The Little Girl

The little girl.  I can’t stop thinking about her.  Every time I hear about events in the Jungle, I think of her. 

I think of what she feels when she hears the bang that signifies another tear gas canister winging its way into the Jungle.  I think of how she understands the thick smoke makes your eyes and nose stream and cough hard. I think of her being cold and living in such horrendous conditions. I think of the fire the other night that wiped out 150 peoples homes. I worry that she has been affected by the smoke.  I worry about her little body resisting infections and how she'll fail to thrive living in such unsanitary conditions. I worry about her and her family.

I have a photo of her but I do not feel comfortable sharing photos of children when I do not have the consent of the parents.  I look at the photo every single day. And I think about her.

I’ve no idea what her name is or how old she is. I thought she was about 6 months old until I saw her walk.  Then I realised she was older – maybe as old as 18 months. She’s just very small. 

What do I know about her?  She was in a new area of the camp on the second visit.  We first saw her sat outside her ‘home’, a tent in the Jungle.  She was sitting on her mums knee watching her older brothers play in the muddy ‘street’ outside the tent. Dad was stoking the fire beside them.  The fire was two old wheel rims welded together.  Great idea for a makeshift stove, bad idea for a stove in the Jungle where a spark can cause devastation.  Very bad idea for a camp with little children playing around.

The little girl was smiling.  Her mum was deep in thought.  Her Dad looked traumatised.  I know they are from Syria. I can imagine how the family got to Europe.  I have visions of little Aylan and his family.  Its unthinkable. 

I signaled to the little girls mum and her mum smiled and indicated I could approach the little girl.  I kneeled down beside her and held her hands.  She was so cold. She was still smiling.  My heart ached that little bit more.

The next day, we were sorting out socks for some friends from Afghanistan.  In among the black socks, we noticed something pink. Somehow a pair of childs mittens had found themselves in beside a box of mens socks. It was fate.  

It was dusk when we made our way back to the family home.  All the family were outside their shelter sitting round the makeshift stove. It was very cold and very muddy.  I showed the little girls mum what I had in my pocket and she smiled.  She unwrapped the little girls hands from her jumper sleeves.  I kneeled down and held her cold hands and put the mittens on.  She looked at her hands in amazement. She looked at me with surprise.  She started to rub her hands together and then held them up to show her mum and then turned to me with the biggest grin. It broke me.

How can something so simple be so needed and appreciated? How can a simple and basic need for a child not be met?  The very time when her parents should be enjoying being parents, they are stuck in France in a camp.  I can’t imagine what the family have been through. I do know that the little girl needs a proper home and to be able to look forward to a proper future filled with warmth and hope. Not in the Calais Jungle where nothing is guaranteed.

When we go back to the Jungle, one of the first shelters that will get one of our Frontier Stoves is the little girl and her family so that they don’t have to sit outside round an open fire to cook and keep warm.  They can sit inside and be warm.

To the person who donated the little pink and white mittens – you gave something that you probably have fought with a toddler to put on their hands.  You have made a difference. Not only for that little girl, but to me. You made me realise that we should never underestimate the need people have.  We should never underestimate the little things that we take for granted and there is a little girl with cosy hands who loves her new pair of mittens.  Thank you.

To everyone who has shared and/or donated for our Frontier Stove appeal, please know that to this little girl and her family, you have made their lives so much better.  

Stories from the Jungle Trip 2

I can’t sleep tonight because my thought processes won’t slow down.  We’ve had lots of positive things happen today and are starting to plan trip 3 to Calais camp to start installing Frontier Stoves into tents.  My brain keeps going into overdrive and as a result, my lovely Dad and I will be working on a prototype child safety fireguard to put in front of the stoves.  If we can get enough of the old type fireguards donated, it won’t cost us anything and will make the stoves that bit safer.

It got me thinking why these stoves are so important.  From my first blog on the first trip to Calais, I mentioned our Sudanese friends.  On arrival in the Jungle on trip 2, Lily and I were desperate to see them.  We made our way to their ‘area’ and there was a sense of relief when we saw them all safe and well and very happy to see us.  There were hugs and handshakes all round before our friends put that special tea on their open fire. We introduced Fiona, who was on her first journey to the Jungle, to our friends. Fiona was welcomed into the fold and by the end of the visit, our friends were calling her ‘Mama Fiona’!

Lily had bought Abdullah* an oven glove.  Abdullah was the one that always made the tea. It consisted of pot of water boiled on an open fire with half a bag of sugar and several teabags. Its served into little cups and glasses. No milk and definitely no need for sugar! Fiona doesn’t like tea normally however by the end of the trip, she was loving ‘Jungle Tea’.  When Abdullah poured the tea from the large pot, he always seemed to burn his hands. Lily’s oven glove was very gratefully received by Abdullah!

On our second day, we visited our friends. Hassan* told us that Jafar* had gone to try jump onto a train to get to the UK the previous night and no one had seen him or heard from him since. They had been trying to call his phone but it was switched off.  The next day Jafar was still missing.  Our friends asked us to help but we didn’t know what to do.  Two of the ‘community’ had recently been caught by the police and deported. We were told that if caught, the men from Sudan either said they were Eritrean or stayed silent.  We were all so worried and felt completely powerless. On the third day, we visit to see if there is any news.  Jafar was back! We were so relieved. 

