTHER SIDE OR NOT? WHAT’S THE SOLUTION?
DON’T BE SO AFRAID. COME BACK, THEN WE WILL CROSS THE RIVER ALL TOGETHER
YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO PICK UP THE BOAT AND GET US ALL
ACROSS
YOU CAN SWIM, CAN’T YOU? YOU ARE GETTING US INTO TROUBLE
IF YOU DID WHAT YOU WERE TO DO, THE BOAT WOULDN’T HAVE FLOWN AWAY
WE QUIT. I GO BACK TO GERMANY
WHAT NONSENSE IS THIS?
00:45:17 The smuggler is no longer responding to their calls.
00:45:20 There is no option remaining but crossing the river itself.
HURRY UP, WE HAVE TO GO
I’LL LEAVE THESE CLOTHES HERE
I’LL TAKE THESE TROUSERS AND THIS SWEATER WITH ME. THAT’S IT
THE BAG IS STILL ON YOUR BACK
CAN’T YOU HOLD IT ABOVE YOUR HEAD? NO, THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE
COME ON GUYS
00:46:00 Two days after the men made the crossing, we get a message from
Istanbul.
00:46:05 The Syrian German Aboud had arrived, but
the news was not good.
MY MOTHER STILL HASN’T ARRIVED IN TURKEY
I’LL WAIT UNTIL TOMORROW. TODAY I HEADED FOR THE SYRIAN BORDER
IF SHE CAN’T GET OUT OF THE COUNTRY, I WILL TRY TO GO TO HER IN SYRIA
AND THEN I’LL RETURN