Journalist makes new headlines on refugee crisis

Kety Shapazian participates in various small bazaars around Sao Paulo to sell her flowers.

BRASILIA: Kety Shapazian, a 49-year-old Brazilian journalist and mother of a 17-year-old daughter, never thought that she would one day find herself helping pull refugees off of overcrowded boats on the coast of Greece. But that is what happened at the end of 2015 when both Shapazian and her daughter Gabriela decided to fly to Greece and help out for a few weeks.
The eruption of the Arab Spring uprisings in 2011 caught Shapazian’s attention when she worked as an editor at the Diario do Comercio newspaper in Sao Paulo, and propelled her onto Twitter where she became an outspoken activist, tweeting for the refugees of the Syrian civil war and against the regime of Bashar Assad. She soon gained a large following online, but she eventually felt that she had to do more.
“I followed the Arab Spring on Twitter and my daughter always heard me talking at home about the protests and then revolutions, and finally the war in Syria,” Shapazian said in an interview with Arab News.
“At the end of October 2015, Gabi said to me: ‘Go help. Instead of complaining that no one is helping, buy a ticket and go help.’ So I bought my ticket for Dec. 9. Gabi was going to be in Italy on holiday. She joined me in Greece on Dec. 16. We were only going to stay until Christmas, but we ended up leaving Lesvos on Jan. 30.”
Shapazian posted daily updates with photos on her Facebook page, showing the plight of the refugees from Syria, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Congo, that arrived daily on boats on the coast of Greece in their desperate attempt to reach mainland Europe, fleeing war, famine and persecution back home. There were ups and downs in her reports that her followers were eager to keep up with. One day she would post about the pure gratitude that arriving refugees had when she and other volunteers welcomed them on the beach with hugs and warm blankets. But then Shapazian would also post the bad, relating how they occasionally found drowned refugees on the beach and the daily struggle to provide enough food and warm accommodation for all the refugees.
“Seeing the refugees arriving, and helping to lift out the babies, children, pregnant women and the elderly from the overcrowded boats, with people in hypothermia, in shock, others shouting in fear, and still others crying in joy at having survived their ordeal, this we will never forget,” she said. “We will never forget the sense of relief every time a boat managed to land on the beach. And we will not forget our sadness whenever a body washed ashore. But even amid this tragedy, it was 45 days of mother and daughter being together, and I feel an immense sense of gratitude for having taken part in this.”
The hardest part of volunteering to help refugees was when she had to say “no” to a refugee. “The dead refugees were a very sad part of our work, but saying ‘no’ to a refugee when they asked for shoes, coats or sandwiches, and our supplies had run out, that was truly difficult,” explained Shapazian. “Having to tell Iraqi and Afghan refugees that the border with Macedonia had been closed, was also very hard.”
Flowers for refugees
Returning to Brazil in early 2016, both Shapazian and her daughter were already planning their next trip to help refugees arriving in Europe. She realized that they would have to raise money to help finance their trips, and also to buy much needed materials for the refugees such as blankets, food and toys for the children. So one day she decided to start selling small floral arrangements in used bottles that she herself would decorate. Every weekend she started selling these flowers on the street near her house in the western zone of Sao Paulo.
She would also occasionally give out flowers for free to publicize the plight and cause of the refugees. Word of mouth and a page on Facebook helped spread the word. Shapazian now participates in various small bazaars around Sao Paulo to sell her flowers.
“Our business has been growing gradually, and we are being increasingly invited to sell our flowers at various events,” she said. “There are people who cry when they listen to our stories, while others will not even stop to hear us. But the major part of the money that funds Gabi’s trips still comes from donations. Right now we are trying to raise more funds so that she can buy food, blankets, heaters, sleeping bags, hygiene products and books for the children. We have a PayPal account for anyone who would like to donate.”

Refugees in Brazil
Shapazian has had experience with Syrian refugees who arrive in Brazil with no Portuguese language skills and who have to struggle to find housing and adequate jobs. Although the Brazilian government has eased visa restrictions for Syrian refugees wanting to move to Brazil, the reality is that there is not much help from the federal or state governments once they arrive here. Many end up living temporarily in mosques.
“There are no programs to place or welcome these refugees,” says the activist. “There are families living in illegal squats, people who are hungry. The only good thing is that every refugee is given a CPF (a tax-payer’s identification number that everyone needs to get anything done in Brazil) and a work permit. But in our current economic crisis in which we have 12 million unemployed in Brazil, finding employment is practically a miracle. And apart from this, they are not able to revalidate their diplomas and employers unnecessarily insist that they have an RNE (an ID card for foreigners), when only the work permit would normally be enough.”

Closed borders cause difficulties
Gabi is back in Greece working there for 50 days in various places helping refugees. From Feb. 23, she will be in Calais, northern France, helping refugees there in what is currently one of the largest refugee camps in Europe.
Shapazian says the situation has worsened for the refugees currently in Greece as many of them are stuck there after several eastern European countries closed their borders, blocking the travel of refugees to Germany and France. And the Turkish government agreement to accept refugees being sent back from Europe has also aggravated the situation of these refugees.
So it is inspiring to have this tale of a mother and daughter working together to help refugees from all countries bring their plight to a wider audience in Brazil.
“I don’t see any difference between myself and a teenage refugee. Children and young people want to live in peace, go to school, and have a home. They want a normal life. Is not that what we all want?” asks Gabi.