The sober truth: 'We could all become refugees one day'

We were taken aback for a brief moment – not because the idea was strange, but because it was the truth.

Being in Germany, which has been at the forefront in Europe’s handling of the refugee crisis, we couldn’t help talking to local people about the deluge of hopeful migrants. The issue dominated headlines and television every day. And at one point we passed a train station in Munich where a section of the road was sealed off to accommodate the influx of refugees.

We talked to our tour guides, tourism representatives and Lufthansa airline staff, and it was heart-warming that all were unanimous in saying that the newcomers deserved help if they were fleeing conflict at home.

Our tour guide in Frankfurt offered a personal reason for wanting to help. “My boyfriend is from Serbia,” she said. His countrymen endured the agony of displacement. Christophler said it was natural for Germans to want to offer assistance. “We used to seek asylum in other countries too!”

A lot of Germans agree on that basis. They feel their country is obliged to open its borders to the migrants because of what happened during World War II. Plus, they point out, Germany’s economy is healthy and its birth rate is below zero, so it has the space and the means to embrace quite a large number of immigrants.

The German authorities, painfully aware that immigration is a thorny political issue, mulled the problem at length before deciding that the refugees have to be accommodated now that winter is approaching. “They don’t need to do it so ‘perfectly’, like the Germans always do,” said our tour guide in Munich. “We just have to build something quick to keep them out of the cold.”

The stream of migrants has indeed been welcomed in Germany and in Australia, with residents quick to provide food and, for the little ones, toys. Newspaper photos of the vast number of shoes donated by Germans afforded proof that humanitarianism is alive and well even in this modern capitalist world.

Not all European countries have been so welcoming. Despite a call from the president of the European Commission for a unified response to the crisis, there is still no continent-wide strategy for coping. The member-nations’ reactions have varied, and neither humanitarianism nor compassion is in evidence everywhere.

Tension was building in Europe as I returned home this week, with many countries refusing to put out the welcome mat. The news has been dominated by reports of hostility towards migrants, primarily of Hungarian officials firing teargas at refugees on its border, injuring many, including a pregnant woman, elderly people and small children. It was saddening to see a New York Times photo of the assault circulating on Facebook, and sadder to see comments like “Good on Hungary – protecting their country and Europe from chaos.” A lot of other commentators took issue with such sentiments, but “Good on Hungary” is far from alone in believing that Europe shouldn’t have to bear responsibility for the migration crisis.

It made me think: If someone fleeing an attacker arrived at your front gate, would you slam and lock the door? If a lot of people came fleeing danger, would you not ask your neighbours to join you in lending a hand?

The overarching tragedy of this crisis is that, even if every entry point to Europe were sealed, the migrants would keep coming, so dire is the situation in their homelands, so slim their chances of having lives there worth living. 

They fear for their future, for their children, and that’s the reason they march in waves toward destinations that promise better opportunities. You don’t risk your life leaving your native land merely for economic reasons, such as the chance of a better-paying job. No one wants to cross remote frontiers, leaving everything behind, to become a second-class citizen and the victim of bigotry.

European nations that balk at providing shelter and assistance are wasting time and abdicating morality by pointing fingers at one another. They have to solve this acute problem at their front door. The refugee crisis has arrived at the gate and will not go away anytime soon. Europe must agree on a united response and share the burden as best it can. 

Politics offers no adequate answer. Only the humanitarian approach holds the solution. With so many people in Europe ready to lend a hand without hesitation, there is the groundwork to end this immense tragedy. 

In these turbulent times, with the global economy teetering on its heels, it’s quite true that all of us could end up as refugees someday. Perhaps by then there will be no way to correct the social flaws that caused our predicament, but won’t it be wonderful to at least receive some help?