Ukrainian Refugees

Radio Télévision Suisse | 12min

Postproduction script

00:00:02:03 VO: -A stroller with twins arrives at the border. In the stream of of new arrivals, here is Liliia. She was dropped off by her husband in Ukraine. She entered Romania on foot with her three children.

00:00:20:18 Liliia: We are afraid because every night we hear sirens lots of times, and our kids are afraid, they cry, they cannot sleep. It’s dangerous to stay there. I hope Russian troops won’t come to the Romanian border, but still.

0’23 Liliia

00:00:40:10 -For this family, it is the end of the nightmare. But the journey for the Ukrainian refugees has just begun.

00:00:50:19 Corina: -They're preparing supplies for the children who arrive. Putin is crazy, he won't stop in Ukraine. He dreams of rebuilding the Soviet Empire. We won't let him do it. We need Europe's help, if not the whole world.

0’54 Corina

00:01:10:06 VO: -Water, food and diapers. Emergency aid for for thousands of Ukrainians forced into exile; all were surprised by the war. The line of cars stretches for miles. We are in Ukraine. The people by the border come from all over the country. They arrive by car or on foot.

1’25 Title: UKRANIAN REFUGEES

00:01:41:21 Man: -I've taken my children to the Romanian border. I come from Kyiv. I had to leave my car and we walked 1km with two children. The rest of the family tried another customs.

00:01:57:20 VO: -At the border, people say goodbye. Men between 18 and 60 years old cannot cross. They are mobilized to defend the country. The fathers, the husbands stay here. For the others, it's a long wait.

00:02:12:17 Aliona: -We stayed there for two days, but we spent six days on the road from Kyiv. We took the small roads because there were huge traffic jams. The first part of the journey was dangerous. You had to be careful. There were many of military machines. There were even helicopters. We were scared. The people here are great. They gave us food.

2’27 Aliona

00:02:52:21 VO: -More than 150,000 Ukrainians have passed into Romania since the beginning of the invasion. The majority has crossed this corridor separating the two countries. Romania is a gateway to Europe for these Ukrainian women who are fleeing the war. We find Liliia and her children. They are temporarily installed in one of the tents set up at the Romanian border. A chance to warm up and to regain strength.

00:03:31:10 Liliia: This is the youngest one and the twins in their stroller.

-Reporter: How old are they?

-Liliia: Twins are three years old and he is two. Three and two.

-Reporter: What did you bring with you?

-Liliia: Only some clothes and one rucksack of food and that’s it. And some money of course.

3'42 Liliia

00:03:54:16 VO: -Liliia doesn't know how long her exile will last. She hopes to reach Spain. For the time being, she is looking for a place to spend the night. A steady stream of refugees arrives at the border. Faces are marked, tired. If the Romanian state struggles to deploy structures, the citizens improvise. Cornel is one of those Romanian volunteers who take part in the to organize the reception of the refugees.

00:04:34:21 Cornel: -Here we have packages with mattresses. Some are already open, look. I thought I could be in their situation, to have to put some stuff in a car and run away. In Romania, we care about these frightened citizens.

4’52 Cornel, Romanian volunteer

00:04:57:01 Cornel to Ukrainians: Yes, we just want to go the other side. What do we have? Mothers, children? Who speaks Romanian? We can find a bus and transport you quickly. Come on, come with me. How many of you are there? The group for Suceava !

00:05:25:09 VO: -When he’s not organising the help and the transport, Cornel runs a grocery store in Suceava, 40 km away from the border.

00:05:32:23 Cornel to Ukranians: -One, two, three, four. We take a family with children. I don't know exactly. We'll give them a hot meal and a place where they can rest. The hotel, here.

00:06:01:09 VO: -Tonight, these refugees will sleep in a pizzeria. We find Cornel at home, with his family. The evening was long. He also hosts refugees at home, like this mother, just arrived with her child. Her husband stayed in Ukraine. We won't know more about it; she prefers to remain discreet about her story.

00:06:30:16 Cornel: -Will this help lessen over time? Is there a risk of no longer paying attention to the refugees? I don't have any answers. But I hope, if it's necessary, that we continue to stay together. I feel tormented and helpless. Powerless to help more.

6’41 Cornel, Romanian volunteer

00:07:00:08 VO: -How long will this war last? No one know, and the number of refugees is increasing. Andriy and his family have just crossed the border. They've come from Kharkiv, a city near the Russian border hit hard by the bombings.

00:07:21:14 Andriy: I see with my own eyes fire in the sky. It’s my homeland, how can I not worry about it? We tried to receive help like a mobile card for a European phone and the guys gave it, it’s perfect.

7’22 Andriy

00:07:53:03 VO: -Because of his Bulgarian nationality, he was able to cross the border with his second passport. But he leaves his country without knowing where to go.

00:08:08:00 Andriy: I think we will sit and think what we have to do. Now I don’t know what I have to do. All my flat, my offices, my businesses, all in Kharkiv. All my activities, my money, I left it all in Kharkiv. I only have my car, my suitcase, nothing.

00:08:36:05 VO: -We leave the border zone to get back to the East. 200km of road to find Liliia and her children.

 00:08:48:11 Reporter: Hello! Nice to meet you again. How are you? Did you sleep well?

Liliia: I didn’t sleep well because of my baby. A new place and he didn’t want to sleep, you know.

08’54 Liliia

00:08:57:20 VO: -It was in the basement of this café that Liliia and other Ukrainians were given free accommodation.

00:09:08:16 Liliia: These are our beds, we stay here, the whole room is for us. This was our bed, I shared it with my three kids. It was ok. I didn’t tell them about the situation because they are small, they don’t understand about the situation in our country.

Reporter: What do you tell them?

Liliia: I just tell them we are going to the sea, so they are very happy to go there.

00:09:39:03 VO: -Some friends have managed to book a plane for them. They have to fly to Spain in a few hours.

00:09:50:06 Liliia to baby: Yes, we are going to the sea. She wants to see the sea.

00:10:03:00 VO: -Andriy and his family are also on their way. But after a night of rest, they received bad news.

00:10:20:22 Andriy: Russian rockets launched into the house of my father-in-law. He sat in the bathroom, but is worried the house will fall down. All night the house shook because of the bombs.

10’28 Andriy

00:10:48:12 VO: -Andriy has chosen to join Germany. We leave him at the roadside. Liliia and the children have reached the airport. In the rush of the departures, we have to hurry.

00:11:09:09 Liliia: They are very happy to be going to the sea. They cannot wait to go to Spain. I will tell them the truth when they go to school, I think. They will study history about Ukraine and they will learn it, not only from me but from teachers too. They will learn that Russia attacked Ukraine and Russian troops are in Ukraine, killing people, people are afraid. They must leave their country, especially women and kids. All the facts, to learn the truth.

11’22 Liliia

00:11:45:21 VO: -In a few hours, they will arrive in Spain. As promised, their mother will have shown her children the sea rather than the war.

11’57 Credits:

Raphaël Grand
Thierry Wyss
Hervé Bossy

(Ukrainian team)

Nataly Abramova
Anatolij Nikiforak
Oleksandra Ungurian
Vladislav Sevryukov