“Sorted” at the Polish border, African students tell

If the UN now puts forward the figure of 660,000 people who left Ukraine following its invasion by Russian troops, it seems that not all of them benefit from the same welcome at the Polish border: after the rumors according to which refugees from would be “blocked” there, testimonies unfortunately seem to confirm acts of discrimination.

Johanna, a Nigerian medical student in Kharkiv, shares her experience: “I took a taxi to leave the city, then I had to walk day and night to reach the border. Once we arrived, we were held back for no reason as we let the Ukrainians pass”. Quenn Alita Peter, also Nigerian, was asked to get off a train because she was “not Ukrainian”.

“We may not be Ukrainians, but we are human beings”

According to a man of African origin, “the Ukrainian police said that their compatriots had to be evacuated before the Africans, which caused several fights near the border”. We still do not know if these facts persist or if they are isolated. In the meantime, those who have had the cruel experience of it deplore them because “even if it is not our country, that does not mean that we are not human”, Johanna is indignant. Listen to his testimony, and a few others, in this video from our partner Brut.