Refugee finds anchor after years adrift

Published: 11 December 2003 y., Thursday
Mention asylum seekers, and many people in Europe imagine waves of illegal immigrants sweeping onto the continent in search of a better life. But amid the crowds are many individuals with genuine grounds for asylum. Congolese refugee Chantal is one such example. The 36-year-old's journey lasted almost four years, a flight of despair that led her across four countries before finding safety in southern Italy, where she currently lives. Her ordeal started on May 14, 1999, the day she and her husband Jose held a meeting to set up a local resistance committee to defend civilians against the rebel militia that had driven thousands of people out of their homes in Zongo, a small town 350 km south-east of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Šaltinis: hungarytimes.com
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

Sakharov Prize 2010 - 9 nominations

Nine nominations for the 2010 Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought have been tabled by EP political groups or groups of over 40 MEPs. more »

European Mobility Week 2010 urges you to leave the car at home and walk or cycle to work

As the primary source of daily noise, pollution and congestion, car traffic relentlessly erodes our health and quality of life. more »

Warming Arctic brings opportunities and threats

The European Parliament hosted the 9th Conference of Parliamentarians from the Arctic region from 13-15 September in Brussels. more »

Moving forward with European Mobility Week

Get on your (electric) bike! That's the message of some cycling groups who are currently holding an exhibition of electric bikes outside the European Parliament. more »

Newborn found on Philippine-bound plane

Philippine officials search for the mother of a baby, found dumped in a rubbish bin on board a Manila-bound Gulf Air plane. more »

Bangladesh prepares for Eid

Millions of Muslims in Bangladesh prepare to celebrate the end of the holy month of Ramadan. more »

EU revises laws to better protect animals used in scientific experiments

The European Parliament has voted to revise legislation on animals used for scientific purposes. more »

A dog’s life for daschunds in Poland

Sausage dogs take to the streets of Cracow in medieval fancy dress to celebrate the 600th anniversary of 'The Battle of Grunwald'. more »

Older women: Parliament calls for positive discrimination

EU Member States should take positive discrimination measures to improve the lives of older women, including paid leave for carers, says Parliament in a resolution voted on Tuesday. more »

Thousands attend al-Aqsa prayers

Tens of thousands of Muslim worshippers gather at Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque to celebrate 'Laylat al-Qadr' - one of the holiest nights of Ramadan. more »