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A blob of soap, a splash of warm water and two rounds of Happy Birthday later, you’re done. Handwashing has become a crucial, but admittedly bothersome, part of our new routines as we try and prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
We’re self-isolating, clapping for frontline workers and trying our best to not fall out with those around us as we work from home. But what if your cosy house was swapped for a tent on an olive grove and you were sharing a single tap with hundreds of other people?
This week, the first cases of Covid-19 were diagnosed in refugee camps. Ritsona camp near Athens, Greece has already recorded more than 20 positive cases. “It’s starting to surface,” Josie Naughton, CEO of Help Refugees tells the Standard. Known for its Choose Love campaign, the humanitarian aid movement provides funds and support for refugees and organisations helping them.
Moria, a camp on Lesbos, Greece was built for 3,000 people. There are currently 20,000 refugees residing there. Spilling over from the old prison, which is used as the official camp, families are living in tents in cramped, close proximity to each other with limited access to hygiene materials. There’s just one tap for every 1,300 people but the water is only on for a certain amount of time a day. “With these conditions,” Naughton says. “Should the virus break out, it will spread like wildfire.”
“There’s nowhere to isolate the most vulnerable, there’s nowhere to isolate those who then become sick. This is a global pandemic and people are aware of what’s happening, but they can’t follow any of the guidelines.”
Most of us have the official NHS coronavirus advice memorised: Wash your hands, maintain social distancing and stay home. While these steps have disrupted our everyday lives, they’re simple and generally easy to follow. For most refugees however, they’re impossible.
Working with 125 different grassroots organisations in 14 countries around the world, Help Refugees is currently supporting around 100,000 people. But in the face of a viral pandemic, the charity has been forced to launch an emergency appeal calling for more support than ever during these desperate times.
“We’re already seeing such tragic stories in the UK, in the US and in France where we have such a developed infrastructure and health service. For people in these communities without any support and already compromised immune systems, it feels incredibly worrying,” Naughton explains.
Much like in the UK, refugee community hubs have been forced to close and while the charity’s partners attempt to continue providing education and support remotely, there’s an even bigger battle just continuing to get basic supplies of food and medical aid to those who need it.
“There are a lot more challenges because of lockdown,” she says. “Our partners are trying to do remote support but for people who have already been through so much, it’s a huge amount to be facing.”
The lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers has been widely reported. The charity’s partners have been working alongside communities to make masks that don’t meet medical grade requirements but are “better than nothing”. Field hospital clinics are being built but access to water and hygiene items are the priority for these vulnerable communities.
“We are funding a lot of medical support so funding salaries for doctors, funding the purchase of medical equipment and so forth,” Naughton says. “Should the virus break out, the lack of access to medical care is just going to be horrific.”
“There’s no way that they can prepare for it.”
Closer to home, more than 38,000 people in the UK have now tested positive for Covid-19.
Help Refugees is one of more than 70 organisations which has signed a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, calling on him to provide support and policy change for vulnerable individuals such as the homeless and elderly “who are in drastic, dire need of government assistance”.
“Right now there are a lot of people who are falling outside of the system and that includes refugees and asylum seekers who aren’t able to get food or hygiene items, and are completely reliant on services that aren’t even working,” explains Naughton.
As “some of the very most vulnerable”, Help Refugees is concerned the current situation will see many asylum seekers and refugees falling through the gaps.
“This is a time when we need to come together, we need to support everyone, and we need to not see our differences,” she says. “If people are able to help us with donations and particularly for the work we are doing abroad with people who are living in camps and aren’t able to do the basic things we’re doing here like self-isolating at home, then we’re so grateful.”
But the charity understands that not everyone is in a position to help and encourages people to research the problems refugees face, write to their local representative and talk about the help these communities need.
“What’s happening in the world right now is really scary but what we can see is how strong we are when we all work together,” she explains. “Coronavirus sees no borders, it sees no race, religion, ethnicities; it’s affecting us all and unless we are all safe, then no one is safe.”
You can donate to the Help Refugees Coronavirus Emergency Appeal here or visit the Choose Love store here
