Chechens in Poland
One of my current activities is giving English lessons to a couple of groups of Russian-speaking asylum seekers and refugees . We knew that various organisations offer Polish lessons, including some of the refugee centres themselves, but having spoken to some of the centres' residents it was suggested that they would benefit from knowing the international language of English.When I tell people we're teaching English, they assume it's because the asylum seekers are planning to go to England once (and if) refugee status is granted. Of course this is sometimes the case, as Poland is viewed in a very dim light by many asylum seekers, who are held in very limited conditions, but it is certainly not the reason we are teaching them.
Poland is not west enough for many, but I hope the English lessons provide much more than an incentive to leave Poland for the far-off shores of the UK.
The students are leaving the centres for a start, to come to the Polish school in which the lessons are held. This provides an escape from their (let's face it) depressing accommodation and frustration of their situation.
They feel they are learning a skill which could help them in the future. (As Manana Anjaparidze of Médecins Sans Frontières is quoted as saying in the article linked to above, the reason for so much frustration is not so much the conditions, but a lack of future perspectives.) English is a valuable language to have a basic understanding of, as Poland in general, and Warsaw in particular, becomes more international and cosmopolitan.
The asylum seekers are learning how to learn again. I work with another volunteer, a Chechen who continually reminds me that our Chechen students have forgotten how to learn. They have all suffered from the continuous war which obviously disrupted schools and higher education facilities. Hopefully, we will be able to engage them in such a way to encourage this spirit to learn, which will continue to be valuable in the future.
They are coming into contact with other nationalities: the Poles who work or study in the school, the foreigners like me who lead the class, or come to contribute to one particular class; and the different students. Although the current groups are predominantly Chechen, there are also Imgushetians and other former Soviet nationals.
We are going to have to start giving more lessons, as the groups are getting too big and people are advancing at different speeds. I would also like to start a discussion group involving all kinds of English speakers who are living in Poland. If you live in or around Warsaw and would like to join in and meet some people from different backgrounds at the same time as practising your English (or sharing your knowledge of the English language if you are a native speaker), get in touch!
posted by Becca @ 9:19 am
10 Comments:
Chances are, you're aiding and abetting Chechen sleeper cell terrorists. Has that thought ever crossed your mind? Now, before you rule that out, seriously take a look at the political situation in Chechnya and consider the odds. I already have; the odds are up there.
Think about it. Why would they want to go to England? Poland is indeed a good stepping stone for them.
Oh yes, thank you for pointing out something that never crossed my mind. No, Chechen's can't be normal people escaping a terrible situation in their home countries, they must be terrorists. Why, oh why did I never think of it before; all Chechens are terrorists. Thank you, oh, thank you anonymous comment-maker.
I love a bit of old-fashioned prejudice.
Thanks.
Jesus.
Poland is indeed a good stepping stone for them.
You've never been to Poland in your life, have you?
These people have dreams of the West not of a country trying to catch up with it.
In the West, the social services are good enough that these people can have tolerable lives while they are pulling themselves up by their bootstraps - as I'm sure you'd admire. It means their children rather than their grandchildren will be the first generation to finally have the comfortable lives others have only dreamed of. Wouldn't you want only the best for your children?
Can you imagine having dreams of Britain, France, Ireland or Germany - and getting stuck in Poland, where the bureaucratic limbo snatches you up and never, ever loosens its grip?
Make no mistake. "Old Europe" is the promised land - the Paradise.
And Poland = Purgatory.
Just slightly less bad than hell anonymous. You'd know that if you'd ever seen a Polish winter.
Terrorists my ass.
Yeah, most of them are in Poland because under the current rules they have to file for asylum in the first EU country they enter which is generally Poland.
Only the rich who can pay people smugglers get to file their claims in other countries, where refugee status comes with a few real rights.
Here, the facilities are barely coping and keep people waiting for years 'on hold' with very basic living conditions, deciding on whether they can stay or not. In general they get something called 'tolerated stay' which is so unsatisfactory that many end up going back to Chechnya despite the dangers of life there.
Anyway, I'm not sure knowing how to introduce yourself in English is all that useful for terrorists...
You're being rather insipid, Becca. Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, just remember that; the polack who also posted can kiss my lilly white arse, too.
how many poles DOES it take to screw in a lightbulb?
Who are you calling a 'polack' anon? Gus? Hmm, interesting.
I wasn't aiming to be witty with my sarcasm, I was trying to point out that stereotypes such as 'all Chechens are terrorists' are ill-founded, dangerous and frankly rather stupid.
I would also like to start a discussion group involving all kinds of English speakers who are living in Poland. If you live in or around Warsaw and would like to join in...
Becca, I would love to get involved with that. It sounds like a great idea!
Good for the Polish people for supporting the innocent Chechens.. Well done!
Poor Chechens have been bombed out of their homes and schools and dont have the opportunity for a proper education which is a shame, because almost all the most intelligent scientists and doctors in Russia originally come from this area and you only need to go to Moscow to see the number of academic Chechens to realise this.
Those countries like Poland who are offering them a second chance at life should be praised and England and the rest of civilised Europe should continue to fund them so that Russians learn that they can no longer go around Europe killing whoever they please.
Hey Becca!
Too bad I come upon your blog after you are no longer living in Warsaw! I work in a refugee center in Bialystok as an EVS volunteer(I'm from Bulgaria) with people from Caucas, mainly Chechen. Would have been nice to be able to meet and share info on our experiences! I came upon your blog by chance while searching for some info on Chechen refugees in Poland. Me and my colleagues - volunteers are about to start making presentaions on the topic in Polish schools. Judging from the reality and some of the comments to your blog, unfortunately the majority of Polish people are still rather close-minded as far as it comes to the refugee issue.
Would be nice to keep in touch with you! Best regards!
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