During Refugee Week (14-20 June), all are invited to listen to refugee stories and celebrate the numerous ways in which refugees contribute to Australian society.
Their lived experience, resilience and agency needs to be recognised. Pope Francis has asked us to 'welcome, promote, protect and integrate refugees and people seeking asylum'.
This year, Sajeeda Bahadurmia, one of the speakers for the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Australia’s Refugee Voices program; shares her story (as told to Anne Nesbitt from JRS).
Sajeeda is a Rohingya woman, and community leader, from Myanmar who came to Australia in 2013 with her husband and three children to seek asylum.
SAFE IN AUSTRALIA
Sajeeda says 'All my life we were abused and suffered a lot. When I reached Australia I felt like I was finally in a safe place and I would be happy from now on'.
Shortly after her arrival in Australia, Sajeeda began volunteering at a local NGO in Sydney where she cooked and participated in a fortnightly community dinner for people seeking asylum. She met people from many different countries. During that time, she realised the importance of education.
'In the country I came from – Burma – I didn’t know about study because education was not valued there', Sajeeda says. She began studying English with the goal of obtaining qualifications. Due to her initiative and participation in the programs the NGO offered, Sajeeda gained the confidence to study.
Fast forward several years, Sajeeda is now employed full-time as a learning support assistant at a government primary school. As she speaks six languages, she is a valuable employee! She has been featured in an SBS Rohingya radio program and is recognised as a leader in the Rohingya community.
Sajeeda and her husband now have six children, a preschooler, two in primary and three in secondary. Her husband had a job but he lost it on 25 March because of Covid-19.
EXCLUDED FROM SUPPORT
As a temporary protection visa holder, he is excluded from the federal government support packages.
Fortunately Sajeeda has retained her job. She now supports the family through this Covid-19 period, but they have been using their savings to live.
Sajeeda is disappointed that their visa status determined eligibility. 'The virus affects everyone the same, all unemployed people need support'.
During the months that schools were closed, Sajeeda worked from home for four days and went to school one day a week. Homeschooling was challenging for all her family, particularly her oldest daughter who is doing the HSC. The family only has two devices to share among five school children. Now that school has reopened, she is happy to be back as she likes working with the students and being with people.
Despite a full-time job and six children, Sajeeda continues to volunteer in the Rohingya community. Having been inspired by the caseworkers who helped her, she sees it her responsibility to give back to the community.
'I want to take responsibility for helping my kids become good people who can give back to the community', Sajeeda says.
She has been able to channel her own lived experience to assist others in similar circumstances. With her strong network and knowledge of available services, Sajeeda gives support by providing referrals for Rohingya women. Many of these women have struggled with isolation, especially during the past months.
She is helping 20 families who are experiencing financial hardship and food insecurity during this time, primarily by getting those in her network to donate food vouchers for those without.
REMAINS OPTIMISTIC
People find Sajeeda's story moving. She describes the horrors of living in fear in Burma, almost as a prisoner in a tent for fear of going outside due to the violence women experienced. Although she and her family have been waiting for permanent protection for eight years, she remains optimistic and continues to work, raise her family, and contribute to Australian society in the hope that they will be allowed to remain here and become citizens.
World Refugee Day is acknowledged on 20 June each year and many countries including Australia use the week of the 20th to celebrate. This year’s theme for Refugee Week is ‘The Year of Welcome’ with the aim of creating a culture of welcome throughout Australia.
Successful integration into a community enables refugees and people seeking asylum to rebuild their lives, to live in safety, and to contribute to society.