The idea of Cersei Lannister lamenting the loss of humanity seems strange, but of course, Lena Headey is nothing like the cunning queen of manipulation she portrays on Game of Thrones. Along with co-stars Maisie Williams (who plays the tomboyish Arya Stark) and Liam Cunningham (the smuggler/knight Davos Seaworth), she was invited to what she described as a “life-changing” trip to Greece by the International Rescue Committee.

The three actors visited refugee camps operated by the IRC in Lesvos and in northern Greece. Hence her account of “the loss of humanity that is at stake if we don’t do something”.

The actors met with refugees who have been impacted by the EU-Turkey deal implemented in March on the island of Lesvos, and at two sites in the north, where the IRC runs programs in protection and environmental health.

“I met a 21-year-old girl who was headed to university to do amazing things in biology, and now she has had all that taken away from her,” said Maisie Williams, speaking to the press. “And you are worried she wants to come and take from your country. She’s just a girl. They’re just people like you and me and they don’t want to live in a different country their whole life, they want to go home but they can’t, because we destroyed it,” she added, expressing a view shared by Lena Headey.

“These are people who are smart, skilled, hard-working, they want to contribute and we’re not allowing them; we stopped them from living,” said the actor who, while in Lesvos, met with a young Syrian woman travelling alone with three children under the age of 11. Her husband, who has cancer, is in Germany and she has not seen him in 18 months and, because the process to reunite with him is so slow and drawn-out, she may wait another five to six months before she sees him again.

Liam Cunningham had his own explanation of why such events occur: “They do the old bureaucratic foot-dragging, because they want Europe to be undesirable for refugees, making it as difficult as possible for them to regain their dignity,” he said, stating this as part of the refugee problem.
Describing the group’s visit to the camps, the actor spoke of the “fantastic work done by the Greek military”, praising the local authorities for the compassion and care they show, despite the effect this crisis has on the economy.

“The Greeks have a history of being refugees; they recognise the problem and the acceptance and dignified humanity they express is wonderful.”

Cunningham met with Afghan and Syrian fathers, who talked about their reasons for leaving their countries, the constant fear in which they lived, and what life is like for them now as they spend the hot summer months living in a refugee camp in Europe.

“We met some absolutely beautiful families – happy, happy children, who are stuck on their journey to meet other members of their family in Europe,” he said. “There are people in these camps who are oncologists, judges − successful people who have had everything taken away from them. Not because of a tsunami, not because of an earthquake, not because of famine; because people in offices in capitals around the world have decided to visit them with cruelty.”

Liam Cunningham called on EU leaders to do much more for the approximately 57,000 refugees currently stranded in Greece.

The International Rescue Committee helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. IRC teams provide health care, infrastructure, learning and economic support to people in 40 countries, with special programs designed for women and children.

The IRC has been responding to the Europe refugee crisis in Greece since July 2015, taking up action in seven sites across Greece – Kara Tepe on the island of Lesvos, Cherso, Diavata, Giannitsa and Alexandria in northern Greece and Skaramagas, Schisto and Eleonas in Attica, the region that encompasses Athens.