Jafar told us that he’d been detained by the police.  Because he refused to tell them his name and nationality, he was held for 48 hours then released.  He told us that during his time in custody, he was not given any food or water. He didn’t seem perturbed by this at all although we were taken aback. Then it occurred to me that this could happen – who would he report it to?  Thats torture.  No other words for it.  My first blog makes it clear how I feel about the French authorities.  After the second trip, my opinion has deteriorated somewhat but more on that at a later date.

On our final night, our friends invited us for dinner.  Because the weather is colder, one of the structures in their community area has been turned into a seating area to eat and chat.  Ahmad was cooking for us. However because the weather is so poor,  Ahmad was cooking over an open fire within a nearby tent structure. The smoke was belching out of the tent door yet Ahmad was in there stirring the pot.   Apart from the point that open fires in tents are a fire hazard, Ahmad was breathing in toxic fumes.   Fires in the Jungle are not unusual and if our friends indoor cooking area caught fire, it would spread very quickly throughout the community area. This is worrying.  For a film of a fire that occurred a few days after we left, see HERE  There are around 10-12 men in this section of the camp that live communally.  The thought of giving them a frontier stove to enable them to make a living room where they could be warm and cook safely while they wait.

What are they waiting on?  Well.  The reality is that some try to come to the UK. Every other night, they risk their lives to try to jump on a moving train in order to come to the UK. They want to work, learn, reconnect with family members and have a future.   

Is staying in France an option?  According to the latest UNHCR data for the year 2014, France received 68,500 asylum applications.  53,685 applications were rejected.  That is 78% of all applications. The EU nations average is 55% of applications rejected. Its not as simple as saying the UK is a soft touch. The UK received less than half of the asylum applications France did - 32,000.  The UK rejected 61% of all asylum claims last year.

While we were there, *Dahab claimed asylum in France.  How do the French authorities treat asylum seekers?  They send them back to the Jungle of course. Dahab could wait up to 5 years for a decision. He’s confined himself to the Jungle.

I do have another story to tell.  One relating to a baby girl from Syria who I cannot stop thinking about.  She occupies a lot of my thoughts.  She may be the focus of my next ramblings.

*not their real names

For more information about our Stove Appeal, please see: http://www.elar.org.uk/stove-appeal.html

Statistical data regarding asylum claims can be found at: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Asylum_statistics

Some figures that blow the myths out of the water

Am off on one tonight.  Mostly because the the ITN report which can be found HERE

According to UNHCR, the UK has 117,161 refugees, 36,383 pending asylum cases and 16 stateless persons.


The UK will accept another 20,000 by 2020


According to the ITN News report tonight, The following numbers have arrived in countries across Europe in just ONE week:

• Croatia: 51,725 adding to a total of 317,990 since September 2015.
• Serbia: 42,907, adding to a total of 363 arrivals since January 2015.
• Greece: 39,054, overall 656,108 arrivals since January 2015.
• Slovenia: 32,240, a decrease of 50% in comparison to the previous week, overall 139,322 arrivals since October 2015.
• Macedonia: 24,386, adding to a total of 214,343 since June 2015.
• Italy: 865 new arrivals, adding to a total of 141,501 since January 2015.
• Hungary: 65, overall 390,929 arrivals since January 2015.

Puts paid to this nonsense about how we are 'inundated'. Most of these countries do not have the wealth or resources that we have.

You and I cannot possibly comprehend what it is like to flee your home, leaving family behind, due to war.

Some more information which is the most up to date regarding applications for asylum per country in Europe:

1. Germany 260,000
2. Hungary 101,000
3. Sweden 72,000
4. Austria 45,000
5. Italy, 69,000
6. France 59000
7. UK 32,000
8. Netherlands 20,000
9. Belgium 17,000
10. Bulgaria 15,000
11. Greece 9,000

I feel quite ashamed that I live in a country who, for their own selfish reasons, does not reach out to those who are in trouble.

A month later...

Its been around a month since I first published my blog and its had more views than I could ever have imagined.

Since then lots has changed.  Firstly, we organised ourselves better and have now established a Community Interest Company, East Lothian Aid for Refugees.  For more information, please see our shiny new website:  Our Facebook page would also appreciate some likes!   We are now able to seriously fundraise to help people in Calais and look at where else we can assist.


Secondly, I have been back to the Jungle with my two travelling companions, Lily and Fiona.  Although I had been there before, it was heart wrenching.  It was so much colder and so much muddier. Nothing could have prepared us for the fact that the Jungle has doubled in size to approximately 6,000 inhabitants. This includes lots of women and children.  The additional toilets could not possibly make an impact on a camp that doubled in size over a period of just three weeks.  I'm laid low with flu at the moment but will write a bit about the current situation in the Jungle later.


We've looked at various options on what we can do.  All of what we are looking for is on our website.  If you are lucky enough to have any spare cash at this time of year, we are looking to raise funds to install Frontier Stoves in tents in Calais. They're expensive but undoubtedly the best option, particularly given the recent fires caused by gas stoves and burning open fires under tarpaulin.   Our link to donate and everything else we need is here.

If you can help in any other way, please do get in touch awells@elar.org.uk