Afghans in Istanbul park a microcosm of refugee crisis

A suburban park a short distance from Istanbul’s European shore, sitting between the city’s international airport and the tourist sights of Sultanahmet, has become home to hundreds of Afghan refugees.

Living in makeshift tents near the trees and playgrounds, around 400 refugees from Afghanistan have gathered as they bide their time and plan their routes to Europe.

Most hope to cross the border into Greece and head on to northern EU states such as Germany.

“Open the border and let us go,” says 33-year-old Mohammad Azimi said Wednesday when an Anadolu Agency reporter visited the park in Zeytinburnu, a working class district facing the Marmara Sea.

Mohammed’s story is similar to the hundreds of his compatriots who have set up home in the park over the last three months -- a story of fleeing the Taliban and war in his homeland.

The collection of men, women and children first moved to the park in July, amid rumors of the EU throwing open its borders to refugees.

Then it was pleasant to sleep outside. Now winter is fast approaching and conditions have become more dangerous for the families, as is the prospect of travelling through Europe.

"At the heart of Istanbul, just near the coast, there is a human drama," Ugur Yildirim, chairman of the Istanbul-based International Refugee Rights Association, told reporters Wednesday.

"This drama has been going on for around three months. We would like to draw the attention of everyone to this drama."

Attempts to Greece

Mohammed, a former livestock dealer from Afghanistan’s northern province of Kunduz, arrived in Istanbul a week ago with his wife and two children.

The family has made two attempts to cross into Greece, finding themselves back in Istanbul after the last attempt. "We will wait here for officials to allow us to go," he said. "There is no other chance because there is a war in our country."

Nasime Ismailiyya expects a baby in five months’ time and has been living in the park for the last four weeks with her husband.

"As I am waiting for a baby, I would like to establish a beautiful future for my child," the 20-year-old said. "So, I would like to go to Germany."

From Istanbul, the refugees’ goal is the Greek border 230 kilometers (130 miles) to the west.

"Open the border or give us a job," Ahmed Husseini, a former peddler from Herat, said, his comments aimed at the Turkish authorities.

Ahmed has been In Istanbul for two months. "Life is not easy in this park," he explained.

According to the EU border agency, an estimated 710,000 refugees entered the EU in the first nine months of the year -- putting a strain on frontline states like Greece. After an initially warm response from EU countries like Germany and Austria, many are now looking to Turkey to absorb the refugee population with the assistance of EU financing.

Ferhat Sucu, president of the Solidarity Association for Afghanistan Turks, warned of fresh numbers of refugees seeking to enter Europe via Turkey as conflicts in Afghanistan and elsewhere rumble on.

"There are intensive conflicts in northern Afghan provinces," he said. "The world may not see it right now but the war there is quite big. People are suffering there. There is no government that can preserve civilians there."

Warning of the increasingly fragile conditions for refugees, he added: "Winter has come. The humanitarian situation is deteriorating there, so migration could increase."

Yildirim called on local officials in Turkey to help the Afghanis stuck in the park. "We do not want our brothers, who wait for help, to live under these conditions," he pleaded.