Peter's story's remarkable. He faced oppression, violence and torture, three continents and near drowning. He was kind enough to share his story with us so that we can tell the world what's happening to people seeking safety. 

We've changed Peter's name and some details to protect his identity. 

Life at home

When looking back at his life at home, Peter remembers his barbershop most fondly of all. The independence that owning a business brought. 

However, as he's gay, he'd long “faced a lot of challenges”.

He fled to his uncle’s house to hide. However, just days later he was shocked to see his photograph in the newspaper under a “wanted” sign. 

He knew that his only option was to leave. Thankfully, he made it to Turkey. 

Turkey and the start of a long journey 

He took a job in a company that cleaned old pipes. “We would put dirty old pipes in vats full of chemicals and they’d come out shining.”

He hoped to make it to Europe, feeling that this was where he would find human rights and justice. 

When they arrived, they had to sleep out in the open for days while they waited for the right conditions to cross the sea. They had no food or water and some of the group were forced to resort to drinking their own urine. 

When it was finally time to go, Peter and the others were confronted with a rickety dinghy. This was the start of a perilous journey that included multiple pushbacks and horrific violence that has left Peter with permanent hearing problems. 

In the camp

In this context, an asylum interview would always be a challenge. Even worse, Peter’s interview took place just days after arriving. He had no legal support.

His asylum claim was refused. Twice. 

Eventually, he made it to the mainland, where he had to rely on the kindness of others. A daily struggle. 

He was in an incredibly vulnerable state. If you’re undocumented in Athens, you’re not only at risk of exploitation, but the police could pick you up at any minute and either put you in detention indefinitely or even illegally send you back to Turkey. 

This wasn’t the first time he hadn’t been happy with the legal support he’d received. He felt the first lawyer he worked with “was not serious about my case” while another never met him.

He was back in touch with one of the organisations that he knew from Lesvos, who put him in touch with RLS. This is when he started working with Artemis.

Protection and hope 

Artemis had to work extra hard to get Peter back into the system. She worked with a psychologist to show why he didn’t submit his criminal file from home and worked with an LGBTQ organisation to show his active participation in the local community. 

“When I got my card, I was so happy. I didn’t need to be afraid of police, I have happiness, hope, free movement, protection.” 

This isn't the end of the journey 

Peter’s experiences would crush most of us, but he found the strength to keep going. ”I made my mind up that I could never go back. I needed to be in a country where there are human rights.”

What’s next

However, we don’t currently have the funding to keep our full team in place. To keep helping people like Peter, we need to meet our fundraising target.

If you can help, please donate to our page.

Thank you

Statelessness and oppression 

As Bidoons from Kuwait, Qaed and his family have no rights at home. They have no access to education or even the most basic healthcare and face regular harassment or worse from the state. Kuwaiti Bidoons (not to be confused with Bedouin) are denied citizenship and are left stateless . An incredibly precarious situation. 

In Kuwait, the family lived in one small house with his wife and four children, his parents and his seven siblings and their families. 

Like many others, Qaed was determined to push for change and took part in protests against these intolerable conditions. The government started cracking down. When they started arresting people, he knew he was in danger and needed to leave. 

This wasn’t easy and he had to leave his wife and his children behind. He planned to find safety in Europe so that they could follow him. 

“I miss my family, my siblings. You can’t have a happy life in Kuwait.” 

A journey through Europe

Qaed first made it to Turkey before reaching Greece across the river at the border. He started travelling with a group and they supported one another, building strong bonds. Together, they decided to make the difficult journey to Finland. They’d heard that conditions were good there. 

“There were lots of difficulties. We’d often have no food for a day or two days. Often having to sleep rough.” 

When they got to Finland, it wasn’t what they expected. They were kept in a camp, he remained undocumented there and he could see no prospect of being joined by his family. Nothing seemed to be moving forward, he was stuck in limbo. 

“The thing that kept me going was my children. All I was thinking about was a better future. In Kuwait, there is no future.” 

Back to Greece

As things weren’t progressing, the family decided it was time to try to scrape the money together for Qaed’s wife and children to join him. He travelled back to Greece to meet them once they made it across the border. 

His family were tracing the same journey he’d taken before, facing considerable risks and serious danger. 

Once they made it to Greece, things became slightly better. The family was back together and they had some access to food, clothes for the children and somewhere to stay. But they still weren’t able to find the stability to start a new life. They didn’t have the money to feed the whole family and they were going without. All six of them were crammed into one room. 

The family continued to look for real stability but couldn’t find this in Belgium or France. Eventually, Qaed decided to go to the UK and arrange for the family to follow. 

To the UK and into detention 

At first, he was placed in a hotel in Liverpool. However, he was put into detention within days of arriving. He was moved to a detention centre somewhere near London. He’s still not exactly sure where.

He was due to be removed and was counting down the days to his flight. He was 24 hours from being removed when he had a reprieve as he found a solicitor to help him. His removal was stopped and with legal support, it was clear that Qaed needed protection and he was eventually granted asylum in the UK. 

Bringing the family back together

However, this was far from the end of his journey. His family was still stuck abroad without their father. This was where RLS’s family reunion project became so important. This is an area where there’s almost no other legal support available. 

Home Office decision-making is slow. Alongside volunteer lawyers from Orrick, we’ve worked with Qaed and his family for two years now, and have:

• Worked with him and his wife to provide detailed advice on the options available to them

• Helped the family gather the evidence of their family relationship - this is a challenge as Kuwaiti Bidoons have no documentation 

• Drafted a statement with Qaed and his wife to detail their experiences and need to reunite

• Collected documents from Greece and France

• Obtained expert evidence to attest to the strength of the family relationship

• Chased the Home Office for a decision 

It took a long time, but we recently found out that the case has been successful. Qaed’s wife and children joined him last weekend.

This is another demonstration of the importance of high quality legal support that is accessible and sustained throughout the lifetime of a case.

A new life

Qaed and his family have been on the move for years, but they’re now getting to a point where they can start a new life. It would be a mistake to assume that things will be easy from here - we’re helping them to overcome a new set of administrative issues and they need help to find proper housing. 

But they’re finally together, with secure status and can start to think of their future. 

The strength that the family has shown to get to this point has been enormous. Most people would be broken and bitter from such an experience. But Qaed’s able to see the positives, constantly thanking those who have supported the family. 

Asked what he’d tell others going through similar journeys, he replied “the journey will be difficult, with obstacles. Stay strong and carry on until you reach your destination.” 

We want to thank Qaed and his family for allowing us to share their story with you.