Interviews with Refugees

Although newcomers have regularly been among us for years, citizens, politicians and policymakers often have little idea of the personal backgrounds of these people. This causes not only loneliness, misunderstanding and antagonism. A consequence is also that integration is unnecessarily hampered and that policies aimed at this are less effective than they could be. To gain more insight into backgrounds, we conducted a large number of in-depth interviews with newcomers. This is done in the context of our project in Teltow-Fläming in Brandenburg in which we investigate the living situation of more than a thousand refugees and try to improve this situation with all stakeholders involved. We asked many questions: why did the people come, what was their life like before, what expectations did they have, what do they want to achieve in Germany, what are their experiences so far, what problems do they face, what solutions do they see for this? The names of those involved have been changed, as well as some place names. The interviews have been conducted in German, English, Farsi, Arabic and French and are published with the consent of those involved. In November 2023 Hans Blokland published Migrationspolitik auf der Flucht (Migration Policy on the Run) at Transcript Publishers in Bielefeld. In this book the interviews are analyzed, qualitative data are presented, and policy recommendations are formulated. Information about the book in English, as well as the Foreword, Introduction and Epilog you can find here.

Saleh, Syria

My name is Saleh, and I am from Syria. I have been in Berlin for ...

Ahmad: Syria

My name is Ahmad and I’m 31 years old, from Damascus, Syria. After leaving Syria, ...

Nduka, Biafra

I was born in a family with seven children, three girls and four boys. One ...

Ahmed, Afghanistan

My name is Ahmed, I am originally from Afghanistan and currently, I am living in ...

Richard, Togo

I am Richard and I was born on February 3, 1995, in Agomé Tomékbé. I ...

Viyan: Kurdistan

In Germany at the age of 18, most young adults worry about their next steps ...

Yao, Togo

I was born in Kpalimé. I have six siblings and my father has three wives. ...

Fofo, Togo

So far, we have interviewed people from all over the world who have come to ...

Adeel, Iraq

I am 30 years old. But I look much younger. Many people think that I ...

Almar: Afghanistan

This interview was conducted (in English) and edited by Hans Blokland and Isabel Romijnders. I ...

Ali Ghaznawi, Afghanistan

When we (Isabel Romijnders and Hans Blokland) interviewed Ali, we immediately noticed that he was ...

Zahra and Farida, Syria

This interview was conducted with two women who are related by marriage, the first with ...

Sharif and Arezo, Afghanistan

We conducted this interview with a couple from Afghanistan, Sharif and Arezo. They complemented telling ...

Sahar and Baran, Iran

We conducted this interview in Farsi with an Iranian woman, Sahar, and her daughter, Baran. ...

Ines, Cameroon

I come from Cameroon. I arrived in Germany in 2018. I can’t speak about my ...

Fatima, Algeria

I grew up in Algeria and attended school there through the first year of university, ...

Kasra and Mona: Iran

Kasra I am from Iran, 20 years old, and I have been in Germany for ...

Hung, Vietnam and Ukraine

I was born in Russia because my parents lived there, but I moved to Vietnam ...

Majid, Iran

I am from Ahvaz, province of Khuzestan in the south of Iran. I am 38 ...

Miranda, Cameroon

I was born in Cameroon, in the city of Yaoundé. I grew up with my ...

Naseem, Afghanistan

I was born in Afghanistan but left the country once the Taliban first took over. ...

Aline: Cameroon

I have four children, three girls and one autistic boy. My oldest daughter is 25-years-old ...

Karina: Morocco

I come from Northern Morocco, but I moved to Libya some years ago. In my ...

Layanah, Cameroon

I came to Germany with my brother. In Cameroon, I worked as a hairdresser. Over ...

Dukvakha: Chechnya

At 13, I came to Germany with my mother and two sisters due to circumstances. ...

Malia and Eliana, Chechnya

This interview was conducted with 14-year-old Malia and her mother Eliana, both from Chechnya. Malia ...

Afra, Iraq

I arrived in Germany on July 1, 2019. My husband worked in the military police ...

Gulshan: Afghanistan

I am 25 years old, from Afghanistan. I have been living here for about nine ...

Yasmina: Lebanon

I was born in a refugee camp in Lebanon and moved to a city called ...

Mama Stacy, Stacy and Tom: Cameroon

We conducted this interview with a family, but separated their stories to show their different ...

Alieh, Afghanistan

As much as we believe in the importance of stories from the newcomers to be ...

Fidvi, Pakistan

Eight years I have been in Germany, and three years in the accommodation here. Before ...

Islam, Dagestan

I come from Russia, from Dagestan. I come from a big family; I had 8 ...

Ab, Gambia

I was 17 years old when I left the Gambia. I traveled alone, leaving behind ...

Emad, Afghanistan

I am twenty-five years old, from Afghanistan. I come from the Herat province, but not ...

Akilah, Palestine.

I am 33 years old and have been living in Germany for more than 6 ...

Yaqout, Syria

I was born in Homs, Syria to a small family—it was only me and my ...