The Story of Camara, Guinea
I Want to Live Freely. That’s What I Wished For.
Camara, first, can you tell me a little about your life before leaving your home country, Guinea?
My life was quite dangerous in my country. I asked to leave because my life was in danger there. It was very, very dangerous. So I decided to leave the country so I could be free.
That’s why I came here… because I want to live freely. That’s what I wished for.
Can you tell us a little about what life was like in Guinea, what your childhood was like?
I had to leave the country because of my father, as he was a neighborhood leader. That means he was a representative of the neighborhood. If something happened with the youth, with protesters, he was the representative.
My father was involved in politics; he was part of a party called RPG. He was a leader there, a neighborhood leader. The whole neighborhood decided to overthrow the government because, at that time, his party was in power. Everyone decided to overthrow it. Those who supported the president decided this.
One day, I was at training because football was my passion. Ever since I was a child, football was what I loved. I chose football from a very young age. On my way home, I ran into a protest. The young people in the neighborhood were out protesting, breaking things, throwing stones and sticks. Someone saw me and said: "Ah, this is the son of our neighborhood leader. So we can take revenge on him, and by threatening his son, maybe the leader will be scared." Because once the protest started, my father ran away. He fled with my mother to save themselves. I was at training and ended up being caught in the middle of this revolt.
They grabbed me, some beat me, hit me, injured me… They took me somewhere else and told me that if I didn’t call my father to send them money, they wouldn’t release me, they would kill me, torture me. I was there for a few minutes until a friend of mine, who knew me very well, called my father. He told him he needed to send some money so they could release me. So my father sent a small amount.
Before he sent the money, I started shouting, and they heard my voice and came to save me. They got me out of there and told me to find a place to go. My father was in danger because the government had been overthrown.
So I left the village and went to the capital, Conakry. I still went to training because there was a small club there too. I joined the club so I could stay, but everyone knew me because sometimes, when my father went to meetings with the president, he took me along. I accompanied him to those meetings, and everyone recognized me.
Even in the capital, the situation was the same – a revolt to overthrow the government. The president at the time staged a coup on September 5th. Now, the country was in chaos. They were searching everywhere, throwing stones and other things. So I decided to leave the country to live in peace. I left for Mali.
I stayed in Mali for a while, then traveled through Mali and reached Algeria. The journey was very difficult because we were more than five people. We lost two friends on the way. They died of hunger in the desert. So there were three of us left, and we managed to reach Tunisia. And there, the situation was the same. The president of Tunisia did not want Black people there.
We slept under trees, hiding wherever we could. One day, they chased us away, and we ran to the shore. We saw people looking for a boat to escape. We joined them and got on a boat. We were at sea for six days. We lost a friend on the way… we lost him on the way.
We arrived in Italy. There, they interviewed us, asked us where we wanted to settle. I chose Romania.
In Italy, I started playing for a club, and the club appreciated me. But since I had chosen relocation, one day they told me that Romania was the place chosen for me, to continue living my life in peace. I said OK, I agree. I thought that by coming here, I could follow my dream of playing football peacefully.
Did you choose relocation to Romania so you could play football?
Yes, exactly. That’s my story.
That’s how I came to Romania. I feel good here because I started playing. I even joined a club, Dunărea Giurgiu. I started playing very well there. I would like to stay here and live my life because football is my passion. I want to follow my dream here, if they will accept me.
What have you liked the most since arriving in Romania?
What I liked the most here? The fact that I started playing football peacefully. The club here is very friendly with me, everyone appreciates me. And I appreciate them. We feel like a family. Dunărea Giurgiu is a young club. That’s what attracted me here.
That’s great. What other things impressed you or made you feel good in Romania?
I have a great sympathy for people, but for me, my field is football. Football is all I know. Even in the camp where I stay, everyone knows that football is my thing.
Have you faced any challenges since arriving in Romania? Any difficult moments?
Difficult moments? Not really.
What do you do in your free time, besides football?
Maybe I’ll look for a job, but one that won’t affect my training. I want to try to find a good job, but I want to continue with my passion because this is my dream. My dream is to become a big, big, big player. I want to make it big and, if I get the chance, represent Romania, the Romanian flag in football. That’s what I have in mind.
That is my dream. If I have the chance to represent Romania in football, I can do it because this is my thing.
Any other hobbies or things you like to do?
What do I like to do besides work? Uh, I don’t know yet. Because I can’t say, "No, I can’t do this, I can’t do that." You can learn anything. But at this moment, my heart, since I was a child, has been in football. That’s what I have.
I don’t know if you can tell me, do you still talk to your family? How are your father and mother? Have they left Guinea, or are they still there?
At this moment, I don’t have much time to talk to my father. He is already old now. I talk to my girlfriend, but she is not near my father, she is in another city, no longer in Guinea. But I talk to her, and she is the one who calls my family. I pray, I pray to stay in touch with my girlfriend. Whatever happens with my family, she brings me all the news. They always connect and talk to her. It’s okay, they feel well.
Thank you so much, Camara! Thank you for your time!
Thank you too, and have a great day!
This story is part of the "Human Stories" collection, showcasing the voices of refugees in our country and their unique experiences. Illustrations by Andreea Diaconu.