“We are waiting here until we leave. Until that time, the idea is to avoid getting into any trouble.”
It is stories like that of Khaled that give hope to the countless asylum seekers waiting for years in Jordan with the dream of moving to a country that offers them legal pathways to citizenship, that allows them to work and build their skills, and presents the prospect of a better future.
Khaled is a young Iraqi man belonging to the Mandaean community from the city of Basra in South Iraq. After the war in 2003, life changed forever for Khaled and his family. They lived in a neighborhood with others from their religious community, which was singled out by extremists. Feeling unsafe, Khaled, like many others in his community, could not complete his education and had dropped out permanently in the ninth grade in 2013. He was already 20 years old at this point due to the intermittent gap years he had previously taken in response to insecurity in Iraq. This time, the leave was permanent.
After receiving a threatening letter from extremist groups, Khaled’s family decided to send him to Jordan where his maternal grandmother and uncle had moved and were waiting to be resettled in Australia. At that point, his family only had enough money to send Khaled to Jordan. His father was a jeweler before the 2003 war, but ever since the violence, finding work had been difficult. The family was surviving on little income and support from relatives living abroad.
Khaled arrived in Jordan in 2015 and lived with his relatives until they left for Australia. His family—his parents and siblings—followed him to Jordan later in 2017. When we met Khaled in late 2019, he was busy taking English classes that would help him in the transition he had long waited for since his arrival from Iraq: his entire family was waiting for the final decision on resettlement to Australia, where they would join their paternal and maternal family.
Our interview with Khaled was one of the most difficult ones. Trauma from the years of hostility he faced in Iraq had a deep impact on his personality. He was hesitant to share information about his life, family, and activities in Jordan. This is something we saw across our Iraqi participants, but even more notable for Khaled, possibly because he spent most of his adolescent years in a hostile, dangerous environment. After all, he was only ten years old when the war started and left for Jordan at the age of 22.
Life in the transit
Khaled never felt comfortable in his four years spent in Jordan as well. Through that time, he was just preparing for and waiting to move to Australia, which was their final destination. Jordan was merely a stop in between, and he never thought he would stay here this long. He did not mingle with people or make many friends, anticipating his departure. Most importantly, he stayed away from people to avoid getting into any trouble that could affect his resettlement application.
“I do not like to form relationships. We are...I do not know...how would you say it? We are being careful. I only mix with a few friends from Iraq. But it is not like we always meet. I prefer to be alone.”
The only place where he interacted with other people was at the English classes, and even then, he restricted that to fellow Iraqis.
When we asked him how stable he felt in Jordan he said, “Stability? Honestly, there is no stability here because we do not live our normal daily life here, like studying and working. Jordan is a transit country. We are waiting here until we leave. Until that time, the idea is to avoid getting into any trouble.”
Iraqi asylum seekers in Jordan are not allowed to work. No one in his family ever worked in Jordan. They could not imagine doing anything that might jeopardize their prospects of resettlement.
For the four years that he and his family lived in Jordan, they were financially supported by their family living in Jordan and abroad. It is not that they did not wish to work, but the possibility of doing so did not exist since the risk of doing so outside the law could end their chances of getting to Australia.
“If there was work, we would work. Why would we not? But this is not possible. If we work, then the authorities will catch us. The resettlement process will stop. They might send us back to Iraq. With this situation, I am forced to be patient. It means I am forced.”
Despite trying several times, the family of six was not able to secure any regular assistance from humanitarian organizations. Three members of the family, including Khaled’s father, mother, and one of his brothers were in need of regular medical care that was not fully covered. His anger of being repeatedly ignored by the organizations was apparent.
He recalled how he once argued with a UNHCR staff member who said the family did not qualify for assistance, and threatened to “call the security” to get Khaled off of the premises. “I was very angry: why would you take me out? Is this not an international organization? Are you not supposed to be here to protect me? I left my UNHCR card right there with him and left. When I went back to the UNHCR later with my family, I told them I did not have my card, and that I had left it because the employee had talked to me in an inappropriate manner. They renewed it, but I never went back again.”
Luckily, Khaled and his family could secure sufficient support from their relatives abroad. They could survive the high costs of living in Amman despite not having humanitarian cash assistance or income from work. However, this is often not the case for other Iraqi families who continue to live in poor conditions, unable to work, depending on one-off charity from individual donors or the church.
