The former Iron Curtain continues to divide Europe between the poor East and the wealthy West. The large wage differences between the two Europes explain the economic migration of millions of Eastern Europeans; as a result, cheap Eastern European labor contributes, year after year, to the prosperity of the West. However, this does not explain the extreme experiences of those who leave their country in search of a slightly better paid jobs and/or better working conditions or a better social environment. The debate, which will expose important but less well known aspects of this phenomenon, is based on the realities portrayed in three festival films and the photo exhibition Seasonal Workers (by Cosmin Bumbuț and Elena Stancu).

In 24 Hours by Harald Friedl, Sadina, a 50-year-old woman from the Jiu Valley, takes care of an elderly bedridden Austrian woman. Over time, a close relationship develops between them, and the Romanian woman from the Jiu Valley seems entirely focused on the well-being of the person she has cared for over several years. Sadina has developed a daily routine (cleaning, hygiene, shopping, cooking, sleeping like a rabbit,with the baby alarm on all the time), making her appear in control of the situation. However, the hard work and loneliness (she away from home for 5-6 months) are a heavy burden, even for a strong person. Sadina's colleagues are less fortunate; they describe in the film the humiliations they endure while caring for helpless individuals.

In the documentary TATA by Lina Vdovîi and Radu Ciorniciuc, a journalist from the Republic of Moldova, who has documented several cases of exploitation of Eastern European workers, is called for help by her father, who has been abused for years by his employer in Italy. Beyond the story of a complicated father-daughter relationship, the film addresses a phenomenon defined as "modern slavery," which more or less affects many Eastern Europeans working abroad and tries to explain why some of them accept abusive behavior from employers.

Limits of Europe by Apolena Rychlíková. "A dignified life is one dedicated to improving the social conditions of your fellow man. A person who lives with dignity is ready to take any risk to achieve a goal beneficial to society." Taking into account the belief of her father (Czech dissident Petr Uhl, co-founder of Charter 77), journalist Apolena Rychlíková takes several unskilled jobs in Western Europe to document the condition of Eastern European immigrants working abroad. She works in agriculture in Germany (picking lettuce), as a hotel maid in Ireland, and cares for elderly in France. What she discovers exceeds all expectations. "A stranger is still a stranger," says a friend in England, but that is the least of her problems. The debate seeks to expose the scale of the inequalities and injustices faced by Romanian citizens and other Eastern Europeans working abroad.

• What institutions and organizations can help them and how?
• How does inequality manifest among immigrants based on qualifications (workers, caregivers, doctors, European officials, researchers)?
• What is the hierarchy of Eastern European peoples in terms of how they are treated by Westerners?

*The talk will take place in romanian language with invited experts, filmmakers, moderator and streamed online.