Lesvos has a long immigration tradition and being a so-called hotspot of 24 000 refugees, the citizens of this island are used to a lot of suffering and hardship. Now we are dealing with its newest arrival, namely coronavirus.
Lesvos says no to corona – OXI! With belief and conviction we are trying to confront the fight head on with the tools that we have: Young refugees from left alone countries like Afghanistan or Syria try to do the unthinkable – find ways to deal with this pandemic threat within an area where no WHO-advice against COVID-19 can be followed. The camp is totally overcrowded, it has no proper water supply, it is filled with garbage and thousands of people live in improvised tents.
Initiated by local teachers, professors, and small business owners Stand By Me Lesvos started 2015 working with refugees. As members of the community of Lesvos they know the difficult economic situation faced by the people of Lesvos, and the difficulties of the refugees arriving here. 2016 the Academia close to Moria Camp was established, a school project where women and children found a quite place for learning and escape the Camp for some hours. Classes run by international volunteers, students and local teachers till March 2020, due the Corona Crises the place turned into a sewingfactory where women started producing masks for the refugees and the habitants of Moria and Mytilini.
The Moria Corona Awareness Team (MCAT) aka Moria White Helmets ties up on the tradition of the civil Syrian organization, is taking care for the waste management and sanitation – all working hard to prevent the spread of coronavirus on the island. They are a group of people in Moria Camp in Lesvos who are organizing themselves to face the Corona Crisis. The teams are cooperating with the Greeks and organization who want to help. They are teachers, pharmacists and other professionals from many nationalities.
Refugee Corona Information Resource (CIR) is an international collaborative network providing pertinent information about corona virus, for refugees living in Greece.
The Leros Corona Awareness Team (LCAT) help refugees in Leros. More than 2000 are almost forgotten there on this remote islands. But they also don’t want to just wait until disaster is coming and take things in their hand.