Giant puppet 'Little Amal' completes 8000km migrant journey in Manchester
Giant puppet 'Little Amal' completes 8000km migrant journey in Manchester
The puppet of a ten-year-old Syrian girl arrived in the northern city after completing her walk from Turkey to the UK to highlight the plight of refugees.
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Little Amal completed her journey in Manchester after leaving Gazientep near the Turkish-Syrian border last July [Getty]
A completed its 8000km journeyÌýfrom to the northwestern English city ofÌý on Wednesday, after aiming to highlight the plight of refugees.
Little Amal, theÌýthree-metre tall figure representing an unaccompanied minor and , took the last steps of her walk with Manchester's International Festival,ÌýwhichÌýhosted her finaleÌýat Castlefield Bowl.
This comes four months after the puppet left Gazientep near the Turkish-Syrian border last July, on a mission to complete a journeyÌýtaken by over 17,000 people wishing to seek refuge in Europe this year alone.
"Thousands welcomed Little Amal to Manchester last night, where she found her new home," Little Amal's team saidÌý.
🎉 got a warm welcome home as she arrived here at the end of her 8000km journey through 65 cities, towns and villages. hosted with a Mancunian celebration of song, dance, music and puppetry from
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil)
Welcome home 🧡
"Little Amal, you are safe now in Manchester... the place where people understand why you left your country and why we should give you protection...Ìý[as Manchester has] been the refuge for thousands from different countries who had to flee for their safety,"ÌýDr Haytham Alhamwi, the manager of refugee-focused charity , said at the finale.
The giant doll, operated by a team of eightÌýpuppeteers, has anÌýentourage of around 30Ìýpeople who have navigated Covid travel restrictions in order to successfully complete theÌýjourney.
They began in Turkey, travellingÌýthroughÌýGreece,ÌýItaly,ÌýSwitzerland,Ìý, Belgium and France before on 19 October.Ìý
Little Amal will now head to Glasgow to attend , the United Nations' 2021 Climate Change Conference, where she willÌýopen the Gender DayÌýevent 'Advancing Gender Equality in Climate Action’ on TuesdayÌýto emphasises that "migrant justice = climate justice".
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