Many young Eritreans risk their lives each year trying to reach the United Kingdom and I would like to share my journey, which was successful even though it involved travelling for nearly two years.  

I am from Eritrea. I fled my country because I was persecuted by the local government.  

The Eritrean government forces thousands of young people - both male and female - to join the national military service. Many women opt to marry and have children early in order to be exempt from joining. I was safe, but my husband was forced to join up. 

One day he disappeared and the government started searching for him... and for me.  

I did not know where he was but the government didn’t believe me and threatened me, saying they would arrest me if I didn’t reveal his location. It left me with no other choice but to leave my own country.  

My mum died when I was a child and my dad passed away quite recently, so the only person that could help escape me was my aunt. She found an agency and paid a lot of money for them to assist me in leaving Eritrea.  

I was passed from one agency to another agency in different countries to another until I finally reached the UK.  

The agency gave us no choice in where we went, and often I didn’t even know where I was headed. I travelled for nearly two years, staying in Sudan, Turkey and Greece for several months and travelling through Italy and Belgium. I remember travelling in a lorry at one point. It was so scary. I was not sure where the lorry was going and what was happening.  

I finally arrived in the UK in December 2019. I have now settled in the country and I am so happy to be here as everyone has been welcoming and helpful to me since I arrived. 

I would like to thank Migrant Help for making a positive impact to my live in the UK by assisting me with claiming asylum, giving me a safe place to live, organising different fun activities to participate in and by providing me with a calling card, data and warm clothing. 

My dream is to improve my English and to study, work and live peacefully here the UK.  

My message to people in my situation is do not give up hope.  There is a safe place, like UK, in which you can live happily.