at the Polish border, “the Ukrainian guards hit us with sticks”, say foreign students

cover on the back, Gurwinder is still struggling to realize that he has finally arrived in Poland. “I tried to pass several times”, says this Indian student, VTC driver in Kiev (Ukraine). He walked 30 kilometers to reach the border, where he had to wait three days at the Ukrainian border post to cross. “Each time, the Ukrainian guards said to me: ‘No, first the women and children will pass. You Indians will not pass’says Gurwinder. We tried for three days, without sleeping, without eating because if you sleep, you lose your place.”

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Like him, more than 500,000 people have joined Poland since the launch of the Russian offensive in Ukraine on February 24. I’exodus is particularly difficult for the 78,000 foreign students who lived like him in Ukraine, many of whom are from Africa and Asia. Several of them have indeed denounced discrimination on the Ukrainian side of the border.

While not all foreigners interviewed had problems crossing the border because of their nationality, several accounts emerged from students stranded on the Ukrainian side of the border. The African Union has even denounced treatment “unacceptable” and “racist” for Africans. Some embassies, such as that of the Ivory Coast, South Africa or Nigeria, have sent representatives there.

“When we arrived, they put the Ukrainians ahead of us with residence documents. When we tried to complain, the Ukrainian guards beat us with sticks. I was hit several times”testifies for his part Clinton, a 24-year-old Ugandan. He arrived at the border post on February 24 but was only able to reach Poland on March 3. “They let us sleep outside. We had to make a fire and they put it out”he says, still in shock, dat Przemysl station. He believes that this treatment inflicted on foreigners is racist.

“Because you are black, even if you try to communicate using an online translator, they look at you and walk away. They are the repositories of authority, aren’t they supposed to help us “It was very hard. I’m really very happy to have arrived in Poland because, honestly, I didn’t think I would get there. It was very worrying.”

Clinton, 24-year-old student from Uganda

at franceinfo

For its part, Ukraine denied any difference in treatment, ensuring that it was first come, first served. The Ukrainian Border Guard Service denied “any difficulty”ensuring that “no one was prevented from leaving Ukraine”. For its part, Warsaw recalled that anyone fleeing Ukraine is welcomed regardless of their nationality, valid passport or not…