Featuring: Clement Martz, Bosnia

Article
By Ollie Nicholas
05/09/19

Subtitle

Another dead end to Europe. Reportage by Clement Martz, 2018.

Contents

1. A new camp, same circumstance.

2. Factory Living

3. Brutality at the Border

4. “Sorry, we are a little traumatised."

5. Compassion and Empathy

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

In final instalment of his three features, Clement Martz covers the story of the refugees that are stuck in Bosnia, isolated to dark factory halls and rundown cafés. Yet another story of wavering hope and misery for the thousands that are left stranded at a dead end on their journey to Europe.

Subtitle

Another dead end to Europe. Reportage by Clement Martz, 2018.

Contents

1. A new camp, same circumstance.

2. Factory Living

3. Brutality at the Border

4. “Sorry, we are a little traumatised."

5. Compassion and Empathy

In final instalment of his three features, Clement Martz covers the story of the refugees that are stuck in Bosnia, isolated to dark factory halls and rundown cafés. Yet another story of wavering hope and misery for the thousands that are left stranded at a dead end on their journey to Europe.
1. A new camp, same situation.

Like many other official refugee camps around Europe, one has to go through security before entering what much of the E.U. population will not see with their own eyes. “Please show us your passport”, says one of the security guards. As we hand in our passports, the security guard follows by asking “Have you asked permission to enter from the town hall?”. As we wait for a few minutes, one official man steps out of the camp; “You can come with me and I can guide you through the camp but no photos allowed” as he pauses and continues on to justify, “There are minors in there”.

While entering the official refugee camp of Bhiac city near the Croatia border in Bosnia-Herzegovina, I have to raise up the settings of my hidden camera to 6400, which is at a 30th of a second shutter speed. For those of you who are not technically informed about camera exposures, this is pretty much how far you can push the camera settings in quite dark situations without having major noise or too much handheld and blurred motion. That’s how dim the light was in this desolated former factory hall, where 2,000 people, mainly (young) men, are currently living. As we continue on, I make the decision to sneak off to try and take pictures of the living conditions. A young Pakistani boy comes up to me and invites me for tea inside of what could be called a “luxury container”. In the rest of the camp, hundreds of army beds covered by large tents are much more prominent.

As we enter his current home, seven other boys are sitting on their bunk beds hanging out. After shortly entering they all say; “Welcome, sit, sit please”. We all kneel down on carpets that they have put together to make their basic living area cosier. By eye, the space seems to be no more than 16 square meters at most. As we exchange a few words in broken English, I understand that they are from Pakistan and that they have been here for at least several months while trying to cross over illegally to Croatia. For the most part, they all seem to be underage or just over. The boy who invited me in kindly offers some Pakistani pancakes that they have just hand made with flour and water. I snap a few photos of them in their living situation and switch my SD card to make sure the photos don’t get deleted if I get caught by the security as I walk out. They look at me and smile, they seem to understand as I say to them “police”. I finally walk out and wave goodbye.

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

2. Factory Living

Further along the dark factory hall, there is a concentration of men sitting down, all lined up against a wall. The scene looks like an industrial slaughterhouse, except in this case they won’t get killed. Instead, they are in line to be served their only meal of the day to keep them going. While some of them are standing up, many are sitting down with their head between their knees as if they lack the energy to stand up. One boy across the line is standing up close to his friends and says something to me in Pashto. I get closer to him as I do not hear clearly. He asks me “where are you from?”. I answer him and raise my camera to take a portrait of him, he doesn’t move and gives me a smile. Without language, it’s as if we have an understanding of each other’s action and reaction. We both morally know that the situation that he and his fellow refugees find themselves in is humanly wrong. He allows me to take his photo while remaining open, with no mistrust, and his eyes full of empathy and understanding.

As I head out to leave the camp before I get noticed by the security guards, a group of men are surrounding my friend and colleague Andreas. It looks as if the men are agitated. I get closer, they seem to speak with frustration and anger. As I listen more carefully to the conversation, quite the opposite is being said. One refugee in the camp with an official volunteer card around his neck seems to speak for all other men surrounding him. He says to Andreas; “Thank you for taking the time and coming all the way here to see the condition we are in”. Andreas responds that we have not done much at all, but the man insists on to say; “No, thank you because no one ever comes to see us. Most people in Europe have no real idea of how we are stranded here and living in these conditions, so thank you”.

