♪ >> hello and welcome to "focus on europe," the personal stories behind the headlines from every corner of the continent. i'm damien mcguinness. great you could join us. on today's program -- in the mediterranean, securing europe's borders. in poland, remembering the past with nazi death cap survivors -- death camp survivors. and in ireland, illusion becomes reality. first, to the difficult issue up migrants trying to cross the mediterranean to get to europe. this year alone, more than three

thousand people have died trying to make that journey. more than 150,000 arrived by sea this year, double last year's figure. until now, the navy has rescued many migrants suddenly in trouble out at sea, but the mission has ended and has been replaced by a new eu operation called triton, which is smaller and only supposed to guard europe's border rather than rescue migrants. there are now fears that the deadliest year yet in the mediterranean is about to get much worse. >> in the autumn, the weather often makes it difficult to reach the ship, but today, the waves have called down quickly after the storm -- the waves have calmed down quickly after the storm. from on board the boat, we can get a closer look at operation triton. its primary mission is to secure europe's maritime borders, but

what happens to migrants whose migrants founder further out at sea? tito is heading operations on board the portuguese vessel. since the beginning of november, he and his team have been patrolling the italian coast. >> the main problem is that we cannot cover all of the area. we need to get intel information and other aspects and air support to see all the contacts so we can positively id. >> that's why an aircraft belonging to finland's coast guard is flying overhead, patrolling the waters of the mediterranean from the air and the sea. if they find a ship of migrants headed for europe's shores, ace the boat is sent out to make contact. -- a speedboat is sent out to make contact. if the ship is still seaworthy, the coast guard accompanies it

to the nearest harbor. if it is in trouble, the migrants are brought on board. once on debt, the migrants are turned over to the military. they also receive emergency first aid. after several days on the open water, many are often badly dehydrated. >> the thing i like about this mission is the humanitarian aspects. we are controlling the sea borders and are prepared to support people that need it, people that are leaving their own life for a better future in europe. >> the question remains -- how many people could operation triton rescue if need a? an italian mission, which has now ended, cost around 9 million euros a month, but triton's budget is just 1/3 of that. europe's border agency says triton is not intended to replace the italian mission. it focused on search and rescue.

in just a single year, it pulled more than 100,000 people from the waters of the mediterranean. >> this is an admirable task that the italian navy had been conducting. we are absolutely committed to saving lives, but our task and our mandate is very clearly linked to border control. >> triton is patrolling a much smaller region than its predecessor operation, and it is not likely to carry out as many rescues. some say that is a positive side effect because with no italian rescue operation in place, fewer people will attempt the dangerous sea voyage. to some extent, isabella agrees. >> we have to focus on the situations in the countries where the migrants come from. we have to look at ways of stabilizing the situations there, building their economic prosperity.

we have to think of addressing smuggling networks, which are operating with impunity in libya, currently. >> but stabilizing the local situation may take decades, if it happens at all. triton is to patrol a zone stretching 30 miles -- 30 nautical miles off italy's coast. it will not be venturing into more hazardous waters. this boat cemetery in lampedusa is full every katie wooden boats that migrants used to try to cross the mediterranean -- full of rickety wooden boats. often, smuggling rings did not provide them with enough fuel. when things got aspirate, migrants would use a satellite phone to call for emergency help -- when things got desperate. he set out from the coast of limited this past june and is now living in a refugee camp run by a catholic relief organization in a suburb of palermo. the refugees are learning italian.

>> we were stopped, which is a big disaster. i believe that even if they struggle, people will still come, and if they are not rescued, unfortunately, their boats will capsize because the boats are not strong. >> war and economic crisis in africa continue to drive people to europe. the dream of a better life is a powerful incentive, but the reality is often quite different. >> in italy, life is very difficult. jobs are a problem here. they have no jobs in italy. i do not have a job here, and i have to walk the streets to find a good job. >> what would be a dream

country? >> germany is my dream country. >> he is also a huge fan of german soccer. whether he achieves his dream of a better life remains to be seen. he and his fellow refugees survived their dangerous journey thanks to the italian navy. if they had been forced to rely only on the new triton mission, they might not be here today. >> a tragic issue, which europe is really struggling with. now to poland, where archaeologists are excavating the remains of one of the most shocking sights of nazi brutality. many concentration caps are in fact brutal labor caps -- camps where victims were worked to death or died of starvation, but there was for many a slight chance of survival. camps like this were built simply to kill people.

jews and roma were often driven straight from the trains into the gas chambers. only a few people escaped. our reporters met up with one as he went on a brave journey into the painful past. >> it's a miracle that philip survived. now he is almost overwhelmed by the moment. for the first time, he sees the foundations of the gas chambers of the extermination camp where the nazis murdered up to 250 thousand people, including his family. all that remains today are a few bricks remaining of the floor plan. >> this is very important for me to come here, to look at the gas chamber where my family perished . i remember my niece came over to hug me, to say goodbye. she knew she was going to die.

