Update

1970S
Leaving aside our clear
obligation to those in need of
shelter – and I know what that
feels like – I want to welcome
refugees because they have
so much to give to us in this
country. I want my daughters
and their friends to benefit
from the richness brought by
people who come to us.
Raju Bhatt was expelled from Uganda at age 15
along with 80,000 other Ugandan Asians. He is
a lawyer and co-founded a firm which represents
families who have lost their loved ones through
death in custody. He was also a member of the
Hillsborough Independent Panel.
Welcome makes
such a difference to
a person, especially
a child.
When he arrived in the UK in 1979 Vu Khanh
Thanh worked for the Refugee Council resettling
other Vietnamese refugees.
He and his daughter Linh fled Vietnam as ‘boat
people’ when Linh was just seven years old. He
established the An Viet Foundation, providing
support for Vietnamese refugees in London,
before being elected local councillor in Dalston
and being awarded an MBE. Linh is an architect
and restaurateur.
The support of the
international community
saved our lives.
Humberto and Gabriella fled Chile in 1973
after Pinochet’s military coup placed the
country under brutal restrictions and terror;
Humberto spent months in detention where he
was tortured and eventually released without
charge. Humberto worked for Swansea
Metropolitan University for 30 years and
Gabriella as a social worker for over 25 years.
Both of their children work in the NHS.
“While Humberto was detained, me and
my mother were frequently harassed by the
authorities. I was totally lost. The ordinary
things like a salary, a family, to speak, to laugh
– were all gone. I couldn’t visit him and didn’t
know if he was alive or dead. Finally, after 9
months, he was released without charges and
we fled to Argentina. But a military coup in
the country again put our lives at risk. With a
grant from the World University Service and a
visa extended by the British Consulate we fled
to Wales.
With the support of the churches,
universities and unions in Wales, we organised
huge fundraisers for political prisoners in Chile
– the Welsh absolutely loved the Latin music
and the saucepans full of my rice, empanadas
and Humberto’s special chilli con carne.
This is our home now, this is our country.
When I see people fleeing across the
Mediterranean, my heart breaks. We spent
just one year in a refugee camp, these people
have spent so many. I know, first hand, the
danger of countries turning a blind eye to the
kind of humanitarian crisis we are currently
witnessing.”
A gift of
£30 could go
towards the cost of
one-to-one therapy
for a refugee
traumatised by
torture or war.
06 Update Update 07
Images: Sarah Booker / Child Migrant Stories
Image: Bill Knight