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

On my way out, I noticed the deplorable state of the few bathrooms installed for these 2000 men. I can’t help but make the extreme comparison of the living conditions to concentration camps minus the gas chambers and forced labor. Although, The Bosnian security do let them come in and out as they please. After failing to cross over to Croatia and not having anywhere else to go, many come back after to this depleted factory hall. In non-exclusive cases beaten or robbed of their personal belongings while being pushed back by the Croatian police at the border. Here instead of a quick suffocating death, their hope to reach Europe for a better life slowly dies while being denied of basic human care.

3. Brutality at the Border

The following day, we drive further through the hills of northern Bosnia to a border town called Velika Kladusa. The situation on the ground is no better than in Bihac. Around 1000 refugees/migrants are in the town without being registered into official camps. The atmosphere feels heavy and somewhat hostile. One has to remember that Bosnia just got out of the war only twenty-four years ago. Bullet holes are still in some of the house facades. On the spot, we meet up with a local volunteer to give away donations such as food, clothes and basic medical care. He shows us the modest medical facility he built out of an old café with the aid of international support. At the entrance of this self-made clinic, six old chairs are lined up in a row as a waiting area. Across from that is another chair with a table for the patient that is being seen. Further along is another table with a note pad to keep track of the daily attendance as well as an old fridge with donated medical supplies inside. In the basement, there is a large donation space which offers free clothes and shoes for about 200 to 300 people. One could ask, why is there a need for medical care and for so many clothes? The main reason is the same as what the men living in the factory hall in Bihac face, Croatian Police brutality at the border. Many come back with cuts, fractured or broken bones, and in some cases stripped away of their clothes, and often ending up with smashed mobiles.

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

4. “Sorry, we are a little traumatised."

Up the road is another old and rundown café where refugees take shelter from the pouring rain while charging their cellphones. Perhaps a cup of coffee will offer some warmth before many attempt to go back to the hills and try to cross over illegally into Croatia. One young man steps out of the café entrance with a face as white as the pain killers he had been taking. His eyes looking blank. He exchanges a few words with the local volunteer that we are with. From what we have seemed to understand, he had just learned that some of his family members were killed back home. The young man has a blister pack of pain killers in his hands, without counting the dosage, he pops several of them in his mouth and leaves the café looking like a zombie. Other men are hanging outside with raincoats on. I stay around and try to start a conversation with them. I learn that some of them are from Algeria and Morocco, all wanting to come to Europe to find stable work and support their family back home.

I take a photo through the window looking in, one young boy ducks down. I smile at him and apologise, he steps out and says to me; “sorry, we are a little traumatised. Would you like a cup of coffee?”. As he brings out a cup of coffee to me, another man comes around the corner; back from the hills where he just attempted to cross over to Croatia. As he presents himself and asks where am I from? he continues on to say “You know all these boys first arrived here, all healthy and strong just like a nice European boy from Belgium or Germany but now they are all frail, white and unhealthy” as he goes on laughing about their situation. After a few hours of hanging out and talking with these men, I feel the situation that they are in. They have no choice to go back home as they put everything they had to come this far and they need to continue on, so they can help their families back home. Their living situation, for now, has become just the same as the street dogs of Velika Kladusa, stuck without any proper daily food, shelter and nowhere else to go.

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

5. Compassion and Empathy

By the end of the trip, seeing these circumstances made me feel once again compassion and mostly empathy as in every trip I have taken to document these inhuman situations. As we drive back to Austria, from border to border, the authority takes a quick glance at our passport, without any restraint or being beaten, we are free to head up north. As we were leaving behind the dark grey rainy Bosnian sky, we head towards Austria where the sun happens to shine. It honestly felt as if we were leaving hell to go to heaven. Once again, I reflect upon my own life and how fortunate I am to be free, travel and live as I please. Having seen the situation and the reality on the ground of what these people have to endure just in the hope for a life of safety and prosperity just like mine; I have the uncomfortable notion that this is only unjustifiably determined by where I was born and geopolitics.

As of May 2019, it is estimated that there are around 10,000 refugees/migrants that are currently in Bosnia. According to UNHCR, it is estimated that around one million migrants and refugees arrived in Europe in 2015. Based on the European parliament data, in 2018, there were 634,700 applications for international protection in the EU including Norway and Switzerland. Granted protection was given to almost 333,400 asylum seekers within the EU. The total number of illegal border-crossings dropped to 150,114. Although, 471,155 people were denied entry at the EU’s external borders.

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

Photos shot in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Clement Martz

  • Featuring: Clement Martz, Bosnia

Bibliography

Clement Martz (www.clementmartz.com)

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Clement Martz (@clementmartz)

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