Today we visited Za'atari Refugee Camp which, with almost 80,000 Syrian refugees, is the second largest refugee in the world. The camp is just 15 km from the Syrian border.

 

Life in the camp is made bearable thanks to the volunteers and the global Syrian aid programme, of which the UK Government has contributed over £1bl. Refugees in the camp are fed, kept safe and educated as a result. Without aid, their lives would be in danger.

 

After clearing security, and having received a briefing, we drove through the central market area to visit the food distribution centre where residents collect bread and daily food vouchers. The vouchers can be exchanged for food in the food markets inside the camp. A food debit card has been introduced to automate the service and ensure that only food is accessed. This ensures that aid is directly going where it is intended. Water is distributed directly to each household having been delivered to the camp in water trucks.

 

After saying farewell to the team who organise the food distribution, we headed off to our first school. In the courtyard we met a group of 18 to 25 year old women who were learning about negotiation and conflict resolution. In the classrooms, we met a class of 11 to 13 year olds who were practising art and design and a class of under 7 year olds who were being taught new words and the alphabet.

 

Our next visit in the camp was to a kindergarten, where many of the children were using paints and clay on only their second day of school. Their mothers were in an adjoining room and were being shown a video to combat violence in the home and at school.

 

Meeting with the mothers gave Victoria and I an opportunity to explore the difficulties of life in the camp. The electricity shuts down at 7.30pm and does not come back on until 3.30am. This, allayed to the lack of clubs in the evening, causes young people to lack any activity or stimulation away from the streets.

 

The mothers held concerns about the extent of the education programme. The kindergarten is fantastic but they were concerned that their children could lack a good education throughout their school years. Thanks to Save the Children, these opportunities to learn should exist.

 

Victoria and I explained what we did as MPs in Parliament and I asked the women if they knew of friends or relatives who had migrated to Europe. All knew of someone who had done so and I met one woman whose mothers and siblings were all in the UK. Understandably, she wanted to join them.

 

With the volunteers, we discussed the work opportunities for residents of Camp Za'atiri. Residents are prohibited from leaving and returning to the camp unless permission is obtained. This means that it is difficult for the residents to work. The Jordanian authorities have issued 200,000 working visas for Syrian migrants to work in textiles, agriculture and construction (industries which Jordanians are reluctant to work in). Children are better placed to slip in and out of the camp and are employed in these industries, sometimes overnight and sometimes for weeks on end. Child-labour is illegal in Jordan but employment of children from the camps is prevalent. This is a nuanced issue. As adult residents find it difficult to work, the children may be the only members of the family able to bring in wages. It is important to ensure that children are not exploited or put in danger but the ability.

 

Before leaving for Amman after our day visiting the camp, we were able to climb to a vantage point to get an idea of the scale of the camp. It is a vast sea of makeshift homes. Residents are bustling by and happy to see visitors. The camp was built to a design plan meaning that the infrastructure for sewage and waste was put in place at the outset. It has now grown to cover 8 square kilometres since it was officially opened four years ago.

 

We are left with a sense of frustration that these stoic people are displaced from their own country due to a futile war. However, this sense of frustration is allied to a sense of pride that aid from our UK Government, and volunteers from charities formed from our shores, such as Save the Children, make the camp safe, secure and free from disease and squalor. An amazing day which has left us with much to ponder.

 

Huw Merriman MP

Victoria Prentis MP