For the purposes of this story we will name her Lee. Lee has a 4 year old daughter and lives with her elderly mother, 16yr old brother, and her young nephew. She is 30 years old.
Lee has been in a relationship with a man for 6 years who is the father of her daughter. She now discovers that this man has another wife in the provinces who has borne him 7 children. She has decided to divorce/separate him after she learns she is "second wife".
This has hard ramifications for Lee and her daughter - lets call her Mai. Mai is a beautiful young girl who plays happily and enjoys spending time with our son James. They play so well together. We have come to love this little girl and her mother very much over our time here.
Because Lee will separate from her daughters father, she will no longer get the rent paid and food, clothing, schooling provided for Mai. This breaks her heart as her daughter loves going to school. Lee has decided that she will need to go to Thailand to work in a fruit processing factory/fields in order to provide for Mai, her mother, brother and nephew. She will have to go alone and leave Mai with her mother. Lee is scared to leave them due to her mother being older and not copying. She worries everyday. She cries often.
Mai's grandmother "Ma-yay" asks us to help. Please take her grand daughter Mai to Australia with us! Please help Lee find a job in Australia. Please take a photo of Lee so you can find her a husband and then she can go to Australia. It's heart breaking having to tell them no, we can't help like this. We are at a loss of what to do, how to help. I have spent hours online researching different ways to help them immigrate to Australia. Lee is desperate and says she will do any work and work hard. She just wants to put Mai through school and feed and care for her family. It is impossible to help them move to Australia. If she was from a neighbouring country Thailand she could get a working visa but not from Cambodia.
How do you begin to contemplate what this life is like for Lee and Mai? Are they to be separated? Nick and I have been crying over their situation and had many sleepless nights. I tell Lee that I worry for her and she tells me I don't have to. It's impossible for me to not worry for them!
It's meeting desperate people like Lee and Mai and their family that makes you realise just why people risk their lives coming to Australia on people smuggling boats. People get angry and upset that they try to get in OUR country. I have a new understanding now.
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