Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak and share my journey as a refugee who settled under the rainbow refugee assistance program.
I'm an LGBT sponsored refugee who came to Canada in 2012 with my partner. We both were sponsored by Capital Rainbow Refuge and I understand that we were the first to come to Canada under this program in 2012.
In 2010, I met my partner through an online dating site in Thailand. It was not an awkward feeling for me to meet a lesbian who was married to a man with three children. Lesbians often have to live a secret life. Being from a country where homosexuality is a punishable crime, women do not have any other choice but to meet other women in hiding. My partner was 14 years old when her mother found out that she was interested in other women. To cure her so-called homosexual inclination, her mother forced her to marry a man at 14 years of age. She conceived her first child when she was merely 15 years old.
We started exchanging emails and text messages, only to realize that it was a mistake and her family found out about us. She escaped her home at midnight to protect herself from her husband's anger. We both went into hiding, as her husband threatened to prosecute us under the current anti-LGBT law in our home country. Her children were ready to testify. They were too young to understand what was happening.
Having no safety by law and an expired visa, we decided to go to UNHCR and request protection. I remember a lady from a non-profit organization that supports asylum seekers. She was flabbergasted that UNHCR registered us, as we did not come from a war-torn country.
While we were waiting to get a decision from UNHCR about our status, we were under constant threat from the country where we both were living illegally, with no right to work and no legal existence. We were fortunate that the rainbow refugee assistance program happened to roll out in 2011. I doubt we would have made it here, if no such supporting effort was made by government and CRR to help LGBTQ refugees.
It took us about one year, where in most cases it takes about four years. We received tremendous support from day one with all emotional and financial assistance with CRR and partial settlement funds from rainbow RAP. We were under sponsorship for a year and since then we both are working and pursuing higher education. We have contributed our share to the economy and workforce and we are proud to say that we recently received our citizenship.
I would like to thank rainbow refugee assistance program for helping, not only me, but many other LGBT refugees who were persecuted, harassed, and at times, went through unspeakable tragedies by their people and governments. The rainbow refugee program creates families—and this is from my personal experience—where people choose to be a part of trials and tribulations and emotionally support each other. This is the support I got from CRR.
The rainbow refugee assistance program encouraged people to come together, share responsibilities of reaching out globally, and to champion the value of Canada in protecting the most vulnerable people.
Thank you for letting me share my experience.