Resettling into a new life in Australia
In December 2019, Khaled and his family finally arrived in Sydney, Australia. While the Australian government covered the cost of their flight, their relatives helped them cover other expenses such as the application fees and transportation costs when they had to undergo medical tests before traveling. According to his estimates, the whole process cost them between 400 to 500 JOD (~$560 to $700).
We spoke to him twice again after he had moved to Australia. He sounded much more relaxed and excited to speak about his plans. Though he still had a long journey ahead of him to feeling settled and integrated in his new home, at least all of the financial stresses they had in Jordan were addressed.
All of his family members received regular monthly assistance from the Australian government. In addition, they no longer needed to worry about his father’s medical care. He received the best treatment, and the at-home care was also covered by the insurance.
The family was fully supported in their transition to the new home. A case manager was assigned to them, who helped them to coordinate with the government departments to register their presence with city authorities, enroll for medical insurance, open bank accounts and bank cards, learn how to use public transportation, and even enroll in language courses. The case worker also helped him understand what skills he could learn to enter the labor market and how he could go about doing this.
Since childhood, Khaled dreamt of joining the police or armed services. He was hoping to pursue the same in Australia. One of his Iraqi friends from Jordan had come to Australia before him and Khaled relied on him for advice to figure out his new life in Australia. His friend suggested he consider a driving course to become a truck driver, in case he does not make it to the defense forces.
On the social front, the biggest barrier Khaled faced was language. The English language classes he took in Jordan did not seem to be enough. In addition, he had to adjust to a very different accent of English in Australia. He committed to a language course in Australia that he hoped would help him integrate in the country.
“My English language is limited. It did help me during my travel here. I am the only one in the family who could speak English. But here, after a point in the conversation, there are topics that I cannot talk about in English.”
Although he is still hesitant to mingle with people and prefers to keep boundaries, it is mainly his lack of language skills that prevent him from forming deeper connections with the people around him. On the professional front as well, he needs to become proficient in the language to be able to work. Even though he is supported by the state, he feels that he can do better if he works and earns a living independently. He plans to buy a car and a house—key milestones in his journey to resettling in Australia.
Although Khaled still believes they made the right decision by traveling to Australia, he admitted in a later interview that he had had different expectations. As soon as he arrived in the country, he began to learn about the different laws, conditions for work in the country, and the language barrier. For instance, he learned that if he does not speak good English, he may end up working as a cleaner or construction worker, which are not jobs he had expected or planned on doing.
He also learned that those with degrees from other countries must do additional courses in Australia and that certain jobs require minimum experience without consideration given to experience in other countries. For Khaled, he understood that after learning English, he would have to finish his high school, as that is the minimum requirement to enter the defense forces.
Khaled’s transition to Australia might have been smoother if he had more knowledge about what skills he needed once he got there and been able to use his time in Jordan to build them. But unsure if and when his dream of being resettled would turn into a reality, the thought seemed more like a fantasy than reality.
We spoke to Khaled again after the COVID-19 pandemic had started. He was not affected financially, as he was still supported by the state. However, during that time he had been in a motorcycle accident. Due to the injuries he sustained, he had to attend physiotherapy sessions every day, which interfered with his online language classes. This derailed him from his plans. He was also worried about not being able to clear the physical requirements to enter the defense services. The accident also taught him more about Australian laws the hard way. For instance, he learned that he should have had insurance when he bought the motorcycle—a mistake he will not repeat again.
He says after the accident he no longer thinks about the distant future because everything can change in a split second. He set his horizon on the next three years, a time period in which he expects to improve his language, study, and find some work. He understands that the beginning is the hardest, but at least after the initial hardship, he will be able to truly settle.
In the meantime, there are organizations that are helping him and his family, especially with his father’s medical care. His life has changed for the better, compared to what they experienced in Jordan—a country that allowed him to stay but not to settle.
Interestingly, despite the hardships he faced in Jordan, he said that he really wants to come visit Amman and meet the people he spent time with. However, he is not allowed to enter Jordan as he did not pay the visa overstay fines and cannot return for at least five years. “Only if I get Australian citizenship and change my name, would I be allowed in Jordan!” he said laughing.