postcard no.//008 – out of the fire. . .
anywhere but there. for refugees from the horn of africa, staying in their war ravaged homelands is an increasingly suicidal option. fleeing the never ending cycles of conflict and drought in somalia and ethiopia refugees risk their lives during the arduous trek across land to the smuggling towns that lie along the northern shores of somalia. they carry with them only the money they’ve saved for escape, a few momentos, and the prayer that they will survive the perilous boat crossing through the gulf of aden to the relative safety of yemen and hopefully to better lives in the middle east and europe.
as of november this year over 44,000 refugees, more than double the total number of arrivals from the previous year, have made the journey from the somali coast across the gulf of aden to the southern shores of yemen despite its being the poorest country in the arabian peninsula and the 14th poorest country in the world, and hundreds have also died trying–forced overboard by the smugglers miles from shore, many are brutally beaten and murdered never realizing their dreams of peace.
from a personal project looking at the plight of refugees in the horn of africa and the middle east.
