Refugee Stories

Ethiopian family sponsored by Sanctuary and settled in Brisbane.

Ethiopian Family sponsored by Sanctuary and settled in Brisbane.

According to the 1951 convention relating to the status of refugees to which Australia is a signatory, refugees can be defined as:

“Any person who owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his/her nationality and is unable, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country.”

This definition can never completely cover the horrifying experiences that refugees go through. Many refugees, including children, are often victims of rape, torture and violence or witnesses to it. Sanctuary reads many refugee stories with most of the atrocities in them being unspeakable. It is testament to their strength that they are able to make it to a second country, where they often find themselves for years, sometimes a decade or more in refugee camps. These camps are often violent places, where people remain malnourished and at risk from many of the threats they faced in their war torn homelands.

Read first hand refugee accounts and gain insight into the difficulties refugees face:

* The Makur Family Story
* Anna’s Amazing Story
* Yves – My life as a refugee.

If you are an ex-refugee who has been helped by Sanctuary, and would like to share your story,  please get in touch again. We would love to hear from you.

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