Konstantinos is a middle-aged man, who has experienced the consequences of the economic crisis when it all started. While being a freelancer during the recession, Konstantinos came across a few financial problems with his business, having as a result to close it down. However, this might not be the worst thing happened, as six months ago he received an eviction notice. Without money and a house to live with his wife, Konstantinos sought for help at the welfare services of the municipality of Athens. There, he was informed that he will be able to receive temporary accommodation for one year.
For the last four months, Konstantinos is being hosted along with his wife in a two-storey building on Acharnon Street. He shares the available rooms of the flat he resides with three other families. Food is another big issue, as the only food-bag (vegetables, meat) that Konstantinos gets every week from the welfare services is not enough. On the top of these, he has also to take care of his sick wife and to cope with his own illness (epilepsy). That seems very difficult, as Konstantinos receives no medical insurance and proper medication is needed.

In one of his visits to the welfare services, Konstantinos was informed about a current seminar that runs through PRAKSIS’ employability service at Palaio Frouracheio, as regards how to become a lottery ticket seller. Thereby, Konstantinos visited Athens Solidarity Centre to talk about that seminar and he was also given further information for the rest of the services. He was very impressed as for the PRAKSIS doctors.

Konstantinos expressed his fear about the future and what it’s going to happen once the provision of temporary accommodation ends.

Panagiotis Bourgazas
Social Scientist
Intern SolidarityNow

Watch the documentary here:

Alcoholism is briefly considered as a disease that causes both physical and mental health problems leading thus to serious negative effects on the social behaviour of a person. Nikos is a young person, who used to be an alcoholic. At that time, his life was on the brink of being ruined. After a fight with his parents, Nikos abandoned his home, which resulted in him being homeless with no money at all.
For the last year Nikos often wanders around Attica, in an effort to find a place to rest and sleep. During that period, he has gone through some very difficult situations, with no food, or a place to take a shower and above all he experienced social stigmatization and the total ignorance of his municipality’s welfare services, due to his addiction. The primary response that Nikos was given when asking for help is that nothing can be done, as he was an alcoholic.
However, Nikos managed to fight against alcoholism through the help of Alcoholics Anonymous’ fellowship and he has abstained from alcohol for 1,5 months. Moreover, municipality’s welfare services referred him to PRAKSIS at (Palaio Frouracheio) Athens Solidarity Center, after someone stole his health card and he was in need of a doctor.
Nikos is amazed by the overall work that is going on here. He precisely mentioned: ‘’the only ones that offered to help me, regardless of my situation and my past are the people of PRAKSIS’’, ‘’nowadays, every job application is made through Internet, so it’s vital a service like employability to exist, offering free computer and internet access’’.
Nikos these days lives in an uninhabited building at Kifissia and he is about to start selling SXEDIA magazine, an initiative of the NGO DIOGENIS. At the end of his narration, Nikos pointed out that certain actions must be taken and more information should be provided regarding the issue of alcoholism.

Panagiotis Bourgazas
Social Scientist
Intern SolidarityNow

Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) dictates that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression. However, this is not the case for people like Ismael. Ismael was forced to leave Khartoum, the capital city of Sudan, after being persecuted by the police forces, on account of forming a protesters’ group, while studying at university, seeking to raise awareness by speaking the truth about government’s corruption. Police forces arrested him and imprisoned him. There, he underwent several tortures, which left him with severe wounds to his legs and waist. ‘’One of my friends died in the prison from the tortures’’ says Ismael.

Ismael’s first arrival in Greece was in 2010, staying for two years. At that time, Ismael claimed asylum, waiting for a whole year until the attendance of his desirable interview. The outcome was negative, leading Ismael back to Khartoum. There, he spent three months in prison, until the day he fled to Greece for the second time with a friend’s help. He travelled through Egypt, Libya and Turkey, until he reached Mytilinis’ port and from there to Piraeus.
Ismael has been hosted along with his wife in a friend’s house in Athens since November 2014. He claimed again asylum and he has already attended his scheduled interview.

‘’The only thing I need is a house to stay with my wife’’ says Ismael.

Panagiotis Bourgazas
Social Scientist
Intern SolidarityNow

The following story could be a representative sample of a well directed and presented documentary through the eyes of a person, who experienced the persecution and brutality of the government forces (Sudanese Armed Forces – SAF) in his try to defend his homeland and belongings. Specifically the man, who wishes to remain anonymous and thereinafter will be mentioned as Mr. H, comes from the Nuba Mountains of the South Kordofan State in Sudan.

