Of Europe’s Migration Crisis: Key landmarks that change one’s life forever.

16 February 2020, Geneva.

Fleeing refugees amidst summer vacations

During the peak of the 2015 so-called Migration Crisis of Europe, I was visiting my parents, who lived in Geneva. It was summertime, nice weather, the lake beach was 10 minutes away, and even though I was unemployed at the time, I felt completely careless, and in a generalised satisfactory state of being. I guess I was conscious of how privileged I was. Me, coming from Bolivia to Switzerland just for summer vacations, not working, not worrying, all single costs covered by my parents, it was heaven.

I remember during the vacation trips we undertook around Europe that year, we were on a journey around Portugal enjoying life and the beach…but we kept seeing news everywhere about how thousands of people were fleeing from the Middle East and arriving in Greek islands by heaps. I must admit, by then I had never gone through any circumstance that would generate any type of interest to research and learn about the causes and consequences of the Syrian war, the plight of civilians in Iraq, or about any other Middle Eastern country enduring armed conflict for years.

Back then, I was just one of the many clueless people who had little idea about what was going on in the Middle East and consequently felt no compassion nor any relatability with those people. Intrigue, piety, concern, I guess those were the associated feelings. But then the more summertime unfolded in Europe, the more I kept reading about migrants coming to Europe. The news on refugees including terrible episodes ranging from kicks to refugees at the borders, deaths of Syrian children lying on Greek beaches, political debates in Brussels and the discovery of suffocated cadavers of migrants found inside a truck in Hungary.

I am aware that if I did not come to Switzerland that summer, I would not have paid such close attention to the news of the refugee waves and their journey to reach Europe. During the time I lived in Bolivia I was usually more focused on local news, as many Bolivians do. But by being in Europe at the time, enjoying summer and so many privileges, I could not help but feeling guilty and at the same time thankful for what I had. I could only imagine what those people had to go through to flee with nothing but their backpacks, leaving all their possessions behind.

There is a linkage between the world's indifference towards the plight of migrants and the lack of relatability towards them. We discussed this issue with my classmates at my language courses in Geneva in the summer of 2019, a time when the European migration crisis was at much lower records. But back in 2015, I was confused as to what stance I would take regarding this big global issue. I heard so many comments surrounding the idea that those people should go back home because they allegedly imposed a threat to European citizens and their culture. There was the other group who welcomed migrants and stated those people deserved a refugee while their countries were on war. Nevertheless, although I tried to comment on the issue, at the end of the day, I was too uninformed to be able to have a solid argument to back up my stance. I see it now.

Awareness, and the search for a purpose

Despite my little knowledge about the internationally recognised rights and protection of refugees, the non-refoulement principle under international refugee law, or even basic knowledge on the universality of human rights, I felt a strange sense of frustration with my purpose in life. I had been working in the advertising department of local companies in Bolivia for four years, focusing on maximising profits, while feeling an empty sense of humanity. I was accomplishing small commercial goals and making some money but without a real sense of accomplishment. What was I even doing? There were millions of people putting up with constant misery, protracted wars, financed terrorism, unemployment, and I was focusing on maximising profits. Something was not in place for me.

By the time summer was over, and after spending three whole months in the continent of Europe laying on the beach, it was time to go back to Bolivia. But everything changed when I went back. My life underwent a transition phase without realising. I had just started seeing my affairs from a different angle.

I found myself joining voluntary groups and becoming more interested in new topics that went beyond the scope of my professional field. It was a period in which I invoked, time after time, new opportunities for my career and personal passions, and my wish was to embark in different fields. The ultimate call was, very intuitively, the Human Rights field. It was a similar process to set up a blind date for myself. I knew I was completely interested and getting to know it more, but I had no sufficient knowledge of it. For instance, I was completely unaware of the fact that Geneva, the city I had just returned from, was home to the human rights world-hub.

I could have forgotten about this sudden switch in my brain. Eventually, I had found a new marketing job when I went back home. I was already back into the labour market, living alone, surrounded by many friends. But a wise internal voice kept tormenting me at nights, insisting I should pursue my dreams, so I went for it, the search for new paths began.

Embarking into a new adventure

Nevertheless, after many applications, and after much time that was dedicated to searching for new opportunities with the ultimate view of switching my field of knowledge towards social sciences and human rights, and exactly after one year of so-called Europe’s Migration Crisis, my wishes were finally manifested. I found an opportunity to go back to Geneva, the city that was waiting for me.

Once I settled there, magically, one event led to the other, and suddenly I found myself working for a human rights advocacy civil society organisation with ECOSOC status before the United Nations, specifically focused on armed conflict in the Middle East, which actively participated in the Human Rights Council and the International Human Rights System, including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights mechanisms and procedures, all of those based in Geneva.

During that time, I gained a surreal momentum. All lose dots representing previous life events started to connect more clearly. I felt satisfied, I was eager, accomplished, occupied, I was holistically happy. All of the occasions I researched and carried out advocacy work on refugees, migrants and armed conflict-related human rights issues, my mind took me back to that summer of 2015. I was working with a focus on human rights of civilians in Middle Eastern wars and delivering statements to the Human Rights Council advocating for Syrian refugees, migrants and internally displaced persons. This time of life was one of the most important of my life, not only because of the unexpected magical shift that had occurred but also because I had the privilege to learn more about such relevant issues.

I find myself convinced that there exists a butterfly effect on the lives of people. I am aware, for instance, that if I did not come to Switzerland that summer of 2015, I would have never questioned myself, and my path. At the same time, if I never came back to Switzerland to work on the human rights field, I would have missed so many other amazing events that moulded my current state of life. Only God knows how my life would be today without that summer trip of 2015. There is a big chance that I would still be utterly happy today. But one thing is for sure, I would be paddling a total different raft in the river of life.

#Migration #HumanRights #Geneva