Somalis in Ireland?

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1. John
John arrived in Ireland alone from Somalia aged 16. He was granted refugee status in 2010 and is now applying for family reunification.

In 1995, my father was shopping with my sister and they were both shot and killed by the militia. My brother was also shot by the militia when he was 20.

In 2005, we had problems with al-Shabaab. They told me that I had to join them and if I didn’t, they would shoot me. I was 15 years old and very afraid. Soon after, I was injured. I managed to escape and went back home to my mother. She told me: “You can’t stay. If you stay, you’ll be killed.”

My aunt in Canada sent money to help me escape. I travelled to Ethiopia. Some friends of my family there introduced me to someone they said would help to get me to safety. I was given a passport and left Ethiopia.

I arrived in Dublin late at night. I didn’t know anything. I didn’t know what to do. I was on the street and saw a man who I thought might be Ethiopian so I asked him for help. It turned out that he was Somali. He took me to the garda station. I was 16 and a half. This is how I came to Ireland.

First I lived in a hostel and then they sent me to live with a foster family. It was difficult staying with a foster family. They thought I didn’t want to talk but it was because I was so worried. I couldn’t sleep. I thought maybe my family was dead. So I went to school every day and tried to work but my mind was my memory. There was no room for anything else.

Finally, with help from an international Somali radio station, I was able to get in touch with them. They found my mother, brother and sister. Now, at last, I can contact them. I call, I call, I call. I call every two days to my family.

My favourite things about Ireland are the food, the people and the love of sports. It is very good here. People are lovely. People in Ireland have very good lives. They are lucky. In Somalia we can’t watch TV. Here, if you want to watch the hurling, you don’t have to pay – you can just turn on the TV. My teachers are lovely, I have lots of friends. My school is the best. When I came here, I just learned everything. I’m watching all the time RTE2, watching people cooking. I cook every day my own food. In Somalia, we only got two things to eat: rice and pasta, pasta and rice. We don’t have pizza, I just learned about it here and we don’t have takeaway, I learned about that here as well.

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Asylum seekers hold up an Irish flag during a protests at Mosney accommodation centre (Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland)

My dream for the future is to work in business or engineering. I only have one more year in school then I have to go to college. I learned to read and write after coming to Ireland because I couldn’t go to school in Somalia. We don’t have free school there so if you can’t pay you can’t go.

Now I am still waiting for the answer for family reunification with my mum and brother. I started the application in 2011 and they tell me it will take two years. They say to me I need DNA tests for them. They are waiting to come to Ireland, then we will be able to enjoy life together. I will be happy then and finally get some rest, then I can study. My hope and my dream is that actually we will be together: me, my brother and my mum.
 
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