Spotlight

Refugees. Ordinary people living through extraordinary times

“Dance is my passion, career, and drive”

I was a Palestinian refugee in Syria. I lived in Damascus, in Yarmouk refugee camp. My father is a refugee, so I am the second generation of refugees. In 2012, I went to Lebanon where I had lived for one year trying to make a better life. But I experienced a hostile environment in Lebanon. People even in Arab countries do not like Palestinians. Then I came to Kyrgyzstan.
I am a professional choreographer and a dancer. Dance is my passion, my career, my drive. Every human being wants to be happy. Some people find happiness in travelling, making money, and working.  I feel happy and immersed in a different world when I dance and teach others to dance. I can do many things. To survive in Kyrgyzstan I worked as a farmer, a cook, a cleaner, and a vendor. But my heart always wants to dance!”

Alaa is 27, a second generation Palestinian refugee who lived in Syria, Lebanon, and now in Kyrgyzstan.  He does not have a country and without a nationality nor basic social protection. He lives in Kyrgyzstan with an expired passport, but he remains positive that he can find a job and integrate into Kyrgyz society where he hopes to call it home. He lives for the moment.
His parents are still living in Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus, Syria. His mother has cancer. Alaa shaved his hair as a prayer for his mother.  He believes strongly that his mother will recover and will become a full citizen of some country in the future. “Every time when I call her, I assure her that the world will become stable and peaceful, and then we can all live together somewhere peacefully, dance and be happy.”

Refugees. Ordinary people living through extraordinary times. Share their stories.