Every day at 7am, Ahmed waits on the corner of one of Beirut’s busiest streets, waving his shoe shining brushes and singing classic songs by Arab singers like Fairouz and Farid Al Atrash, or sometimes it’s the latest hits by current artists – songs that he has overheard from cars that were stuck in traffic.
“I promise you will leave with a smile on your face and a song in your heart,” says the 12-year old Syrian refugee. Though thin and tired, a smile never leaves his face. His eyes twinkle, despite the angry, sometimes dismissive looks he gets from passers-by.
At first glance, we can take pity on this child who has been forced to give up his childhood and work on the streets. But if we look again, we can see inspiration. He is making the best out of the worst circumstances.
That is when I feel we need to reach out. We must be there to help people like Ahmed.
I bought him some food and water and gave him some money. He thanked me, but then looked straight into my eyes as he said: “I want a job. Can I work at your company? I am a fast learner. Please give me a chance.”
This is what so many people need and, if I am honest and look at myself, it was the chances I was given that changed my life.
Sometimes, the quickest way to change is to alter one’s perspective. Rarely does this apply so pertinently as to refugees. Instead of viewing them as a “burden”, they could be viewed as a resource.
I doubt anyone wants to just wait for handouts.
People forget that many refugees had their own businesses. They were doctors, engineers and professionals once. Just like the rest of us, they had dreams and homes.
I remembered Ahmed and many other refugees I had met while I was one of the speakers at the first regional conference titled Investing in The Future: Protecting Refugee Children in the Middle East and North Africa. Held in Sharjah, it brought together more than 300 leaders, government officials, experts and researchers discussing how to find solutions to the growing refugee crisis.
At one of the sessions, I suggested a possible solution where I said that corporations should set up call centres and hire Syrian and Palestinian refugees, because they have the Arabic language skills. Why not? Why set up something in India or China, when the Arab world needs jobs and a chance to regain some of its dignity?
Sure there will always be some logistical issues, but change can and has to start small.
People need to be more adaptable and imaginative when it comes to creating a new way of life for those who have lost everything. At the same time, we need to be careful not to unbalance the jobs market in any given country.
A report published in June by UNHCR showed that the number of refugees, asylum-seekers, and internally displaced people worldwide had exceeded 50 million people for the first time since the Second World War.
Around 51.2 million people were forcibly displaced at the end of 2013, six million more than in 2012.
This massive increase was mainly from Syria, with 2.5 million people becoming refugees and another 6.5 million displaced internally. New displacements were also seen in Africa, in places such as the Central African Republic and South Sudan.
A child becomes a refugee every minute, and so in the time it has taken you to read this column, another three children have become refugees.
No one wants to be just a number, and they shouldn’t have to live or die as one.
rghazal@thenational.ae
Twitter: @Arabianmau
