Asmaa Omar is 31 years old, palestinean from Syria.
My father is from Palestine, and I am from Ghouta. I came to Denmark in 2014. I finished university and worked as a Arabic teacher. When I was 23 years old I got married. I was getting ready to take my masters degree. I wanted to write about the impact of religion on civilization. But, I couldn’t write it, since the war started. I was in an explotion and couldn’t use my head for a year.
I was more than scared. When the war started we thought it wouldn’t last so long. I got pregnant in 2012, and my husband said to me, “when you have the baby everything will be over”. The baby came, I had a caesarean. On the day I had my daughter the army came to the hospital. The soldiers needed treatment. We were thrown out and when my daughter was five days old, they destroyed my house. That is when our flight began. We rented a house in Damascus, because my husband had a company. After a while the whole family came here because everyone lost their houses. After that, my husband was driving his car and someone shot 18 shots at it and my husband was hit in the neck, but survived.
We needed to leave but we didn’t want to travel to Denmark, because the rules towards refugees are very hard. Every six months there are new rules. We wanted to go anywhere but Denmark. No matter what we do, they don’t want us here. Even if we get jobs, finish school, start our own business, still they don’t want us here. I have a bachelor degree here in Denmark, and I am ready to start at the university but its difficult for me to see my future here. Everything is foggy. They want us to leave, not stay here.
Believe me, Denmark is better than Syria now, but we do not feel welcome, and I think I speak for all refugees. When I finished language school I applied for an internship at a kindergarten. I wanted to be an assistant in a kindergarten. I asked all the local nurseries for internship, but I was told that in Denmark refugees cannot work with children, they have to get educated first. We can only work in three areas: cleaning, nursing homes, and I cant remember the last one.
I have started attending a six month child caring course until I can start my education. I don’t want to take a long education because I cant see my future here. The problem is that I am stateless. I am Palestinian and cant get a passport.
I feel like the government is judging us. Maybe because of some people that came here before us? Some of them have been working blach, because they couldn’t find a job. But, we are not at all like that. I am very happy that my husband has his own business. He has said to me “don’t worry, you can work in my company”, but he doesn’t make enough money for us both to be able to get a salary.
I would like to ask a question: Why do the government accept us here and then do this to us? I know that Denmark is better than Syria, in comparison. But why do they do these things to us?
If you have a comfortable life you give back to society. You do everything with love, but we don’t get this chance…
Refugee lives
