Ever since the deadly Corona virus hit us in 2020, people worldwide have been forced to isolate themselves from one another, and family members are no exception. The restrictions imposed such as in Australia where many Australians are cut off from family members that live overseas due to the border restrictions put in place, as well as in Malaysia, now known as the mini India due to its Covid situation that continues to worsen, where not only international travels are banned but with inter-district and state travel bans that are in force, has made it hard for people to stay connected except via zoom calls.
While we are still trying to adjust to this new normal, this practice is not new for immigrant families. Millions of immigrants worldwide are forced to leave their home country because of something that is out of their control, be it natural disasters, civil war and/or famine. These situations leave them no choice but to flee, otherwise, it will cost them their lives. However, some simply choose to move to another country with hopes for a better future for themselves and to help their families back home.
FAMILY SEPARATION
Regardless of their individual stories, almost every immigrant shares the same heartache from being away from their loved ones. Not being able to celebrate birthdays and attend funerals or weddings of their families and friends can be devastating, and we are beginning to understand the feeling, thanks to the pandemic.
Safitri, daughter to an Indonesian immigrant, shared the sacrifices that her mother made once she left her home country in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia, when she was only 25 years old to seek better opportunities for herself. Safitri has said:
“My mother moved to Malaysia 25 years ago, and now she is 50 years old. You could say that she’s spent half of her life away from her family. When she first moved here, technology wasn’t as developed yet so she could only contact them once in a while through international phone calls which costed a lot of money at the time. But with WhatsApp now, she calls them twice a day sometimes. The happy look on her face is visible when she gets on video calls and sees the familiar faces of her family and friends through the phone screen, which makes up for the distance.
There are times when my mother would tell us that she is alone here and that if anything were to happen to her, none of her family members would be there for her, besides me and my sisters. She also mentioned that it saddens her that she can’t be there to nurse her mother who is 83 years old, and she couldn’t even attend her father’s funeral when he passed away due to financial difficulties and it makes me sad too that there’s nothing I could do about it.
It wasn’t easy for my mother to visit her family, and the pandemic now has only worsened the situation. Although money is not the main issue anymore, it’s a big risk to travel to Indonesia and having to leave us behind which isn’t convenient. I know other Indonesian immigrants who chose to go back home with little chances of returning back to Malaysia because of the restrictions.”
Adrian shared his mother’s experience that is similar to Safitri, where she had moved to Malaysia from India at age 21 as a newly-wed. It was a big adjustment for her as she never left home before. 30 years flew by and she has not gone back home to celebrate Eid, birthdays or other celebrations with her family.
“The cost of traveling is one thing but having 5 children to care for has made it even harder for my mom to leave. This caused some distress for her as both her parents are old and her dad can’t see nor hear properly due to old age and diabetes (among other illnesses), which leaves him in the care of her, already old, mom. But all this while, the one thing that gave her peace of mind was the fact that she could rely on her sister to occasionally go back to their parents’ house and check up on them from time to time.
Pretty recently, her sister passed away due to COVID-19. This could not have come at a worse time, because she had lost her brother due to a heart attack not too long before that. And given the travel restrictions, she could not be there with them or even attend their funerals, which took a huge toll on her.”
THE REALITY OF IMMIGRANTS’ LIVES
The stories may sound a little tragic, but that is the reality that many immigrants have to face as many believe that that is the price they have to pay for a brighter future although it is not always guaranteed. Just these glimpses of their lives have shown us how tough living as an immigrant is, yet there is very little compassion shown to them. Not to mention, the system that continues to stack itself against them, from healthcare, to education and job opportunities that contributes to many mental health issues.
Study shows that it is not uncommon for immigrants to suffer from mental health problems due to the challenges that they have to face on a daily basis. Having to adapt to a new culture and language is the common stressor that causes them to experience anxiety and depression.
According to a report by The Forum on migrants and refugees’ with loneliness in London, it mentioned “Migrants and refugees are among the most vulnerable groups in relation to experiencing loneliness. When they arrive in reception country, they face a completely different life in a strange new environment. This situation, in combination with government policies, can make migrants and refugees’ journey traumatic and damaging for their well-being. Restrictions to entitlements to welfare services and exclusions in employment and housing, along with the possibility of detention and removal, are social disconnection factors that are associated with loneliness and can further impact on health and wellbeing. Because of these restrictions, migrants and refugees feel discriminated, excluded, unloved and lonelier.”
It is a universal thing where migrants and refugees are treated harshly with the support of government policies and it is indeed sickening, especially with countries such as the United States and Japan that are known for their anti-immigration policies that only reveals their practice in uplifting systemic racism and xenophobia.
What is our excuse for not being able to treat our migrants and refugees better, but to feed our own egos that we are better than the immigrants who wish to better their lives?
