Finding voice since Syria

Back in Syria, Salwa was a high school physics and chemistry teacher. She lived in Aleppo and frequently travelled for work.

Her life was comfortable and full of love – she had children, a nice home, and an active social life full of friends and family.

In 2015, the escalating civil war in Syria forced Salwa and her husband Mohammed to seek asylum in Australia. But despite their hardship and long journey to safety, they are warm, friendly people with open faces and eyes that twinkle.

When Salwa first arrived in Australia, she struggled to adjust to her new life. Unhappy and afraid, she spent all of her time at home with her husband, watching the news about Syria. After seven months of this lonely existence, they went to the Red Cross to begin English lessons and courses in Australian culture. Not long after, they joined the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC).

Salwa described her new chapter at the ASRC as ‘Starting to hope, to touch happiness and to recognise [our] own humanity.’

She started venturing out of the house and making friends, and through this, they began to rebuild a life here.

Because of the war, she tells me, they lost their family and friends, their money, their home and property and their livelihood. They came to Australia with nothing. But through their resilience and courage to immerse themselves in another country, they are beginning to feel like they have something worthwhile in their lives again.

Salwa is especially excited about the Women’s Empowerment Program at the ASRC, noting that, in Syria, society is designed for men and there are no programs designed especially for women, by women.

She speaks with infectious enthusiasm about the classes she’s taken – four computer classes, food safety as part of a certificate in hospitality, a barista course, a Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) certificate, First Aid, a Small Business class, a class on women’s health class and swimming lessons (which eased Salwa’s back pain).

Impressively, Salwa tells me about designing and presenting her own Middle Eastern Food course after gaining her food safety accreditation with the ASRC.

She ran a Syrian food cooking course at Kensington Neighbourhood House, and it proved so popular that they’ve been asked to present it again in April 2018.

In early 2018 Salwa shared her delicious traditional treats with a group of over 300 people who attended the ASRC’s Volunteer Information Evening, much to the delight of all in attendance.

Salwa has become a beloved member of the Women’s Empowerment Program, recently speaking of her experiences with the ASRC at the organisation’s International Women’s Day event where she shared her experiences with staff, volunteers and members.

‘I stand before you today as an immigrant woman having escaped my beloved, wounded Syria city. I stand with an open heart in wishing you all peace, security and stability.’

Much of Salwa’s speech is littered with expressions of gratitude, and she is animated in her praise of the ASRC staff, volunteers and donors. She talks at length about how diverse the ASRC’s services and facilities are and how open, friendly and welcoming it is.

‘It’s a very special kind of humanity, to give to people you do not know and will not see again,’ explains  Salwa.

‘Australian people are like this. They are generous and have given so much to places like the ASRC. We are so grateful because these people who give, they are creating lives by supporting people, families and children, though the most difficult circumstances. Whatever they are doing, whatever they are giving, we are so grateful. We have a proverb in Syria – drop after drop will make a flood. So no matter how small, whatever people are doing, they are helping.’

‘We are so grateful for Australia, for the people,’ she tells me, going on to describe how friendly everyone is and how cooperative society is.

‘You can fall in love with every person in Australia because they are so kind.’

She talks about the safety, peace, security and sense of personal freedom their family feels in Australia, the gender-parity, religious freedom and equal application of the law that they admire. She tells me that everyone in Australia smiles, and they are smiling now too.

The ASRC’s Women’s Empowerment Program is generously funded by a community of donors who support women seeking asylum to realise their full potential through professional development, workshops and training and other community-based activities to foster creativity and social engagement. The program also supports our entrepreneurial female members to start up their own businesses. Your contribution enables the ASRC to sustain programs that empower refugees and people seeking asylum.

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