[by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]¸ü¶àÌýÁ¦Çë·ÃÎÊ51VOA.COM [00:00.00]Fleeing places such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan [00:05.77]is not easy because few countries will accept refugees. [00:11.25]Several of the countries that do welcome refugees are in South America. [00:18.54]Over the past five years, Brazil has been the place [00:23.64]where refugees arrive and stay ¨C or at least live temporarily [00:28.96]-- before they are sent to Europe or the United States. [00:33.85]Ahmad Hamada is one of those refugees. [00:38.79]Seven days a week, he sells Arab food in the Botafogo neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. [00:47.75]"Here in Brazil, no person [helps you], gives you money, give[s] you [a] house," he said. [00:54.36]"You must work. No work, cannot eat here." [01:00.68]Hamada is a Palestinian who grew up in Syria and Lebanon. [01:06.95]He decided to flee the conflicts in the Middle East 11 months ago. [01:13.06]He wanted to go to Europe and believed he could get there by going first to Brazil. [01:20.19]Before Europe began to accept large numbers of refugees, [01:25.70]Brazil was one of the few countries that would give Syrians and Palestinians a visa. [01:33.17]Since 2013, thousands of refugees have entered Brazil. [01:39.26]Many of them hope to be sent to Europe. [01:43.28]Ahmad was one of them. [01:46.31]But he says immigration officers attacked him in Rome and returned him to Brazil. [01:53.78]He says he woke up on a plane, guarded by four Italian police officers. [02:01.36]He said his hands and legs were in chains. [02:05.98]Refugees who arrive in Rio de Janeiro are often sent to the Sao Joao church. [02:14.68]It is led by Father Alex Coelho Sampaio. [02:19.91]Father Sampaio operates The House of Support for Refugees in buildings behind the church. [02:28.55]He says Brazil has, for many years, [02:32.92]accepted those who are being persecuted or are fleeing conflict. [02:38.01]"Brazil for many years has had an open-door policy [02:43.31]and that was true after the Second World War, for example," he said. [02:48.75]"And at the moment, in particular, regarding Syrian refugees, [02:53.53]we are receiving quite a lot." [02:56.35]Father Sampaio says at one time he was caring for so many Syrians [03:02.83]that the refugees had to sleep on mattresses on the floor. [03:07.87]With his help, some have gone to Europe and others have remained in Brazil. [03:14.66]He now cares for 35 refugees. Three are Syrians. [03:21.27]They include Ahmad Barour, from Damascus. [03:25.81]"I would love to go to Europe, Britain, a country that is democratic," Barour said. [03:33.08]"Everybody is equal -- no discrimination between black, [03:38.09]white, stranger, or native. They respect everybody." [03:43.16]For now, he is happy to stay in Brazil. [03:47.57]He says he earns enough money to buy food. [03:51.88]And he says he has friends. [03:54.73]But he says someday he hopes to visit his sister in Denmark. [04:00.66]I'm Pete Musto.