Living in Limbo - Syrian refugees in Jordan
By Mike Bailey, World Vision communications in Jordan
We entered the Za'atari refugee camp through the back gate in a convoy of green water-tankers. We had tried, in vain, to get in through the front gate but water, or lack of it (due to a two-day strike by the take drivers), had caused a strike and closed the main entrance.
The drivers were back to work, water was being delivered to the more than 100,000 residents of the camp, and we were able to enter. The noisy, hostile demonstration near the main entrance soon calmed down for now. Life in Zaatari camp is an existence in limbo: waiting for the next time; waiting for the water to arrive; waiting to go home.
The refugees in Zaatari live in tents or small square huts, they call caravans. Neither provide much shelter from the harsh overhead sun or the wind which whips curtains of dust into the air.
People invited me to stop for a coffee. They wanted to talk, to tell their stories, to complain. One man brought his twin daughters to show me. Their sick heads lolled, one on each of his shoulders. They were red-faced and feverish; their eyes dull. He showed me the paper he had been given by the doctor who examined them. It said they needed medicine but there is none in the pharmacy.
The camp is full of children. Those that are health are busy flying homemade kites, carrying water or boxes marked with blue UN logos which contain food or hygiene items. Those who have just arrived push wheelbarrows full of battered suitcases and plastic sacks.
A few children carry schoolbooks or backpacks, but most show no sign of attending classes. One girl told me that she had been to school in the camp once but didn't go back as she thought it would be easier to catch up when her family returns to Syria.
The children are bright and full of energy. They want their photographs to be taken. They want to sing and dance. Their parents are worried about the slow response time from the ambulance service, about corruption in the camp and insecurity after dark.
All refugees, regardless of their age, worry about when the will be able to go home.
The Za’atari refugee camp is already overcrowded and with 2,000 new refugees arriving daily, the situation continues to worsen. World Vision is working with the UN and other agencies to set up another camp in Jordan, called Azarq.
Water is a key ingredient for life and the main area of focus of World Vision’s efforts in the new camp. Work is currently underway to install the necessary water, hygiene and sanitation infrastructure to serve 30,000 of the camps estimated 130,000 people in can handle once the camp opens in July.