Business

The Kindness of Strangers: Polish Volunteers in Massive Ukraine Relief Effort

Beata Borucka’s social media channels provide Polish grandmothers with tips on everything from using Facebook to staying fit. But last week, she gave her 300,000+ followers something different: information on how to be a “temporary grandmother” for Ukrainian children. forced to flee to Poland after Russia invaded their country.

The self-proclaimed “most famous grandmother on the internet” has teamed up with the creators of an app that pairs elderly people stuck at home during the pandemic with others prepared to help out. work like shopping. In just a few days, the app has been redesigned to accommodate Polish grandmothers with Ukrainian refugees in need of extra help with their children. A week after the launch, nearly 1,000 people have signed up.

“Polish grandmothers are not very rich. But what we have is the heart. And we have time, because generally we’re retired,” Borucka said. “Now the main challenge is to reach Ukrainian mothers and tell them we are here to help.”

Borucka’s initiative is part of a massive public movement taking place across Poland as the country struggles to provide help and housing to the large flood of refugees sweeping through from the country. neighboring country to the east.

In the two weeks since the Russian invasion, 2.6 million people have fled Ukraine, according to the United Nations described Europe’s fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II. More than 1.62 million people have come to Poland. With the fighting showing no sign of abating, neither the refugees nor those helping them know how long they can stay.

Despite the uncertainty, the increase triggered generosity from the Poles. Many have donated clothes and food or drove to the border to help transport refugees to cities, or onward to other EU countries, and tens of thousands have opened homes to provide accommodation. .

But as the crisis escalates, there are growing signs of stress. Aid organizations say the response is largely based on the kindness of strangers in the absence of a centralized organization. The mayor of Warsaw said yesterday that refugees have increased the city’s population by 15%. Officials in Krakow, Poland’s second city, warn that they are “gradually losing their ability to take in more waves of refugees”.

Agnieszka Kosowicz, head of the Polish Migration Forum, said: “Relying on the goodwill of private citizens, the system based on the goodwill of private citizens is not enough. “More coordination is needed immediately, because we are in a situation where 100,000 people are coming in a day.”

Beata Borucka, who is pairing her Polish grandmother with Ukrainian refugees
Beata Borucka’s initiative to match Polish women with Ukrainian refugee families is part of a wave of support among Poles for those fleeing the Russian invasion © Monika Szalek

Zofia Jaworowska was one of the central figures of the civil society response. Her NGO, Grupa Zasoby, matches refugees at Warsaw’s West Station with Poles who have suggested somewhere to stay. So far, she said, the organization has had 4,500 offers of accommodation ranging from 15,000 to 20,000 beds, and already has 3,500 refugees.

“We could have done more, but we felt it was better to help fewer people in a completely safe way, because we felt a sense of responsibility,” she said.

Lucja Skolankiewicz is emblematic of how spontaneous a reaction is. The student from Warsaw moved out of her apartment so three refugees could move in. But before they arrived, she was asked to go to the border to work as a translator and had to leave the key for the Ukrainians to find in her mailbox. “I keep in touch with them, so I really hope we meet,” she said. “But I don’t know when.”

Ukrainian refugees arrive at Warsaw station
Ukrainian refugees arrive at a station in Warsaw. Polish groups warn that the numbers fleeing the Russian invasion could far exceed Poland’s receptive capacity © Mateusz Marek/EPA/Shutterstock

Businesses have also stepped in. The exhibition halls have been turned into reception centers. Some companies have donated goods. Others have donated cash. Toy chain Smyk has given employees time off work to volunteer. Wladyslaw Grochowski, founder of the Arche hotel group, has offered to bring 5,000 people to stay at his hotels for free and set aside 5 million zloty ($1.1 million) for the scheme. Last week, a Zabka grocery store in Przemysl, a town 15 kilometers from the border, was providing free food and drink to refugees who came to the store. “We had a lot,” said one cashier.

Poland’s conservative nationalist government vehemently opposes EU quotas for asylum seekers during Migration crisis 2015. But in the face of an attack by one of Poland’s historical enemies on a neighboring country with which the Poles share close linguistic and cultural ties, public opinion was overwhelmingly supportive.

Ukrainian flags fluttered above cars in the Polish capital, while some vehicles displayed messages of support, from “Glory to Ukraine” to “Fuck Putin”. A recent poll for the newspaper Rzeczpospolita found that nearly 60 percent of respondents support the fact that people are fleeing Ukraine.

Experience with the large Ukrainian diaspora already in the country – more than 1 million people lived in Poland before the current wave – has also reassured many Poles that the refugees will integrate into Polish society. Lan.

Jaworowska cites the example of Ukrainians who worked as caregivers for their grandparents: “They are all wonderful women, and there are very few problems and communication barriers.”

But despite the Poles’ desire to help, there are signs that the sheer number of refugees and the speed of their arrival are exceeding Poland’s capacity to take them in. Two weeks into the crisis, many volunteers are on the brink of burnout. And cities that bear the brunt of the influx are running out of space.

In Krakow, Fundacja Brata Alberta, an aid group, said on Friday that the situation in the city was “tragic”, adding: “We are appealing to many places, but the answer is the same. : no more free beds.”

These strains were also evident in Warsaw. At the central station, many people slept on the floor beside piles of donated blankets and children’s toys as they waited to commute or find accommodation.

“There are a lot of people who don’t know what to do, where to go, where to come from, who don’t know the language,” said Olga, a Ukrainian volunteer, as she pulled out a short cigarette amid the crowd that swirled around the station.

Polish scouts sort items donated to Ukrainian refugees
Polish scouts sort donations for Ukrainian refugees at a center near Warsaw. Aid organizations say volunteers are receiving inadequate support from the state and are exhausted © Alik Keplicz / AFP / Getty Images

“They are cold and hungry. There are a lot of children, they are upset and their mother is upset too. . . The Poles are very kind, they are supporting us, but there is not enough room for everyone. “

Joanna Niewczas, coordinator at Torwar, a cave arena in central Warsaw that is being used as a temporary shelter for about 500 refugees, warned that volunteers there received inadequate support. enough from the state and at the limit of “their physical and mental endurance”.

Volunteers bought medicine for the refugees out of their own pocket and called local restaurants to ask them to donate food, she said. The refugees are cleaning toilets, and despite the case of Covid, they still lack masks and other hygiene products.

To help the refugees, the government introduced a law allowing Ukrainians to stay in Poland for 18 months and access education and healthcare systems. The bill also provides for payments of 40 zloty per day for up to two months to individuals and organizations providing accommodation, as well as a one-time payment of 300 zloty to refugees.

But others say a more systematic approach is needed and local officials have begun calling for international support. This will be especially important in caring for refugees with disabilities or serious illnesses, Kosowicz said.

“The Polish health system and disability support system is very weak and we do not have the manpower to take care of children with serious health problems,” she warned.

With refugees still arriving in Poland in large numbers and the war unresolved, Borucka also worries about the country’s ability to cope. But the Poles have a duty to help their neighbors in need, she said.

“Before Putin started his aggression against Ukraine, a lot of Polish families had the help of Ukrainians back home,” she said. “My family has had a very strong connection with a Ukrainian family for 30 years. Now we [must] give them something in return. ”

Source link

news7h

News7h: Update the world's latest breaking news online of the day, breaking news, politics, society today, international mainstream news .Updated news 24/7: Entertainment, Sports...at the World everyday world. Hot news, images, video clips that are updated quickly and reliably

Related Articles

Back to top button