‘Reaching Ireland was like a dream. It's protected and I'm safe’

When Manzi Joseph arrived in Ireland he was legally adult. However, at 18 years of age, he missed his family and struggled to settle into life in a direct provision centre without the support of his parents.

“They think that because you’re 18 years old you know everything and can live on your own. But it was really hard. That’s what people don’t understand, I’m grown up but that doesn’t matter. They’re my parents and I miss them.”

Joseph is used to life as an asylum seeker. He was seven years old when his family fled their home in Rwanda, seeking asylum in Malawi. Most of his memories before arriving in Ireland are of the refugee camp in Malawi where he lived with his four younger siblings. When he was 18, his parents decided to send their son abroad to seek asylum in Europe. Joseph had completed his secondary education and with the financial support of a friend, his parents sent their eldest son overseas in the hopes that he would find more opportunities outside Africa.

He arrived in Ireland in February 2015 and spent his first three months in the Balseskin direct provision centre in Finglas in north Dublin. Joseph had planned to continue his education in Ireland but was not aware of the cost of studying at third level as an asylum seeker.

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“I thought when I came to Ireland I’d stay in the system for a little bit but that I’d be working and earning some money as well to help my family. But it’s not like that, you cannot work and it’s hard to get into third level. You have no idea when your stuff will get sorted out. You’re just living in a limbo. You just have to wait and be patient.”

I've been in asylum for almost all my life but that doesn't change the ambitious person that I am

Joseph signed up for a cooking course to pass the time after he was relocated to the Mosney direct provision centre in Co Meath. However, he was more interested in finding a route back into education. “I don’t even like cooking but I wanted to do something. It was just to get myself out of the gloom.”

He began hanging out with some other teenage boys at the centre but was jealous of his friends who were still studying at secondary school. “It’s really tough. You’re a kid and your friends are going to school but you can’t go with them. You want to go to school but you’re not given that chance.”

Things became more difficult for Joseph when he was transferred to a hostel in Tramore in Co Waterford. He struggled to ignore a sense of despair in the centre and felt isolated in his new home.

“I’m the youngest person there and it’s hard to chat with people who don’t share the same goals as you. We don’t really have a connection.”

“If I only associate with people in the hostel it won’t do me any good because they are stressed and don’t have any hope. If you go out and meet a friend for coffee it feels good. You get a lift from your stresses.”

He signed up to English language classes and subsequently completed an ECDL course. He was accepted into a level five course in information technology at St Paul's Community College in Waterford. "After I got the place I was like I have to offer everything I have and work hard on the course. So I did that and managed to get all distinctions in my classes."

When classes finished for the summer, Joseph decided to volunteer at the local St Vincent de Paul shop in Tramore. “Where I live is a small town and it’s close to the beach. It’s fine in the summer when the weather is nice but when it’s winter and cold, nobody goes out. It’s lonely.”

It's hard when you're living in a country and not given the chance to study

“I didn’t have anything to do during the summer so I thought it would be better to spend my time helping people and working at the St Vincent de Paul shop. I enjoy my time there with the people and the manager. I get to know people and connect with others.”

In August, Joseph was offered a place to study computer science at Waterford IT but was unable to afford the €3,800 in annual fees. The 20-year-old approached a number of charities for support and applied for scholarships but failed to secure enough funds to begin classes this month.

“You just feel bad and ask yourself, why is the system like this? When I came here I had already finished my Leaving Cert and was preparing to go into higher level. It’s hard when you’re living in a country and not given the chance to study.”

Joseph decided to set up a gofundme page asking for public support in paying his third level fees. His plea was picked up on Twitter and within a few days he had raised the funds to cover the first year of his studies. However, Jospeh will face the same financial barrier this time next year if he is still awaiting a decision on his asylum application.

“My goal is if I get my status I will work hard and finish school. I would like to create something through computers, create a programme. I want to work for someone else first and then open my own business. I’ve been in asylum for almost all my life but that doesn’t change the ambitious person that I am.”

Despite the high cost of continuing his studies, Joseph says he is lucky to be in Ireland. “One thing I know is the place I came from was bad and reaching Ireland was like a dream. The life here is different, people treat you better and the living standards are okay. It’s protected and I’m safe.

“I think if I study hard I can get what I want and live the life that I want to live. Live a good life. On top of that, I want to support my family who are still back there.”

“As long as I’m not sitting here and doing nothing it will be okay. Let me not think too much about where I come from. I want to focus on moving forward. That’s what’s keeping me going.”