A beautiful tribute to one of our new Labour MPs and his journey to parliament. In his own words he told the house this week. “My name is Ibrahim Omer. I’m an Eritrean. I’m a son, brother, a friend. I’m a Muslim. I’m a former refugee. I’m a trade unionist and living wage activist. But most importantly, I stand here today in front of you bursting with pride as a Kiwi who loves Aotearoa New Zealand. My journey to this place has been a long one. The story of my journey is the story of every refugee displaced and forced from their home country and their loved ones. My vision is for my journey to give hope to the many other people with stories like mine…..
I end with the final acknowledgement to all the millions of people displaced around the world. Your courage in the face of unimaginable adversity will always inspire me. The reality is that many millions of people will not have the luck that I have had. Until the world changes, innocent lives will continue to be lost and displaced in the hands of evil and war. That is what we must change—that is what we must change. In my mother tongue, which is called Saho, I just wanted to say to these people:
Sen abliuk ane, which is “I see you.”;
Sen arar ye abeuk ane, which is “I feel you.”;
Insaaa Allah rile sneak ane ane, which is “I will be on your side and fight alongside you.”
