InfoMigrants

Where persecuted writers find refuge

Syrian writer Rabab Haidar had to flee her homeland because she resisted President Assad. She has now found refuge at the Heinrich Böll House in Germany. For World Poetry Day, we look into her story.

Aïcha from Ivory Coast: 'After being married off at 13 and beaten, I decided to change my life'

Before she reached the French port city of Marseille 18 months ago, 29-year-old Aïcha travelled thousands of kilometers to escape violence and death threats in Ivory Coast. Today, the single mother of four dreams of setting up an association defending women’s rights. InfoMigrants met her in the emergency shelter Saint-Just in Marseille where she works as a volunteer.

Sissoko, from Mali: 'I put the child on the edge of the boat for two seconds. When I turned back around, he was no longer there'

For two years, Sissoko, a 31-year-old Malian, has been trying to recover from his crossing of the Mediterranean. Of around 130 people who boarded the ship, 62 died, including all the children on board.

Hell on earth: My illegal journey from Nigeria to Europe

For most young Africans, Europe and Western countries hold the promise of a happy life. Among them was Kelechi Goodluck, a Nigerian now living in Spain. He ignorantly embarked on a dangerous journey from Nigeria to Europe through the Sahara and across the Mediterranean. Things didn’t end up as he thought. He has now written a book about his experiences called 'A Gamble With Death'.

‘I used to have plans for the future, now I just live day to day’

In 2015, *Mohammed was arrested after being accused of selling Christian literature – a crime which carries the death penalty in his native Afghanistan. While in transit to the court, Mohammed managed to escape his captors after Taliban gunmen ambushed the police convoy he was traveling in. Now, he faces imminent deportation back to Afghanistan, because the country in which he sought refuge – Sweden – doesn’t consider his home province a conflict zone.