14/05/2016 Reporters

Welcome to Reporters. From here in the world newsroom we send out

correspondence to bring you the best stories from across the globe. In

this week 's programme the unnamed victims of Europe's migrant crisis.

We track down the graves of some of the hundreds of men women and

children who have died pursuing their dreams. And we hear from the

relatives they have left behind. TRANSLATION: The hardest moment of

my life was when I received a phone call and was told that this tragedy

had happened. For those who do make it to Europe we will find out how a

small town in eastern Germany has been coping with an influx of

children, many travelling on their own. Nobody knows how many there are

but it is at least 20 or 30000 and in the first two months of this year

alone 30% of all asylum applications here in Germany where from children.

Entire neighbourhoods in ruins after this any density is engulfed by

wildfire. We will find out what is left standing after the police in

Ford money. -- Fort McMurray. There is garden furniture, pieces of life

which are now blackened and hollowed out by this fire. It's been utterly

ravaged. This is brutal. How industrial pollution is hindering

efforts to clean up the river Ganges. And China raises its game,

we will find out how it is nurturing young talent as it set its site on

becoming a food bowl super power. The president wants the country to

be a leader in global football, hosting and winning World Cups. We

know that hundreds of thousands of people have been making the

dangerous journey across the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe

for a better life. But what about those who don't make it and end up

drowning in the sea or being washed up on shore? We have discovered that

1700 men, women and children have been buried in unmarked graves in

places like Turkey, Greece and Italy. We report from Lesbos which

has become the landing point for many migrants arriving in Europe.

A boat full of Syrians fleeing war land on Lesbos. No one on this boat

drowned but one man was crushed to death. And another died of a heart

attack when he set foot on land. Both victims were travelling with

other people who are able to later confirm their identities. But there

are hundreds more who have either been lost at sea or find but not

identified. Their relatives scattered across the globe are left

with a lingering pain that could haunt them for the rest of their

lives. In the last two years more than 8000 people have died trying to

reach Europe. On average at least one person each day has been buried

in an unmarked grave. What you see on these red dots, scattered across

Italy, Greece and Turkey. More than 70 of these burial sites have been

found as part of this BBC investigation. The seminary on

Lesbos is one of them, with dozens of bodies. Most of them and

identified. Some are recovered when the boats they were on capsized.

Others wash up a short days or even weeks later. Many relatives of the

missing are desperately trying to find them. TRANSLATION:

This man has been on such a quest for the last five months, his

brother and wife died when their boat capsized off Lesbos but the

bodies of their four children were never found. He spoke to the BBC

from Kabul. He has travelled hundreds of miles

in Turkey and in Greece, hoping to find either proof of life or at

least a DNA match with unidentified bodies of children bedded and

Lesbos. Local authorities in all three

countries have been stretched as they try to deal with unidentified

dead bodies. Because of the large number of bodies found by Greek

authorities they have had to bring in containers like these. Sometimes

the bodies of migrants stay here for days or weeks or even months. These

containers are on an island which does not even have a coroner. One

had to be flown in from Lesbos. Many of those who braved death to

reach Europe leave relatives behind, with the hope of someday seeing them

again. But those lost along the trail leave a darker kind of

longing. No longer for reunion, only for closure.

Roughly 1 million people reached Europe by sea last year and around

one in three of them were children. Many make the journey with their

families but substantial numbers are arriving as an accompanied miners

making them among the most vulnerable of all migrant groups.

Our correspondence Paul Adams has been to Eastern Germany to find out

how young migrants are beginning to build a new life for themselves. As

they fled Afghanistan alone could any of them have imagined this?

Thousands of miles from home, without families, these an

accompanied young refugees are putting their backs into new lives.

TRANSLATION: They give us what we need and board potently it's a safe

place here. In fact this is the first time I feel safe. TRANSLATION:

We felt homesick early on, I was very sad but now I am happy. My

father was taken by the Taliban two weeks ago, I am worried about that.

The boys have only been here since the start of the year but already

they know the drill. Up early for the drive to school. It's a short

ride past landmarks from an earlier conflict, the great castle at

Colditz home to prisoners during the Second World War. The school has had

to adjust. Refugees started arriving in February, now there's a whole

class. Most are alone, most from Afghanistan, but the girls are here

with their families. This boy is Syrian, from a liberal and lives

nearby with his father. TRANSLATION: I want to get an education because

in Afghanistan I never went to school. I had to work so I never had

the chance to go to school. Now I am here and I go to school, I like it

so much. I give them my hand, my help, because I know that for them

the school here is a place, is a peaceful place for them. But still a

place of uncertainty as well. At break time the new arrivals keep

mostly to themselves. This small, tight-knit rural community has never

seen the like before. And in nearby cities there is anti-immigrant

sentiment. And ageing population, traditional values, plenty of good

will towards the new arrivals. But scepticism as well about what the

German government has done. TRANSLATION: In my opinion it's not

right, no country in the world just opens up the borders and lets

100,000 people marched in completely uncontrolled. If they come to us,

they had to adapt to fit in with us. These boys look relaxed and

confident enough but an accompanied miners are among the most vulnerable

of already jeez. Nobody knows how many there are in Europe today but

it is at least 20 or 30,000 and in the first two months of this year

alone 30% of all asylum applications here in Germany were from children.

