Former refugee celebrated as essential worker
Maria Jojoa knew she needed to leave Colombia when her brother-in-law was killed. She and her family were in such a violent place, it was difficult to know who even killed Wilmer. Jojoa is a former refugee who lives in Invercargill, one of dozens from Colombia who have resettled in the south.
‘‘It was hard to leave, but I learnt wherever you went, you can get back material things, but not lives,’’ Jojoa said. She loves the peace and tranquillity of Southland. ‘‘I would like people to know the reason we’re here, because of the violence,’’ Jojoa said. ‘‘Colombia is rich in nature and oil, but we can’t enjoy it because of the corruption.’’ Jojoa was an essential worker during Alert Level 4, as a cleaner at a rest home in Richmond, Invercargill. New Zealand Red Cross general manager migration Rachel O’Connor said many essential workers went unnoticed and were being celebrated for World Refugee Day on Saturday. Jojoa quickly recites the exact dates she landed in New Zealand and arrived in Southland; May 19, 2018 and June 22, 2018. Having lived in Invercargill for two years, she said ‘‘of course’’ she had a better life. Her family lived in a rural area about 500km south of the capital Bogota, but when her husband Jose´ began travelling to a town for work, people were suspicious and violence was a real threat. She was glad to be in New Zealand during the Covid-19 pandemic. ‘‘Yes, because people in our country don’t really obey rules. Here the people are told to do something and they do it,’’ Jojoa said about the strict Alert Level restrictions. If the rules were followed in Colombia, her family would be there, it was rich but corrupt, she said. Instead, she lives here with two of her three children, her husband, grandchild and Jojoa herself is 33 weeks pregnant. O’Connor said essential workers like Jojoa were vital for Aotearoa to get through lockdown. ‘‘On World Refugee Day, we want to celebrate how these refugee-background Kiwis have helped the rest of New Zealand during some of our toughest times. We are grateful they are part of our community.’’