October 2025

On our second day on Lesvos, we shifted our focus from medical to legal support. We visited Fenix, an organization that provides comprehensive legal support to newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers in Greece. At the camp, we attended a legal advice session for people from Sierra Leone, Cameroon and Ghana. A young lawyer explained to the newly arrived refugees the procedure that would await them during their upcoming asylum process.

But it’s about much more than just information and preparation – it’s about mental preparation, and the young lawyer did an excellent job of providing clear information on the one hand and creating a very warm and welcoming atmosphere on the other. We could literally feel the participants’ self-confidence growing, which is crucial to their process.
It was very moving to meet people who had just arrived after years of hardship and were now facing a single, crucial interview under difficult conditions. These interviews, which take place in an old factory, can last over 8 hours – without food or drink – and often under great pressure.

Later, we visited a new EU-funded camp in the center of Lesbos. Isolated and heavily guarded, it looks more like a prison than a shelter. The plans to house up to 15,000 people here raise serious human rights concerns.
The day left us with many doubts about where our famous European human rights have gone. At the same time, the excellent work of the NGOs, their staff and volunteers gave us renewed energy and hope.