The Afghan boys are luckier than most, they have each other for a

company and it seems a warm and nurturing welcome in Europe. Paul

Adams, BBC News, Eastern Germany. The Canadian city of Fort McMurray

used to be known as an oil boom town. Now it's become famous as the

city which had to evacuate its entire population, more than 80,000

people because of a huge wildfire. It's no thought around 2000 homes

have been burned to ground but it will be weak of Orson it's safe

enough for people to return. Laura Becker was around into the city to

see for herself and much damage has been caused. The fire has ripped

away the flesh and fabric of this family neighbourhood. Once prized

living rooms are now burnt out foundations. The flames have left

little but twisted metal and charred concrete. The grim aftermath of a

frightening force of nature, man was powerless to control. You can see

the remainder of family homes here, you can see that this was somewhere

that people cherished, there is garden furniture, there are pieces

of life which are now blackened and hollowed out by this fire. It's been

utterly ravaged. This is brutal. Once the home of striving couples

drawn to an oil-rich town the panic and chaos of their flight to safety

has been replaced by an an easy calm. This was a beast, it was an

animal, it was like a fire I've never seen in my life. Exhausted and

emotional the chief wants residents to know he did all he could but the

fire did not play by the rules. This is reuniting the book, the way this

thing travelled and behaved. They are rewritten the formulas on how

fires behave based on the spire. Much of Fort McMurray still stands.

The hospital, schools, all untouched. But there is no power, no

clean water, no gas supplies. The city will be abandoned for some time

whilst officials come up with a plan. And not far away the fire

lingers in the forest, still threatening and in places still out

of control. Laura Becker, BBC News, Fort McMurray. Xena should Harry is

thought to be the first female journalist to be a victim of

enforced disappearance in Pakistan. Her family and human rights groups

blame security services who are accused of illegally detaining

thousands of people under the guise of anti-terrorism operations. The

Pakistani government has set up a special commission to find these

missing persons. But her family are still waiting for answers. Time is

suspended for this woman, her daughter, a journalist, disappeared

almost a year ago. But she keeps things as she left them. Her close

Ireland and hanging the closet. She is not giving up hope. But her

17-year-old brother did. He committed suicide.

TRANSLATION: I feel like a fish struggling to breathe without water.

I cry for my son and I cry for my daughter, I cried for the rest of my

small children. I have no money, no status. I only have these children

and I beg all of you, please return my daughter to me safe and alive. I

have already lost a son, this is the only hope I have left, that my

daughter will come back. Zeenat had been investigating the disappearance

of an Indian man when she vanished. It later emerged he had been

arrested by the authorities. What happened to her is still a mystery.

This is where Zeenat was picked up as she was leaving for work in a

rickshaw. She had reached around this spot when two cars blocked her

path, armed men got out and forcibly took our and drove away. How did a

female journalist get abducted in broad daylight at a busy

intersection such as this in the metropolitan city of Lahore were

such things don't normally a car has raised many eyebrows. And more

questions than answers. According to human rights lawyers it's all done

in the name of security, Pakistan is new anti-terrorist laws allowing the

intelligence agencies to operate with impunity. The modus operandi of

the actual incidence of abduction that were narrated by the

eyewitnesses also point to the kind of operation that security agencies

conduct. Then of course the very fact that despite all the pressure

we have been putting on the police and the civil security agencies, she

has not been recovered. Zeenat has become another name on a growing

list of missing people. More than 1000 cases are still pending for a

commission looking into the issue. The government insists progress is

being made on the case of Zeenat but they would not talk on the record

despite repeated requests. Her mother feels some comfort coming to

her son 's grave. She brings flowers and offers prayers. She says she is

deprived of the sense of closure for her daughter. She does not know

where Zeenat is alive or dead. She remains missing. One of the first

promises made by the Indian prime and stir Narendra Modi when he swept

to power two years ago was to clean up the river Ganges. The sacred

river of Hinduism is now one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. One of

