Rome, Afghanistan
Capitan Bavastro street, November, 11 2009 afternoon

"Italy is a beautiful country, I love it, I hope I can continue to stay here and reconnect with my family", said Amir (a false name) in a strongly accented English. He is from Kandahar and is one of more than a hundred Afghan refugees who populate the "Afghan hole", a camp-shelter below ground level, less than half a mile from the Aurelian Walls of Rome. A property dug to make way for the foundations of a new building situated a few meters from the Ex-Air Terminal, a symbol of the rich inefficiency of the '90s, and in front of the Ministry for the Environment and the tidy offices of the Chamber of Commerce, while a few hundred meters away there's the nightlife hub on Ostiense street, where many Romans spend their thoughtless nights. The "hole" however goes unnoticed even by the newly renovated and expanded road that passes over it (Captain Bavastro street). Jamil (a false name) has been in Italy for more than two years, and his Italian is fluent: "We have set up our tents here, up on the concrete but without any protection from the sky, we spend the whole day keeping the place clean, but when it rains so often, water and mud go everywhere." He, like most people here, has the status of refugee and is internationally protected under the fundamental rights defined by international conventions and by the Italian Constitution. There are men only because women were not allowed to leave Afghanistan; they are young, some underage, the average age being 25-30. Their stories are terrible, but sitting in a circle, they are willing to tell them: one man who fled to avoid forced recruitment by the Taliban fighters, one who lost his family under Nato bombings. The youngest ones, finally, were sent away by their own families in hopes of a less brutal future.
They cannot find jobs. No one wants a homeless person as an employee. Yet humble and legal employment would be the key to allow them to get out of the "hole". It's a vicious circle.

Now the refugees are here, for too long, and recently, controversy about the situation has been raised - following pressure from the owners and technicians of the construction site who need to be able to continue their work - and after the evictions by the police during this long week. The only force in the field is Medu, Medics for Human Rights, which provides medical and health aid through a permanent garrison standing, to mediate with the forces in play that are planning the next attempt at eviction.