Refugee Week has passed (15th - 21st June 2008) and the One Mans' Journey Exhibition was up at the Central Library for the whole month of June.
I had only the slightest idea of what would be involved in putting up the exhibition, and despite the wonderful work of Aurelie, Roy and Megan, who devoted hours to selecting photographs and deciding on the themes, we were still running to keep up with ourselves.
Along the way we had the detention of Amdani Juma, a well respected colleague, translator, HIV worker, floating support worker and so much more besides. All of us held our breath with Amdani's detention (more in another blog article).
Choosing the photographs for the exhibition was a journey in itself. Staying in touch with Hakim in Kurdistan, who had given consent for his own photos to be used, and was the inspiration for the exhibition, we had so many opportunities to reflect on the asylum process.
http://beestonquakers.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-mans-journey.htmlhttp://beestonquakers.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-mans-journey.html
The photographs could have been displayed in so many ways and told so many aspects of the process. However, there was a strong personal impact upon us in the telling of Hakim's Journey. All of us who know Hakim, also know the asylum process very well in our different capacities. All of us became increasingly angry at the disregard shown, at every step of Hakim's Journey, to this gentle man, Hakim.
We reflected upon his decision to return to his country. Those who were with him in the weeks prior to his return, remember the personal pain that he experienced in making his decision. All of us believe that his decision was imposed from pressures outside of himself. He had made a fresh application for asylum, and we were all cautiously hopeful that the evidence produced would be successful, and that he might be reunited with his daughters and wife, here in the UK. We know that his return was not an occasion of great joy, but of what he describes as a "broken heart".
On display at the exhibition we had three short documentaries, but problems with our technology meant that not everyone had a chance to view them. The first, made by Hakim, was of the tedious and noisy work in a vegetable preparation factory. Listening to this tape for more than a few minutes was excruciating. Thinking of a man working in that noisy environment every day was unpleasant. Remembering that he worked there for a month without wages, for a chance to sleep on the floor when he was destitute, was a quick trigger for rage.
The documentary recording the experiences of his housemates, who learnt not only about him, but about asylum in the UK was a poignant and frank insight, as they also learnt more about themselves in relationship. The final documentary, filmed by Aurelie in Kurdistan, was so difficult to watch. As we saw Hakim break down, and trying to conceal his emotions, his wife crying as she reflected upon the loss of their hope for safety. The UK Government says that Kurdistan is safe - see other parts of this blog for explosions in the area this year. Hearing his wife speaking about how she has lost her husband now that he is home, because he has been psychologically affected by the process of asylum, I don't know what to say.
Every time that I watch this I remember that, contrary to all the laws that exist to afford sanctuary to those who fear persecution or danger in their home country, we seem to be slipping into a game of numbers, in which it is not about people given sanctuary, but the numbers of those who are prevented, and all this just to satisfy a tabloid desire.
http://www.sankofafoundation.org.uk/
I had only the slightest idea of what would be involved in putting up the exhibition, and despite the wonderful work of Aurelie, Roy and Megan, who devoted hours to selecting photographs and deciding on the themes, we were still running to keep up with ourselves.
Along the way we had the detention of Amdani Juma, a well respected colleague, translator, HIV worker, floating support worker and so much more besides. All of us held our breath with Amdani's detention (more in another blog article).
Choosing the photographs for the exhibition was a journey in itself. Staying in touch with Hakim in Kurdistan, who had given consent for his own photos to be used, and was the inspiration for the exhibition, we had so many opportunities to reflect on the asylum process.
http://beestonquakers.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-mans-journey.htmlhttp://beestonquakers.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-mans-journey.html
The photographs could have been displayed in so many ways and told so many aspects of the process. However, there was a strong personal impact upon us in the telling of Hakim's Journey. All of us who know Hakim, also know the asylum process very well in our different capacities. All of us became increasingly angry at the disregard shown, at every step of Hakim's Journey, to this gentle man, Hakim.
We reflected upon his decision to return to his country. Those who were with him in the weeks prior to his return, remember the personal pain that he experienced in making his decision. All of us believe that his decision was imposed from pressures outside of himself. He had made a fresh application for asylum, and we were all cautiously hopeful that the evidence produced would be successful, and that he might be reunited with his daughters and wife, here in the UK. We know that his return was not an occasion of great joy, but of what he describes as a "broken heart".
On display at the exhibition we had three short documentaries, but problems with our technology meant that not everyone had a chance to view them. The first, made by Hakim, was of the tedious and noisy work in a vegetable preparation factory. Listening to this tape for more than a few minutes was excruciating. Thinking of a man working in that noisy environment every day was unpleasant. Remembering that he worked there for a month without wages, for a chance to sleep on the floor when he was destitute, was a quick trigger for rage.
The documentary recording the experiences of his housemates, who learnt not only about him, but about asylum in the UK was a poignant and frank insight, as they also learnt more about themselves in relationship. The final documentary, filmed by Aurelie in Kurdistan, was so difficult to watch. As we saw Hakim break down, and trying to conceal his emotions, his wife crying as she reflected upon the loss of their hope for safety. The UK Government says that Kurdistan is safe - see other parts of this blog for explosions in the area this year. Hearing his wife speaking about how she has lost her husband now that he is home, because he has been psychologically affected by the process of asylum, I don't know what to say.
Every time that I watch this I remember that, contrary to all the laws that exist to afford sanctuary to those who fear persecution or danger in their home country, we seem to be slipping into a game of numbers, in which it is not about people given sanctuary, but the numbers of those who are prevented, and all this just to satisfy a tabloid desire.
http://www.sankofafoundation.org.uk/
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