the biggest problems is industrial pollution as we discovered when we

went to a stretch of the Ganges. You don't have to be a scientist to

know that the Ganges is polluted. It really smells. I am in the centre of

India's huge leather industry. There is a tannery... Much of the leather

produced here is exported to Europe and the US. Oh God, it is really

powerful. Very strong. What kind of waste we have here? Highly chemical

iced and toxic water. Waste water coming from the planner is. Tannery

's user variety of chemicals, hundreds of chemicals. Including a

dangerous chemicals like crony too soft on the leather. Yeah, chemicals

and pesticides as well. Which ones are tannery 's? The government say

they are making progress reducing pollution and to prove it... We have

been given permission to go out with a team of pollution control officers

on a surprise inspection of the leather tanneries. This is a bit

different. Stopping something happening down there. What are you

stopping, why are you stopping, who is in charge? Four days, four days

of flesh. Huge pools of water which has the distinctive blue because

there is chrome in it. And there are hides here which have clearly been

treated with the chrome. This does not look so good. This does not look

tidy at all. It looks disgusting. The effort to clean the river is

more than just an environmental project. It's being seen as a

crucial test of India's ability to modernise because it means tackling

corruption. And enforcing effective regulation as well as massive

investment in sewage and effluent treatment infrastructure. It is

clear there is still a long way to go. Meanwhile the government says it

has raised pollution standards and is already closed more than 100

tanneries. It says its clean Ganges mission is a key priority but warns

it will take time. We are not saying that the whole mission will be

completed in five years. Five years will ensure there is a marked

difference. But it's a long project. The London Thames was dirty 50, 60

years ago but they two, was 20 years to complete play change the overall

ecology of that and we will also achieve it. It will take sustained

effort and constant vigilance to clean this mighty river. But there

is a key advantage, the fact that so many Indians want him to succeed.

Think of China and you probably don't immediately think of football.

But the country's president wants to change all that. Last month he

announced ambitious plans to transform the country into a

football superpower. China's Super League is one of the richest and

fastest growing in the world and already competes with top European

clubs to sign some of the world best football players. Richard Conway has

been finding out how the professional game is paving the way

for the President's plan. China is changing. The rid of football is

taking hold. I growing fan base and love for the sport is crediting fast

across the most populous nation on earth. And there is fierce,

competitive ambition. China wants not only the best league, but the

best national team in the world. Sven-Goran Erikkson has been one of

the top coaches in world football for over two decades. He has worked

within China for the past three years and insists there is no end in

sight to the game 's rapid growth. Three years ago it was not like

this. The football was OK, good. But now, recently, this season, it's

gone crazy. It's absolutely the right time to be in China in

football. The big foreign names were not really interested in China, only

when they are getting older, on the way down. But now, even when they

are at their peak they are interested in China. They are the

biggest spending club in a league responsible for five of the six most

expensive global transfers this year. When Ramirez left Chelsea to

come here and Liverpool lost out on Brazilian striker Alex Pixie Lott,

the world sat up and took notice. The leading agent believes more

stars will now follow. It's going crazy right now, it's really going

crazy. We had a saying that the only players who are not coming to China

where Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, the other names are all

highly possible. It's here in Tiananmen square that China's

political power is centred. It's also been the location for some of

the darker moments of the past. But the president is firmly focused on

China's future, he wants the country to be a global leader in football,

hosting and winning World Cups. The President's love of football was

apparent during his visit to Britain last year, famously posing with

Sergio Aguero for a selfie. His master plan will aim to have 50

million Chinese citizens playing football by 2020. China will build

or renovate 6000 stadiums and pitches. And 50,000 schools

specialising in football will be established within the next ten

years. Chinese big business is falling into line and winning favour

through football. The same companies that lend their names to the top

clubs of China are now investing in European leagues. The ultimate

strategic goal is to create an $800 billion sports industry which will

diversify the country's economy. Hosting the World Cup is key.

TRANSLATION: To host the World Cup is a festival of fans, it shows the

country's capability to host such a tournament. It's only possible if

the country is developed to a certain level and has the financial

ability, that's not a problem. But for China the earliest would still

be the 2030 finals. Two hours drive east of Beijing as the rural farming

town of bingo. It's home to this elementary school which lies in the

shadow of China's great Wall. These six and seven-year-olds are

pioneers. They attend one of China's first designated football schools

and provide a first glimpse of their President's vision of a footballing

future. I just want them to practice walking around with the ball. The

unlikely American forging a new path for the People's Republic of China

buyer. Having achieved cult status in Japan and contributing to their

football development he has been head hunted by their neighbours and

rivals to deliver a similar results. They are the number two economy,

they are putting rockets into space. Everything is going good but they

can to beat countries like Thailand in a football match. Private

academies like this one in Shanghai are booming. Many Chinese parents

have been wary of sport in the past believing it distracts children from

academic studies. But attitudes are changing with more kids attending

sessions, often led by European coaches. Do you like bling football?

Who are your favourite players? Lionel Messi. Everyone loves Lionel

Messi. What is your favourite team in England? Chelsea! Do you think

one day he will play in the World Cup? Yes! No! So all of you but him?

In the past the professional game has faced allegations of corruption

and has been described as being chaotically run. But if any country

knows about manufacturing success it is China. Across the country

football is the new fascination, everything appears to be in place.

But they will need to be patient. It may take another generation before

we see a World Cup victory made in China. Richard Conway, BBC News,

Beijing. That's all for Reporters this week, goodbye for now.