Athens | Story no1Walking together

I was a student of political science at the University of Damascus when the war in Syria started. I decided to leave because I was left with two choices. Either to follow military service and kill some or killed by some. So the only alternative was to live the country. I came to Greece although the borders were already closed. I arrived at 8th of March 2016, just prior to the treaty between EU –Turkey, and stayed in Mytilene for five days in the horrid camp of Moria. Then I took my papers and bought a ticket to Piraeus. When I reached Piraeus I was put with all the other refugees in 7 buses that took us to an ex-military base very far away from Athens, almost 7 hours away. Whoever was in the buses, upon reaching our destination and seeing that we were in the middle of nowhere, decided collectively not to get down of the bus. Finally after some negotiations they took us back to Piraeus. There I lived for a month in a little tent inside the port of Piraeus. Then I heard from a friend about City Plaza, about a new squat which opened to house refugees. So I came to City Plaza and offered my help as an interpreter/ translator. Basically I am in City Plaza since the first days it opened. I liked the idea very much and I participated actively.

I stayed in City Plaza for almost a year. I gained great experience and it helped me a lot since the squat was situated in the centre of Athens, in a neighbourhood with a unique atmosphere. It was a lot better than the state camps but also from other places managed by various NGOs. Everyday passing in City Plaza we all learned of something new. In the beginning we learned how to communicate with each other and how to organise such a big squat. So we learned how to self-organise, making small teams, teams for translating, for cooking, for cleaning and for welcoming. Then all these teams had assemblies on how to manage the responsibilities undertaken. As a translator I participated in many of the teams since I was useful in assisting the communication between the different members of the teams. In City Plaza people came from many countries, Afghans, Kurds, Pakistanis, and Syrians among others, so translating was vital to their function. I believe that the concept of self-organisation is unique. Of course as in everywhere there were problems and issues to be resolved. But the participation, the assistance, the solidarity and the support that we received in our time to City Plaza was exemplary. As much as from Greeks, as from people coming from other European countries and places. Most important of course was the fact that all these people without knowing any other language apart from their mother tongues, participated and offered their strength and energy to create and sustain this space. For example, some offered to cook for 3-4 days a week. Here we cook for 400 people daily, and that is a great responsibility, because eventually you come out of the kitchen exhausted. But you take this responsibility because you see other people like the Greeks or the solidarity people offering their help without any reward whatsoever. Some came from Germany, others form France and from many other countries, they paid their tickets, and they came here to live with us , just in order to help, to teach us languages that would be useful if we relocated in Germany, England, or France. As such there is team of teachers that give lessons everyday freely to everyone without expecting anything in return whatsoever and this cannot be but a good thing.

I don’t think that there is another place like City Plaza. It’s not just the best, it’s the best of the best. The reason for that is self-organisation. You don’t have many things but what you have are yours, you manage them according to will and you feel them yours. I don’t just talk about people here; I talk about the effort that each one of us has made, because without our effort there wouldn’t be a space like that. There are more than 100 rooms that need cleaning, there is a kitchen, training sessions, different cultures constantly mingling, and of course plenty of further work. For example the reception is open 18 hours a day and security is 24 hours a day. Security is not only for the safety and protection of the building but for any event that can occur during the night. Somebody might need an ambulance, so there are always people awoke to take care of you.

I deeply believe that the reason why this space is so deep in our heart is because there is no private property in this place, there is no boss to order you, but instead we are all responsible for this building and as such we felt it in a personal but mostly collective way as our own. In here we felt what it means sharing and collective responsibility. If there was a problem, then a collective assembly in which we all participate took place. We set the matters that come up on the table and we listen patiently to what everybody has to say and then a decision appears on its own, because the people speak in a rational way knowing that their word matters, that they are being respected and that eventually it will not be a decision among a few but through consensus we will all reach a commonly accepted decision. There are principles, i.e. when two people fight then both of them need to leave the building instantly. If they are fighting at night then both have to leave in the middle of the night. This place is for promoting dialogue, not quarrelling. Of course each one of us could have our opinions and arguments but it is not allowed to fight between us or exert physical force. So the primary principle is one of “non-violence”. All and any kind of violence. If there is an accusation of violence in a couple or for any domestic abuse whatsoever, it’s not accepted. Alcohol is also not allowed partly because we respect religious people and partly to reduce the probabilities of fighting, after all if you want you can access freely any of the bars that are outside. Children are also not allowed out of doors of city plaza without their parents. The reason is that they need someone to cross the street safely. These are basic rules of operation and respect. These rules make the City Plaza community to be better and as such we insist on these rules.