it's very emotional for me to stay here. >> only 50 people survived sobibor, philip among them. prisoners were brought here and systematically murdered in gas chambers on an industrial scale. he took part in a rebellion, and he and his brother managed to flee, but it was impossible to lead a normal life after his experiences in sobibor. he later married and had children, but the death camp left its stamp on him permanently. >> if by chance somebody survives, they are witness and tell the world about this place, so here i am, a living witness of the horror of history. >> excavating the site's meticulous work. the machinery of mass murder ground to a halt in sobibor

after just a year and a half. the nazis leveled it in an attempt to eliminate all traces of what had gone on here, so it was all the more surprising when archaeologists uncovered remnants of the walls. philip wants to know about everything they have found. >> this is the outer wall of one of the gas chambers. >> did you find any showers? >> no, not yet. >> they dismantled it. >> it is taken away. >> if the research team had not been so determined, the ruins would have remained hidden. it was thought there was nothing more to find here. the archaeologists say they feel their work each the memory of the dead alive. -- they feel their work keeps the memory of the dead alive. >> we concentrate on the scientific aspect of the work, but we also feel it's wider dimensions. our aim is to reveal the truth so that the victims who suffered

unspeakably and then were murdered will not be forgotten. >> the excavators have found things that belonged to the victims. the guards robbed prisoners of all personal property before killing them. >> this ring here has a hebrew inspection -- in scripture and inside, a heart. it's very beautiful. we do not find many such things because the not sees melted such things down for the metal and to erase the traces of their crimes -- the not sees -- the nazis melted such things down for the metal and to erase the traces of their crimes. >> philip always stops by when he visits poland from the united states. it is always a very emotional moment, and he is always served the same noodle soup. the current generation's grandfather hid young philip and his brother.

>> keeping us here on his farm underground, and they brought us food and a pale -- in a pail like they would do for the milk so they could hide it and nobody should see. they did this for us until we were liberated. >> for a long time, the younger generations remained unaware of their grandfather's heroism. he never talked about it and died young. then, philip showed up and told of his bravery. >> how did i react? i was really proud of my grandparents for making such a decision. it was clear that it meant the whole -- it could have meant the whole family and all the neighbors would be killed. the germans were ruthless. >> a museum is now planned for sobibor, and the construction of

an educational center is to begin next year. workers will continue to uncover the foundations of the gas chambers. up to now, survivor testimonies were nearly the only source of information on the death camp. that is why philip is so glad the foundations have been found. they helped confirm the stories told by him and others about the horrors of sobibor. >> what a remarkable man. let me know what you think about that story or, for that matter, any of our other stories by getting in touch on twitter or by e-mail. over the last week, we have seen a lot of high level negotiations between the west and russia. despite all the diplomacy, fighting inastern ukraine is getting worse, so other countries with large russian speaking cmunities are increasingly worried that the conflict might spread, particularly in the baltic states of estonia, which was once in the soviet union, but today is in the eu.

about a quarter of estonia's population is russian-speaking, and it is a divided society with russian speakers and ethnic estonians often living very separate lives, consuming different media, and sometimes holding opposite opinions when it comes to russia's actions in ukraine. the worry is that the ukraine conflict could be making those divisions within estonia deeper still. >> they seem to glare at each other across the border on the river. the cotry once again feared in eastern europe, and the defensive tower in estonia. russian is spoken on both sides of the river, and many residents are not citizens of estonia. >> i have lived here for 65 years. why do i need a study in citizenship if they will not give me a passport?

i should not have to ask. if they had offered it to me, i would have accepted. >> when we moved here years ago, you did not have to speak estonian. it's such a difficult language. >> we are russians, and we decided for russian citizenship. >> how do you feel about the tensions between russia and estonia? >> excuse me, but i really don't want to talk about politics. >> many older people are angry about the fact at about 100,000 people in estonia are immigrants. alexander has accepted his statelessness. part of his family lives in russia and part in estonia. the great passport of the stateless offers some privileges.

>> i can vote in national elections but not in parliamentary elections. i can travel freely to russia without a visa. i could not do that with an estonian passport, so it is a real benefit. >> the soviets built the village to house skilled laborers for the arms industry, almost all of whom had come from russia. alexander was two years old when his parents came, and today, he is 68 and long since retired. he considers estonia his homeland. it's two hours by car to the capital. afr it left the soviet union, this small country became a european success story, introducing the euro in 2011. in the heart of the city, a cathedral is a meeting place for many russians. in the spring of 2000 seven,

russian nostalgia for the soviet union sparked days of street battles here- in the sing of 2007. russian-speaking young people went on a rampage after plans were announced to remove a russian landmark from the center of town. sergei wants to convey this view to everyone in estonia, including the russian speakers. >> we would must admit the history of estonia -- we must admit the history of estonia. the problem of recognizing the soviet experience are topics putting people in estonia in different places. >> the museum collects everything that recalls the region's mining and the soviet era. alexander shows us a mockup of a living room from the 1950's, ration coupons for vodka, and a portrait of stalin.

