Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘23000 Lives‘ follows the story of a young man named Lukas and his friends, who are motivated to provide aid and rescue refugees in the Mediterranean Sea. When they discover that hundreds of people are dying because the government has withdrawn its support and help, they buy a ship through crowdfunding and put it to good use. While their organization, Jugend Rettet, has many young people volunteering to help, they still need some people who have more experience in the matter. This is where people like Soren and Viola come into the picture. They help the young activists understand how rescue works and become an important part of the Iuventa’s many rescues. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Viola and Soren are Inspired by the Real Crew Members of Iuventa
In telling the story of Jugend Rettet and the Iuventa crew, ‘23000 Lives’ takes some creative liberties in its portrayal of certain people and characters. The names of the characters don’t reflect the real-life people because they are either fictionalized or a composite of several people who worked with the NGO and the ship’s crew. Viola and Soren seem to be along the same lines. However, it is likely that they are inspired by Iuventa crew members, Kathrin Schmidt and Sascha Girke. Kathrin used to be an occupational therapist before she decided to get into rescue and humanitarian work. She had worked with other NGOs involved in helping the migrants from Lesbos and the Aegean Sea.
In 2016, she joined the Iuventa crew as the head of operations. Girke, on the other hand, was the Head of Mission. As Schimdt and Girke took command of the boat, they and the rest of the crew trained in several aspects of the rescue work. Schmidt said that, on the water, her mind would be entirely focused on keeping the ship stable and making sure that the crew was safe during the rescue, among other things. They were part of the rotating crew that saved thousands of people over the course of 16 missions. Things changed when in August 2017, Iuventa was seized by the Italian authorities.
Prior to this, Schmidt revealed that she received a distress call and was directed by the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC) to get two Syrian men on board and take them to Lampedusa. They were asked to check out another distress call, even though there hadn’t been one on the official channels. And then, the boat was taken, and Schimdt, Girke and two other crew members found themselves facing charges for facilitating illgeal entry into the country. If found guilty, they were facing 5-20 years in prison. The case stretched on seven years, but in 2024, the prosecution didn’t find enough evidence to charge then, and the judge aquitted them completely even before the proper trial could begin.
Kathrin Schmidt and Sascha Girke Have Continued Their Good Work
When talking about why she got into search and rescue work, Kathrin Schmidt said she wanted to “do justice to her privilege.” “You’re in a position where you have the agency to act and to help others – a position of power and privilege that comes with a responsibility,” she said. Even after the Iuventa is gone, she continues to work in sea rescue. Despite the lengthy and draining trial, she is foucsed on saving lives. She was last known to have joined the crew of the feminist rescue ship, Louise Michel.
Meanwhile, Sascha Girke has also continued to work in sea rescue. He saw the charges against him and the former crew members of Iuventa as “a flawed investigation driven by political motives.” He noted that there are many more regulations and obstacles in their task these days. However, he still believes that the importance of their work has only increased over the years, and despite the obstacles, people can achieve anything, if they put their minds to it.
Read More: 23,000 Lives: Are Nina and Mauro Based on Real People?
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