Une bénévole apporte des vêtements et de la nourriture aux réfugiés qui se cachent dans la forêt de Bialowieza. 1er novembre 2022.
In 2021, the hard-hitting images of refugees at the Belarus-Poland border were seen around the world. But no sooner did they appear than they disappeared from the media. This was before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Since 2022, Poland has been presenting itself as a land of solidarity, having taken in 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees. This solidarity stands in stark contrast with the reality faced by the darker-skinned migrants and refugees whose cultural and religious backgrounds are believed not to fit the ‘Polish way of life’ and who are trying to enter the European Union through Poland.
In 2022, Poland topped the list of countries refusing third-country nationals entry to the EU. At the Polish-Belarusian border, the most common procedure was the pushback practice of immediately returning migrants and refugees back across the border without consideration for their individual circumstances, denying them any chance of applying for asylum or appealing their expulsion.
Migrants and refugees, mainly from the Middle East and Africa, are trying to cross this border – in numbers not publicly disclosed by the authorities – through the Bialowieza Forest, the last primeval forest in Europe. Dubbed ‘The Jungle’ by some migrants, this nature reserve is very difficult to cross and, for those trapped there, to survive in, not least for those unaccustomed to the climate of north-eastern Europe. Having to hide from the border guards, many find themselves trapped in the forest for a very long time.
À gauche, A. (32 ans, originaire du Yémen, oncologue), à droite, M. (50 ans, d’origine syrienne). Tous deux se trouvaient dans la forêt depuis cinq mois au moment où la photo a été prise. Ils racontent comment, pour survivre, ils ont dû consommer l’eau des marais, en la filtrant tant bien que mal à l’aide d’une écharpe. Cette eau stagnante à l’état naturel peut, en cas d’ingestion sans traitement préalable, provoquer de graves troubles digestifs et des diarrhées. 23 octobre 2022.
The absence of refugee camps and humanitarian organisations on this border makes professional medical assistance difficult to access. According to the official narrative, the issue here is not the humanitarian needs arising from migration but the arrival of dangerous migrants and ‘hybrid attacks’ from Belarus – accused of using migrants to put pressure on Poland. As a result, any kind of humanitarian aid is criminalised. The only assistance available in these circumstances is that provided by a network of volunteers who have to conceal their operations. The conditions are extreme. The refugees often develop ailments related to the lack of clean drinking water, diarrhoea, fungal infections such as trench foot, and risk dehydration in summer and hypothermia in winter.
Le pied des tranchées est une affection courante chez les personnes qui traversent des marécages et des rivières sans pouvoir changer de vêtements ou se laver et qui sont exposées à des températures basses et à une forte humidité sur des périodes prolongées. 23 octobre 2022.
Added to these problems are the new ones created by the 5.5-metre-high wall, topped with concertina wire, built by Poland to prevent the entry of migrants. Many nonetheless continue to use this route, considered less dangerous than the Mediterranean, and it is not uncommon for people to sustain serious fractures that require complicated surgery and months of recovery time. Calling an ambulance in such cases means alerting the border guard, which leads to the arrest of those injured. And it is not unusual for a border guard vehicle to arrive instead of an ambulance, with no doctor on board and for the refugee or migrant to be taken to the border post rather than to hospital.
Y.K., un ingénieur syrien de 25 ans, a été victime d’hypothermie après avoir passé plusieurs jours dans la forêt de Bialowieza, où les températures hivernales peuvent atteindre 15 à 20 degrés en dessous de zéro. Bien que la médecin qui s’est portée à son secours dans la forêt ait recommandé de le conduire à l’hôpital, Y.K. a été directement transféré au poste des gardes-frontières, puis au centre de détention pour étrangers. 12 décembre 2022.
The doctors providing assistance in the forest have to work under difficult conditions and adapt their treatments to the realities on the ground, from intravenous injections in the middle of the night to urgent medical care in cases as serious as miscarriages. Their main objective is to provide assistance and to do everything they can to avoid the arrival of the border guards.
Une seringue usagée après une injection qu’un sauveteur, Ola G., a dû administrer à une femme originaire d’Iran lors d’une intervention en pleine forêt. 18 mars 2023.
People providing assistance in the forest have observed that the border guards mostly conduct on-the-spot returns, abandoning the refugees on the Belarusian side of the forest, often at night, without witnesses, breaking their mobile phones and exposing them to a high risk of death. Some refugees are returned several times, up to 17 times in some cases. It is not unusual for the border guards’ operations to result in families or groups being split up, according to the testimonies of refugees and volunteers.
Fatima (not her real name), a 30-year-old Iranian woman, together with her husband and a mutual friend, fled her country after being blacklisted by the authorities for taking part in protests. On their first attempt to cross the border between Belarus and Poland they were immediately pushed back, and on the second, they were beaten and pepper-sprayed by Polish border guards. Fatima lost consciousness and was taken to hospital while her husband and friend were returned to Belarus. In hospital, Fatima managed to sign a power of attorney for volunteers to represent her and apply for international protection. She is currently awaiting a decision that can take up to six months, and has no idea when or where she will be able to reunite with her husband.
G., une bénévole locale, apporte des bottes pour une des personnes qui s’est aventurée sur la route forestière. Les migrants et les réfugiés ont souvent besoin de chaussures sèches et adaptées, car la plupart d’entre eux ne sont pas suffisamment équipés pour entreprendre la traversée de cette réserve naturelle. 17 décembre 2022.
The Polish government has criminalised the provision of humanitarian aid to refugees at this border, referring to volunteers as “idiots and traitors”, among other things. The Polish Border Guard is currently trying to charge two volunteers with involvement in ‘people smuggling’, an offence punishable by up to eight years in prison. According to the volunteers and their lawyer, there is no evidence to support this charge, and it could be an act of intimidation or a show trial.
La clôture « anti-migration » (érigée dans le seul but d’endiguer le flux de migrants) à la frontière entre la Pologne et la Biélorussie. Klakowo, 11 mars 2023.
The government claims that the 183-kilometre-long wall has solved the problem at the border. Meanwhile, the work of the volunteers is becoming a growing nuisance to the authorities, mainly, but also to a section of the population that supports their message, which likens the work of the volunteers to that of anti-government “activists”.
