Ndaishimiye lives his wife and children in their house in Nduta Camp, Tanzania. Back in his country, Burundi, he was asked to teach children about the ruling party, but refused. As a consequence, he was jailed.
"I have a wife and 3 children. I am a talented singer and trained teacher. Back in my country, I was asked to teach children about the ruling party, and I refused. As a consequence, I was jailed and had to pay a fine of 500,000 Burundian shillings, money I got after my wife sold the house and property we had. After I was released, I was approached again by the police to teach so I had to flee the country for my own safety."
"When I got out of jail, I spent the night in the bush, hiding from the police who were actively searching for me at home. The next morning, I started my journey to Tanzania with my bike. I didn't have enough money to board a bus so I chose to cycle. Luckily, on my way I met a friend who gave me 7,000 Tanzanian shillings to pay for the rest of my trip," Ndaishimiye tells.
Sometimes I wonder, if I return, what will life be like?
"After 5 hours on the road, I finally arrived at the border of Tanzania and Burundi. I was arrested by the military police and they took away the remaining cash. Thereafter, I went to Manyovu Camp to seek refuge. A few weeks later, my wife and children left Burundi and joined me at the camp. I don’t miss my home country because all my property was vandalized, my relatives fled and others were killed."
Currently I live a positive life and peace is my priority. I have a bit of farming ability which earns me income and I have a nice house in the camp. My biggest fear is being repatriated to Burundi because the same ruling party is in power. I pray that Tanzania does not force us to go back to Burundi. It is very safe here and I feel like a Tanzanian now.
"I decided to just take the matter into my own hands"
In 1997, Nicole fled Eritrea to avoid military conscription. Her story is a story of female empowerment and strength. Coming to a new country, Nicole had to overcome the challenges of being “othered” due to her birth name, Rahwa.
"Humanity comes first"
Mohammad started working at the age of 11 at the local pharmacy. That is how he earned the means for his education and managed to graduate the economics at the university. He learned a lot about medicines and developed an affection towards medicine – knowledge that turned out to be very useful.
"To be honest, I thought I would never get a chance for a real job, but then the offer came"
Moayed has been volunteering since day one in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Now, being an asylum seeker for almost a year he has a job and lives independantly in an apartment that he rents.
"Never lose hope and always follow your dreams"
Mehrdad has been decorating the walls of Temporary Reception Center Bira since March 2019, making them come to life with graffiti and paintings, giving beauty and colour to the facility that is now shelter for him and more than 1500 other persons.