Italy: “I’m Shocked by the Whirlwind of Emotions”

I’ve been in Augusta since Tuesday. Here, I’ve witnessed the landing of 712 people, which went on until Wednesday.

Anger, sadness, frustration, empathy, great humanity: I’m shocked by the whirlwind of emotions. These people have lost everything, yet they can still smile, share their terrible stories with me, a stranger, tell me about their dreams.

I’d like to be able to say that everything will be fine, that they will now find a job, that they will find peace. But I can’t. In the port of Pozzallo, there was another landing of 673 people on Wednesday. With them, a newborn’s corpse. I have seen signs of beating, torture and tired, lost looks. I talked a lot with two boys from Cameroon – two brothers. One of them studied international relations. When I told him that I’d studied the same thing, he smiled and called me “comrade”. This was the peak of my day.

Francesca, EMERGENCY staff