Germans open their hearts to IS slave victims

From the outside, the refugee camp looks like nothing more than an abandoned nursing home, but inside it looks more like a playground.

Inside a refugee camp in Germany. Photo: DPA

According to the Guardian, a group of children with brand new backpacks were waiting to be led to swimming lessons. Behind them was a wall decorated with their own drawings. In the hallway, children were playing soccer and skipping rope, while mothers with their children in their arms sat huddled together chatting on their phones.

The camp, located in a quiet village a few hundred kilometers from Stuttgart, is one of dozens built across the German state of Baden-Württemberg since last spring as part of a special project to provide some relief to some 2,500 women and children who have escaped slavery at the hands of Islamic State (IS) militants.

Security at the camp was tight. It was only when a boy was heard speaking loudly in Kurdish to another boy learning to ride a bicycle in an empty parking lot that people knew someone was there.

"Women and children here were enslaved by IS. They are victims and witnesses of war crimes, so we have to protect them in a secret and strict way," said Dr. Michael Blume, program director.

Baden-Württemberg began accepting women and children in March 2015. Not only is it one of Germany's richest states, it is also home to a large population of Yazidis, an ethnic minority group from northern Iraq.

Last year, the German federal parliament agreed to grant residence permits to 1,100 people on humanitarian grounds and opened an office with a budget of 106 million USD to provide accommodation for women and children who are victims of IS.

Since the morning of August 3, 2014, IS militants have carried out massacres in areas around the ancient city of Sinjar, Iraq, killing thousands of people and forcing nearly 300,000 to flee. The United Nations has called this an act of genocide against the Yazidi minority. According to activists, more than 6,000 women and children have been kidnapped by IS militants as sex slaves and severely abused.

Noor Murad, 25, was one of the IS prisoners. She and her two-year-old son were taken from Sinjar while her husband was working in Duhok, and held by IS for 10 months. After months of negotiations, she was released and arrived in Germany in November.

"I'm lucky I got here. I'm worried about my five younger siblings who are still missing," she said.

In Germany, Murad received intensive physical and mental health treatment. She had previously been examined and evaluated by Jan Kizilhan, the program’s lead psychiatrist. Having interviewed more than 1,200 IS detainees, he said his challenge now was to develop a program that could be applied in other places and in other languages ​​to help victims of genocide.

Yazidi people fleeing land occupied by IS. Photo: Reuters

Blume explains that psychotherapy is relatively foreign to most women and children in the refugee camp.

“They have never been through a therapy program like this before, so we have to start slowly to make them feel comfortable and safe,” he said.

The intensive therapy program begins as soon as they board a specially chartered plane from Irbil. They receive free German language lessons. Children under 18 are required to attend school.

Many children in detention are forced to attend indoctrination courses and weapons training. Social workers at the camp ensure that women have time to attend therapy without worrying about childcare.

In addition, they receive a small amount of money to spend, depending on their age and the number of children. They are known to be very good at managing their budgets. They know how to shop for food, go out and learn about the daily needs of the German people.

"When I was held captive by IS, I just wanted to die. Now I feel free and comfortable. Iraq cannot be compared to Germany. It is very peaceful, quiet, and full of green space. But how can I be happy when I am not with my family?" Murad confided.

The treatment program prioritizes people with serious health problems such as complex gynecological diseases, life-threatening illnesses or those who have recently attempted suicide. Psychologists will assess their health condition to see if they can recover after treatment in Germany and integrate into life there.

“Young people have more prospects than old people because they can integrate more easily and feel freer than in Iraq,” Kizilhan said.

The length of time for psychological treatment varies from person to person. Some women have children who are still being held by IS and are trying to negotiate their release. This is obviously very taxing on them.

The Yazidi women who arrive in Germany are often severely physically and mentally damaged by long periods of captivity, abuse and mistreatment by IS. Most suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, Kizilhan explains. In general, basic care in the camps helps them maintain their physical health.

Salma, 17, arrived in Germany from the Zakho camp with her 15-year-old sister and her aunt six months ago. In Stuttgart, she felt free, but also guilty and sad. She started therapy as soon as she arrived.

"I felt like I was nothing when I came here, but I was treated very well here," she said.

If she joins the program, Salma's family can sign up to join her for the next two years.

"Here I get treatment, advice and support. I have everything I need."

Many Yazidi women and girls were once sex slaves in the hands of IS. Photo: Reuters

Salma’s family is still in Zakho camp, one of many poorly-equipped refugee camps in Duhok, Iraq. She is determined to get them to Germany and has expressed no desire to return to Iraq or any other Muslim country.

"Here I feel better, and the psychiatrist said I don't need any more treatment. When I was in Iraq, I thought my life was over. Even when I was released, I had no hope. Now I have a new life. I go to school, learn German. I will study more in the future."

According to VNE