LONG WAIT A TORMENT AS DAD, FAMILY KEPT APART

The world can be a small place, but there are times when the magnitude of its size becomes very apparent. Not only that, but there are also times when global events play decisive roles role in everyday life.

Australian citizen and Townsville resident Abdiaziz Mohamed wants nothing more than to be with his wife and one-year-old daughter, who are in Abdiaziz’s native Kenya.

Abdiaziz married his childhood sweetheart two years ago and his daughter was born last September.

But the proud father wasn’t there to witness her birth, let alone be with his wife for their life-changing moment.

Abdiaziz is desperately trying to bring his young family to Australia and provide them with the chance to enjoy a new life full of opportunity.

But the tyranny of distance, combined with slow-moving bureaucracy and the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic are working against his efforts to have wife Iklas and little Ahlam join him in Townsville.

He can’t travel back to Kenya, so he worked tirelessly to save $7000 for a partner visa application.

THE TYRANNY OF DISTANCE, COMBINED WITH SLOW-MOVING BUREAUCRACY AND THE CHALLENGES OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ARE WORKING AGAINST HIS EFFORTS TO HAVE WIFE IKLAS AND LITTLE AHLAM JOIN HIM IN TOWNSVILLE.

Every day has been a struggle and the pain almost unbearable, but perhaps the hardest element of it all is the uncertainty.

It could take up to 30 months for the family to be reunited, and with Abdiaziz in no position to return to Kenya, all the family can do is wait and hope that the day will come when they are together again.

FEARS GROW FOR MISSING MAN

Family and friends across North Queensland are praying for a miracle.

On Saturday a 26-year-old man from the Cairns area went missing during a spearfishing trip on the Great Barrier Reef.

The search continued yesterday, and while the prospects become more grim with each passing hour, it is more than possible that the man is still out there, fighting for his life.