A few months ago, in December 2014, the Sudanese government forces on their way to Nuba Mountains in order to fight the rebels there (Sudan People’s Liberation Army – SPLA), invaded and destroyed the village of Mr. H, seizing all of the villager’s animals (cows, sheep, camels), so that will be able to feed their soldiers. When Mr. H followed them just to take his animals back, he was accused of being rebels’ collaborator. On these grounds, he was arrested and kept as a prisoner in a temporary militant base-camp of the forces that had been set up for their operations in the area. There, he underwent several tortures; one of them was baton beatings on the legs. However, he managed to escape as a sergeant, who happened to be classmate of Mr. H back in high school offered to help him by untying his hands and letting the gate open. The sergeant only told him not reveal to anyone how he broke away if he was arrested.

Once Mr. H was free, he walked until he met a cameleer, who took him to the village, he was living. There, he met a merchant and old friend of his father, who arranged for him to flee Sudan, travelling by boat to Egypt and then to Turkey. Upon his arrival in Turkey and especially in Bodrum, Mr. H was put along with other people from Syria, Eritrea and Somalia on a freezer-truck and all of them were taken to a hotel. He stayed in a room there for a few days, until one night someone came to pick them up and drive them to a woodland and from there to the coast of Bodrum in order to get the boat that brought him to Greece.
Mr. H has already lodged an asylum claim and he hopes to receive a positive decision.

His opinion about Solidarity Now and the work that is going on at Palaio Frouracheio is the following: ‘’Τhe services are a big thing for me, because when I came to Greece I was weak (physically) and frightened. Now I feel very well. Everybody (Praksis’ Doctors) says that my health is getting better.

Panagiotis Bourgazas
Social Scientist
Intern SolidarityNow

In times of financial crisis and high unemployment rate, finding a job is a big personal success. The Employability project, implemented by Praksis, at Athens Solidarity Center, implements a concrete methodology assisting beneficiaries with integrating the labour market, through specialized counseling. Even if the project started providing services in December 2014, it has already produced some tangible and concrete results. Among many personal success stories, some are of special interest:

• A 45 years-old woman from Greece, facing severe economic difficulties is currently employed as a kitchen assistant in a restaurant.
• A 45 years-old woman from Greece, low qualified and unemployed for 3 years found a job as a cleaner in a cleaning company.
• A 47 years-old woman from Albania, unemployed for 11 years found a job as fulltime baby-sitter.
• A 54 years-old man from Greece, recently released from prison, found a job as delivery employee in a traditional grill tavern.
• A 43 years-old man from Greece found a fulltime job as a worker in a dried fruit packaging factory.
• A 35 years-old French speaking refugee from Congo, found a fulltime job as a kitchen assistant in a hotel in Pireus.
• A 26 years-old English speaking asylum seeker from Nigeria, unemployed for 2 years, found a season job as general duties employee in a hotel in Karpathos.
• A 19 years-old asylum seeker from Bangladesh, unemployed for 3 years, found a job as a kitchen assistant in a restaurant in Amorgos.
• A 24 years-old asylum seeker from Afghanistan is currently employed in a dried fruits and nuts market.

Almost from the beginning of the operation of the Center, the need of a service that will aim to inform Beneficiaries about issues relevant to public authorities became a necessity. Gradually, the service was developed. Providing just the information wasn’t enough, so we moved forward by providing assistance on procedures related to benefits/allowances claims etc. Within the year more than 900 acts were performed, including, filling in an application form, writing requests to public authorities, accompanying to public services, translations and mediations on social, legal and medical issues. At the same time the beneficiaries are constantly informed about free activities carried out in the city.

Inside story

Annita, an unemployed mother of 4 from Nigeria, that lives in the country legally for most than 10 years visited the Center for a legal matter last April. She was also informed about a new allowance for all citizens with low income where she could apply.
As she wasn’t aware of the new allowance, we explained her the process. The application must go through the “taxis” online system and we assisted her on that
as she couldn’t do it on her own and she couldn’t afford an accountant. We help her issue a taxis e‐code, fill in the application as it was in Greek and a week later we also checked the
course of her application Some days later her account was credited the amount of 1000€. Throughout the year we had many cases of beneficiaries that were entitled for a benefit or allowance but weren’t able or skilled to go through the application process. The social Service in the frame of a holistic approach, identified these liabilities and provided them assistance, guidance and support.

Ioanna Fourkiotou, SolidarityNow

M. is a 28 year old Syrian man, father of two boys. He is a victim of war, having lost his house from a bomb attack which also left his both legs amputated. After a long time of treatment and rehabilitation he got two artificial legs and took the decision to migrate with his family in order to find a safe place in Europe to stay. Because there was no legal way to travel, the Syrian refugees had to pay a trafficker to reach Greece through Turkey.

The journey was really hard, as they had to walk for hours, got lost in the fields, until finally they boarded a small boat loaded with migrants to cross the Evros river. When they arrived to Greece, they were kept for some days at the detention center and then they were released in the country with nowhere to stay. When the family visited Solidarity Center, the social service with the assistance of the translator‐social mediator helped them to find a temporary shelter to stay for free.

