African & Indian Nationals Face Racism as They Flee Ukraine
HAVANA TIMES – India’s government has dispatched ministers to Ukraine’s borders after Indians seeking to cross into Poland reported they were turned around and told to go to Romania instead. Citizens of several African countries report they were pushed back from Poland because they are Black. This is Ellie Mboma, a student from Congo.
Ellie Mboma: “We had to stay outside, exposed to the freezing weather that they have here. Nobody tells us where we can find shelter, and we are left out in the cold.”
Last November, Poland massed troops along its border, firing tear gas and water cannons to block thousands of refugees — most of them from the Middle East — from crossing into Poland, where they were seeking asylum in the EU. That contrasts with about 300,000 Ukrainian refugees welcomed to Poland within just the last several days.