by George Kanaris, Social Services Coordinator at SolidarityNow’s Athens Solidarity Center.

The integration of the newly arrived refugees is one of the biggest challenges that the Greek society will face in the coming years.

Quite a big part of the currently residing in Greece refugees will be relocated in other countries, another big part will be rejected and sent back to their countries of origin. Still an important proportion of the presently asylum seekers will be granted with asylum and will be settling down in Greece.

How ready the Greek society is to integrate these people and make them part of their own society? At what extent are we prepared to accept them and create a fertile ground for them? Is there any chance for the masses of Syrians, Iraqis, Pakistanis and Afghanis and all the other nationalities to become Greek citizens and have equal rights and obligations with the Greek nationals? This is a very complex subject and no easy answer is available for the all above questions.

Many different factors must be taken into consideration e.g. the deep crisis that the Greek society faces the last decade without any clear solution soon, the cultural gap between the country of origin and the host country, the differences in language, religion, mentality that many times prevent or even hinder the integration.

Still, what is our role as host community and what are we doing to facilitate the process and create favorable conditions for their becoming equal members of the Greek society, safeguard their future and prevent them from discrimination and social and professional isolation? One more time, the answers are not easy to articulate.

Despite the difficulty and complexity of the topic, we will try to set priorities and highlight the different aspects that should be taken into consideration when we talk about integration of the refugees.

The very first step in settling somewhere is the languages and communication. When discussing integration, learning the language of the host community is often the first topic to come in mind. Language skills is the key enabler to do all the other things necessary to start a life, like attending schools, looking for a job or interacting with host communities. Education and job opportunities are very often hindered because of the language barrier.
The second step in settling somewhere is the access to public services in building a state – citizen relationship and generating trust in government and other institutions. Asylum seekers and recognized refugees need additional support to access services such as housing, healthcare and schooling at the beginning of their integration process, as they don’t have the same facilities as locals do. Stability is key for them to start thinking about moving ahead with their lives. They need stability during and after the asylum procedure, with access to decent accommodation so that they can then look for a job or start studying the local language. The relationship with host communities is a cornerstone for their integration. Refugees are often treated disrespectfully and unfairly because of discriminatory attitudes and prejudices of the host community based on their culture and religion. The cultural gap and the lack of tolerance and openness to accept and integrate the different hinders the integration. After all integration is all about proper behavior, dignity and acceptance. Treating the foreigners with humanity and respecting their cultural and religious differences, trying to understand them and making them part of our own community.
Job access and activity opportunities is another significant factor for the integration. The refugees as anybody else need economic independence which is very difficult to achieve because of legal or qualification barriers. On the top of that easy access to activities like sports, language learning and training facilitates the integration and changes the routine that becomes depressingly monotonous after months, triggering psychosocial problems. People stay idle all day for a long period either waiting desperately for the answer of their asylum request or for their relocation. They don’t adopt any activity or invest any energy, in the local language for instance, as they don’t know which will be their destination country. This uncertainty and state of limbo in between different countries and cultures doesn’t help them to feel part of the community and be integrated in it. The often-traumatic experiences of refugees on their way from the country of origin renders safety, peace and security a priority in the destination country. Nevertheless, this is frequently difficult to guarantee. Being stranded in camps and squats, trying to survive many times under inhuman living conditions, they feel that the rule of law doesn’t apply to them and they have nowhere to report abuses, fights and other forms of violence. Tensions between communities and a general lack of security provisions make them feel unsafe and abandoned. They even blame the host community for increasing tensions and resentment between communities and different tribes because of perceived differences in treatment between nationalities.
Finally, the social bonds and connections is a primal aspect of the integration of refugees. The presence of family and friends is indispensable when it comes to settling anywhere. Family reunification is often their priority and waiting for this kind of major decision is preventing them from looking to the future. The presence of social bonds and connections is helpful for smooth integration but when it comes to refugees it usually becomes particularly difficult who are often physically isolated from cities and other hubs of human activity. Overall, a sense of uncertainty is preventing the refugees from moving ahead with their lives and hoping for a better future.
The prospects for integration of many asylum seekers and refugees seem low in reception countries and there is lack of long term planning by government authorities on this issue so far. However, ideas for better integration need to involve refugees themselves so they feel a sense of ownership. It would give an awareness and acceptance of the difficulties involved and allow authorities, agencies and organizations to work together with the refugees in developing solutions, rather than them being mere recipients.

Finally, the integration of refuges depends a lot on our own preparedness, cultural sensitivity and openness as host community and individuals. It depends a lot on our capacity to understand, respect and accept. And ultimately that becomes a process of self-awareness and discovery of our own limits.