When the couple needed to visit a doctor, they were referred to the medical department of Solidarity Center. Subsequently, Ms. N., the mother of the family, seeked for a gynecologist and was accompanied by the translator to another free clinic of the area. After staying for 3 months at the shelter, the family had to leave the place and the sole alternative was a refuge that accommodates only women and children. Thus, Mr. M. had nowhere to stay and decided to leave Greece, and managed to arrive to Germany, where he applied for asylum and is now given the phychosocial support he needed by the German state.His wife and children are still in Greece and with the intervention of the legal department of Solidarity Center all the necessary procedures have been carried out in order for the family to reunite.

Roula Gannoum, Translator Social Mediator, PRAKSIS, Thessaloniki Solidarity Center

ATHENS, …..  It is fifteen minutes past ten in the morning and the newly refurbished second floor of old Frourarchio building is getting seriously busy. The “Solidarity Center” set up here by organization “Solidarity Now”, at the heart of downtown Athens, made a low profile appearance last October while preparing for a full swing of services provision this year. Word though has gone around between the many needy in the city and plenty have already been receiving help and aid from various NGOs hosted in the Center. In the legal assistance office set up by NGO Arsis Theoni … is discussing the case of a defendant that carries a long history of legal and social problems. It is clearly a person that would be unable to provide financially for this service and the presence of this office ensures that the accused won’t be showing up at court without a trained legal representative who is seriously involved in her case.

In a slow day there should be another three lawyers in this office but all of them are already at court for various cases. “Each one of us has already piled up with 70 or 90 cases. We have to postpone meetings with people asking for assistance and we have just started here” says Theoni Koufonikolakou in a way that demonstrates how many people are in need of legal assistance. “We look into asylum cases, family law issues, even some criminal cases” she says. “Mostly we meet with irregular immigrants trying to short out their documents and individuals or families overburdened with debt. Both are the result of an undergoing social and economic crisis”.

Legal assistance and counseling offered by Arsis is just one branch of the various services provided by the Solidarity Center. Medical services as well as employment skills training and advice are provided by NGO Praksis, and a children’s support center as well as a helpline and psycho-social services to mothers and families in need are provided by NGOs Network for Children’s Rights and Together for Children.

Solidarity Now’s effort has been one case among the many different attempts alongside civil society to offer welfare services to people struck hard by the five year long crisis in Greece. But it appears to be a unique one given its emphases on providing an environment within which various organizations can meet and join efforts in tackling acute social deficiencies.

“Having four different organizations working together under the same roof on a daily basis is a unique experiment in Greece” says Epameinondas Farmakis, the newly appointed Managing Director of “Solidarity Now” pointing out that next to the priority for the Solidarity Center in Athens to provide basic welfare services for those in need, the organization is also interested in contributing to updating the local civil society ecology. “It is our intention to support and promote a collaborative culture among the Greek civil society actors, whether they are non-profit organizations, citizens’ groups, or active individuals. We believe that civil society actors should come together, exchange ideas and best practices in order to better shape their priorities and meet their common goals” Farmakis explains.

To that effect Solidarity Now also provides an open space for co-working practices, such as trainings and workshops, within its venue in Athens, hoping this could further enhance citizens’ collaboration. Crucial to the advance of this collaboration has also been the initiative of Athens Municipality, owner of the property, to release the venue to Solidarity Now for ten years in exchange for the refurbishment and reactivation of the property that had been disserted for years.

Co-operation with local community has been a very important factor explains Evi Papatheodorou, Director of ‘Thessaloniki Solidarity Center’ that “Solidarity Now” has established since the beginning of 2014 at the second largest city in Greece. Experience accumulated by this structure will be crucial for understanding the nature of the problems the new structure in Athens will deal with as well as for tailoring a holistic approach to problems, which is the methodology the “Solidarity Now” Centers would like to promote according to Papatheodorou.

“Often someone comes to us for medical reasons and soon after we find out that they also face legal issues or they need to be connected with other municipal or social services” she says. The Thessaloniki Solidarity Center has hosted 2281 cases since opening its doors, 961 received legal and 1320 medical assistance. From those 87 percent were unemployed and 82 percent had fallen off any kind of social insurance. Papatheodorou says she has been surprised by how many of those in need belong to the so call productive ages groups. About 66 percent of people approaching the Center were between 31 and 65 years old and another 30 percent between 19 and 30. Its possibly due to this that “in one year of function we have discovered that the importance of social services, beyond medical and legal, are more necessary than we though” she says “and our effort to provide complete solutions by following up the problems and referring people to social services offered by local authorities have made us already a well known element among the local civil society”.