Belgium (Brussels Morning Newspaper), Since 24 February 2022, Ukrainians have not had a day of peace. Russia’s barbaric and illegal invasion of their country displaced 6.2 million citizens in a matter of months, with many, today, still having no idea of when they might be able to return.
Large numbers still reside in temporary accommodation outside of their home country. In Germany, which, along with Poland, is hosting the largest number of Ukrainian refugees, 79% are residing in private accommodations provided under the EU’s temporary protection scheme. This initiative heavily depends on the solidarity of private individuals to shelter those fleeing the war.
However, now, almost two years on, the story of the hardships of Ukraine and its people receding from focus. Competing humanitarian disasters, and the shift of attention to Israel’s conflict in Gaza, have put the troubles of Ukraine on the backburner. For politicians, it is no longer a cause from which they can extract capital, and, for the public, it is a crisis that is scarcely reported in news media. This is putting the needs of millions of Ukrainians at risk.
Squabbles over funding are also breaking out across Europe – as well as in the US, which is the principal funder of Kyiv’s defense –and many of the charitable schemes set up in 2021 to help refugees have a questionable future ahead of them. In turn, this means that growing numbers of refugees, seeing little to no support in their host countries, now face the prospect of having to return to active and deteriorating war zones.
Major on-the-ground actors, including the Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration (ORAM), are witnessing, first hand, the impacts felt from this loss of attention and the weaning of funding streams to those that need it most. ORAM is one of the oldest LGBTIQ refugee organizations in the world and provides individuals with the resources and communities they need to rebuild their lives across the world.
In the first few months of the war, it, and other frontline organisations, secured partnerships with major institutions to provide short-term housing to LGBTIQ Ukrainians in queer-friendly cities, including Berlin. ORAM’s partnership with Airbnb has, so far, spanned two years and was expanded to provide longer-term housing for up to six months, which has given refugees a safe place to process their traumatic experiences, and to fill out the masses of paperwork required for long-term stays in a host nation.
ORAM’s primary preoccupation is on providing support across short- and long-term difficulties faced by refugees, from immediate demand for housing to legal defenses against discriminatory activity they may encounter in their host countries. Housing and sector partnerships with organizations including the Alliance of Gender Equality in Europe(the Alliance) exemplify the ways that charities can collaboratively engage and prepare refugees for life both in their host country and in Ukraine in the future.
While, on discrimination, despite the progressive policies of large numbers of EU member states, violence against Ukrainian refugees – particularly in Poland and Hungary – remains commonplace. In Poland, in particular – a country where, between 2019-20, 105 areas adopted resolutions declaring themselves “free from LGBT ideology” – hostility towards minority groups persists.
This was evidenced in the recent case of Dima, a 24-year-old gay man from Kyiv, who after being turned back at official border points along the Polish border, was forced to cross a freezing river to reach the safety of the EU, and eventual settlement in Berlin. Here, with the support of ORAM, he was initially granted an Airbnb stay for two weeks, which was then extended to longer-term housing. He has since been supported with enrolment in German classes and secured training opportunities. However, his struggle persisted due to paperwork issues in Poland, and it was only in February 2023, nearly a year after the initial ordeal, that he managed to retrieve his passport and ID.
The significance of this support cannot be understated. Nor should it be subject to uncertainty, by a competing crisis, far removed from Europe’s borders. The sad reality is that we have a political climate in which there is little appetite for long-term commitment – and until Ukraine returns to the front pages and screens of our news cycles, it seems inevitable that funding scarcity will increasingly demand targeted and multi-channeled action for the maintenance of support for millions of refugees.
Collaborations between third-sector actors during this period exemplify the impactful initiatives of NGOs and other frontline organizations in providing immediate and potentially life-long help to those who are displaced. This work is not about political capital or expediency; it is about human decency and supporting Europe’s allies. Our political classes should take note.
Opinions expressed in the op-ed section are solely those of the individual author and do not represent the official stance of our newspaper. We believe in providing a platform for a wide range of voices and perspectives, even those that may challenge or differ from our own. As always, we remain committed to providing our readers with high-quality, fair, and balanced journalism. Thank you for your continued support.Sincerely, The Brussels Morning Team