since the demise of the soviet union, he has not really found his feet in an independent estonia. >> the way i understand the word "integration," it would have had to come from both sides, from russians but also from the estonian majority. >> many estonians have given the russian minority the cold shoulder. one parliamentary delegate organized an exhibition about the struggle of estonians against the soviets. he mistrusts russians. >> now, regarding the new aggressiveness from russia, of course, it is again under more attention, what to do with this situation. but we still think that it's not right to just give everyone citizenship. >> the riots are long over. the young no longer come to the monument to soviet soldiers recated to a military cemetery on the outskirts of the's --

outskirts of the city. the estonian government says it wants to do more to integrate russian speakers. the education minister is of russian dissent and knows what has to be done -- is of russian descent and knows what has to be done. >> is a large number of people with undetermined citizenship, and it is worrying -- there is a large number of people with undetermined citizenship. we are taking steps to reduce the number of stateless people. >> for example, in the future, the children of stateless people residing in estonia will automatically acquire estonian citizenship. the government in tallinn is beginning to ease its stance towards its russian minority. >> northern ireland has been through a lot over the past generations, 20 by civil war and hit hard by the financial crisis

-- torn apart by civil war in the 20th century and hit hard by the financial crisis in the 21st. one village has decided to put a brave face on things -- or, rather, give a new face to the abandoned shops. >> welcome to bush mills, a thriving village full of friendly young people and colorful, old-fashioned shops and pubs serving old irish a place where a goose could come waddling through the doorway of the local emporium. it takes a sharp eye to see that none of it is true. >> they may look fake, but they are telling a story. if you look at them, there is a story there. that was a farmers market, so that really was a farmers market. >> bart and roy had the idea. it's their solution to a local problem -- how to draw tourists to a hamlet that is now little more than an intersection.

>> we had people stopping intentionally to look and all these windows. >> i firmly believe in that. you make up your mind with your eyes after a few seconds. now people say, "i like this." it's still early, but they like it. >> the village used to look a lot worse. the troubles hit northern ireland hard, and it has struggled with recession for the last x years -- six years. building projects were abandoned, and investors fled. on some days, the butcher says he did not sell a single cut of meat. >> one lady came in and said to me -- it was like sarajevo, she said, like a war zone. it was very depressing. it really was, to see such a lively village, you know, become

so down and depressed. it did not help the morality people, really -- the morale of the people. >> the villagers were easily persuaded to help resurrect their old spots and haunts. robert, for instance, has a two-dimensional alter ego and likes to stand beside it now and then in front of his old pub. it reminds him of the good old days here. >> a lot of the storefronts are actually from shops that were part of bushmills history, and the older generation knows this, and it brings memories back. memories of good times help create good times. >> the tourists also help liven up the place a bit. whole busloads of them from all over europe. they are drawn to the windows, dressed with loving attention to detail.

at first, helen byrne was worried that her fellow villages -- villagers might not take to her whimsical photo re-create and from history -- her whimsical photo recreations from history. >> if you put animals or people in the windows, we were afraid people would vandalize it in some other way. so far, not one of them has been vandalized, so it has been a great success that way. >> it's almost ironic that her idea of success has le to the first of the figures being taken down, thanks to the stream of tourists. a real cafe has opened here. roy and bart are already planning their next coup in its back room, a hiking trail to the coast about five miles away. >> it's bold, yes, but it needs to be because it's the only way you will get anything done. you take a backseat, and nothing

will get done at all. >> it's possible, you know. if you have that vision, these days, you can offer change and make it work. >> helen has taken her photo tableau to the next village where it is getting around. this is a private order for you mc millan, who closed his accordion shop because he could not find anyone who would take it on -- a private order for hugh mcmillan. the shop has come back to life, at least in two dimensions. >> to pass on not for today, but northern ireland. we're hoping some young person will come along to keep the tradition going. >> it is a hope tinged with melancholy, much like the music itself. >> it's sad, but we had to.

we cannot carry on. >> whose to say that the illusion might not become a reality someday? just as it did in bushmills, where a vision of the past has created a brighter future for a village on the edge of northern ireland. >> looks like the celtic tiger could be getting its roar back simply by spinning a good yarn. that's all for today from the and everyone here. feel free to drop me a line on twitter or by e-mail. always good to hear from you. thanks very much for waching. we'll see you next week. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] gyxqñqrqyqiqiqñq

welcome to "newsline." it's tuesday, december 2nd. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. people in japan will be hearing a lot from their politicians in the coming days. official campaigning for a general election is now under way. candidates are filling out the necessary papers to get things started. parties and independents are going after the 475 seats in the lower house. 295 of them are single seat districts. 180 are for proportional representation. prime minister shinzo abe and i