On a small Greek island

There was an interesting article in the Guardian on Saturday by a Nigerian, who said her cousin had walked across the Sahara to get to Europe, but was put back on a plane by the Italian border guards and sent back home. He is now planning to do it again, because he wants what we want, a better life. This time he will probably be allowed into Europe because he has a mobile phone and polished leather shoes.
One of the facts I found quite disturbing is that if you have a British passport, you can visit 173 countries without a visa; with a Nigerian passport, it's 44. Why? Are they really so much more unreasonable than the Brits abroad?

annodomini if you had a son or brother who was the age when he would be asked to fight on one side or another wouldn't you get as much money as you could and try to get him away? These are young men whose choice is often join the killing, be killed, or leave. Have you ever spoken to any refugees or heard them speak? They have often suffered because they opposed powerful forces, they miss their family and if they could go back they would, but they would face terrible punishment or death. The women and children tend to make shorter journeys and remain in camps in Africa.

Mishap I don't really know what we should all do to make their lives at home better but I don't think we should 'interfere' exactly. Maybe we should be offering whatever 'aid' they need be that money, education or whatever. We should do it in consultation with any local organisation/authority that we think will do the best for their own people.

Totally agree that the small gifts we can get into our luggage are no real help. I think we are doing it for ourselves so that we can feel we are doing something, anything to show compassion. It really bothers me that our hotel thought I was worried about the refugees being there and affecting my holiday rather than wanting to help them in some small way. Just think what a difference it would make if every tourist visiting places where the refugees are took just one thing for them.

Nonnie - I understand your statement: " the rest of the world should be doing something to make their countries better places to live" But the problem is that when we interfere in cultures we do not understand we tend to make a bit of a mess of it.

I have no idea what the answer is: trying to "help" in the countries where these poor souls are being persecuted leads to worse results for the west - we just become targets. Trying to resettle as many as possible in safe countries is also problematical. It is so sad that the world is being held to ransom by religious fanatics.

Taking things for the children is a kind act and I applaud you for it. It is of course a drop in the ocean in terms of quantity; but it is a huge step in terms of sending out a message that people do care.

Perhaps I should have clarified my earlier post, I meant why they choose the UK rather than other countries, not why they seek to live in Europe.

Anya, the explanation for the majority of refugees being young fit men is that (as I have been told), a family will scrape together all the money they have and use it to send one family member over to Europe to - as it were - seek his, and the family's, fortune. Usually this is the eldest son. It is seen as an investment, though very sadly the investment falls into the pockets of unscrupulous and criminal traffickers.

That was a refugee from Libya I was talking about, the situation is obviously different in Tilos.

One young man being questioned said he was an English teacher and he loved Shakespeare, but struggled to come up with the name of his favourite play. He English was not good either.

I, too struggle with why it us mainly young, fit men who make up the majority of the refugees. Where are the families, the old people, the young women?

"Where is my European Union"?

www.byline.com/column/11/article/126

Nonnie

Stuart Lee wrote a very powerful piece in The Observer today on the subject of people fleeing war/persecution/extreme poverty.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jun/28/garden-migrants-calais-border-control

I really don't think it's got anything to do with whether or not they can speak the language. Easily available benefits more like it.

I have always thought it was obvious that many came here because they could already speak the language. Don't know why it has taken so long to be discussed.

I watched a piece on the BBC news channel on Friday night. It's in the My World Series - Migrants at Sea. Watch it on i-Player if you can. Changed my views quite a bit.

Wonder how many of the migrants later go to the US, if any.

Yes, Nellie, I just read something similar when looking at New Zealand immigration figures, and wondered why that did not come up more often.

There was someone on the radio today, at last making the point that the biggest draw of the UK for so many migrants asylum seekers etc is that English tends to be the second language everyone else learns to speak after their own. Not our benefits system.

This starts to make a lot of sense when you think about it.

Thanks jbf really interesting. A very different picture from the usual one of people fleeing their country. About the fact that there are so many single males amongst the refugees. They are the people who would be forced to fight I can understand why they would want to leave.

Countries like Greece and Italy can give the migrants travel passes and send them north. When they get to France (en route to UK) they only have one more hurdle to overcome....the channel.

We're right to be worried about what we are seeing in Calais. No matter how sorry we feel for them we're a no through road.

Juliette We will take the things for children anyway just in case as I did see some on TV. It is little enough.

Have the ones at Calais actually been asked what they do?
The ones on the link that jingl gave are going to be given travel passes for six months. It will be interesting to find out where they end up, or if they are going to be treated the same way as the ones at Calais.

So would any sane government so long as there are jobs for them. A good education does make absorption of and integration into a new culture easier almost anywhere.

Which is not to say anything about poor (as opposed to not poor) migrants. I'm not going to start talking about groups labelled "the sort of people".

They are also the sort of people that Cameron et al would welcome with open arms, doctors, heart surgeons, etc.

Nonnie DS just back from Kos. No women or children to be seen amongst the refugees, just young men roaming round, not at all threatening just lost and sad.

Suggest you look at the trip advisor Dodecanese forum, lots of info there.

BTW these are middle class refugees who can afford to pay the people smugglers.

What a mess Bush/Blair have made of the middle east.

Not such a big thing KatyK to take a few little things to children who must be feeling very confused. None of it is their fault and a little kindness from us might make a big difference to them, especially when we read that other Brits are not being nice to them.