Current Story: Dear followers, Thank you for supporting our campaign, we’re so grateful for all your generosity. We’ve had to update our funds distribution due to it not meeting the terms and conditions as set out by LFEBridge. They stipulated that "fundraising is not allowed for the following at this time: activities in, within or involving countries, regions, governments, persons or entities that are subject to U.S and other economic sanctions under applicable law, unless such activities are expressly authorised by the appropriate governmental authority." This means we are unable to use the funds for the initial intended purpose of ending the child marriage. We understand this is a difficult situation and we’re doing our best to move forward with our campaign. Fortunately, last week a family member managed to secure Peroz a loan to end the marriage. We are grateful for this and Peroz will have to repay this when he’s back in Australia and able to work again. His current financial situation is quite strained due to exhausting his savings and utilising the loan to achieve our initial objective. To adhere to LFEBridge's terms of service, we will redirect these funds to cover other essential expenses related to bringing the children to Australia. Firstly, we will need to pay for lawyers and legal fees to apply for the orphan relative visa to Australia. We’ve been quoted $6000-8000 per application, not including GST, disbursements or application fees. We will have a separate application for each of the three children. The application fee for the orphan relative visa is $1870 through Australian immigration. (https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/orphan-relative-117). We will also be required to do a DNA test for each child which would require us to pay $1500 per test. While we await a response from the Australian immigration authorities we will apply for a temporary visa to either Pakistan or Dubai so the children can await their future in a relatively safer country which allows girls to receive an education. Once we are approved for a temporary visa we will pay for flights to the temporary country. There have also been a number of medical costs that we have needed to provide the children, such as an operation the two girls needed to remove kidney stones. There is also major dental work needed for all the children, such as root canals, fillings and crowns due to not being able to access dental care until now. We will then pay for accommodation, food, clothing needed to fit into the host country as they currently only have Afghan clothing, and education expenses such as school fees in the temporary country, textbooks, stationary, uniforms, and additional English classes until the Australian government can grant the children visas. Thank you everyone for your support during this challenging time and we know this will be a lengthy ongoing process. Please share our story to help us continue our journey. Previous Story: I have created this LFEBridge on behalf of my cousin Peroz, who is currently in Afghanistan trying to free his siblings from forced child marriage. Dear compassionate hearts, My name is Peroz, and I write to you from rural Afghanistan, where I find myself in the midst of a heart-wrenching journey to rescue my three half-siblings. Their existence was unknown to me until November 2024, but since then, my life has been forever changed. As I navigate through the harsh realities of life here, I am filled with a sense of urgency to secure their safety, health, and a chance at a better life. In my quest to uncover the truth about my father, who remained in Afghanistan during the 1989 Russian invasion, I found myself seeking answers that led me to my three half-siblings. Tragically, their mother passed away a year after my father, leaving them orphaned and facing the challenges of life in rural Afghanistan. My heart sank when I discovered that my 15-year-old sister had been forced into marriage at the tender age of 13 to a 32-year-old man. I couldn't stand idly by, and this marked the beginning of a gruelling battle I had to fight single-handedly. In a country I had never been to, with unfamiliar rules and language barriers, I had to navigate a challenging path to protect my sister’s well-being and free her from the chains of forced child marriage. To dissolve the marriage, I am required to provide 400 goats to the husband, which is equivalent to AUD $42,000, with a deadline of 22nd of September. We've been through the courts and also through a tribal mediation process to find a peaceful way out without anyone getting killed. However, due to the interpretation of Sharia Law here and the extreme patriarchal society, this was the only peaceful solution that they could give us to guarantee our safety. If I cannot pay the husband by the due date, he has the right to come and take my sister from me by force, and if I don't give her up or try to escape, the culture here is to hunt us down and kill us for taking another man's wife. The price placed on my sisters' freedom weighs heavily on me, but their safety and happiness remain my utmost priority. I am still in Afghanistan, suffering every day from unfamiliar challenges while striving to raise awareness and the funds necessary for her emancipation. Meanwhile, they have my 12-year-old brother, and are keeping him until we either pay the husband off or we exchange my sisters for him. The situation is dire, and I fear for his safety and well-being. The living conditions my family endures are grim, and their health is in serious jeopardy. Their teeth have rotted due to the lack of access to proper healthcare and dental care. Life-threatening kidney stones cast a dark cloud over their well-being, and I fear for their safety each passing day. Moreover, it's been almost impossible to provide my sisters any kind of education here, as the extremist Taliban government has closed all the schools for females. I urgently need to secure visas to a country willing to offer them refuge until Australia approves their visas. The complexities of understanding migration laws and navigating this process weigh heavily on my shoulders. I come to you now with a desperate plea for help. Your compassion, contributions, and prayers can make a difference in this race against time. My siblings' safety, health, and future are at stake, and I cannot achieve this alone. Together, we can create a future filled with promise for these young souls, providing them with safety, hope, and the chance for a brighter tomorrow. Moreover, my mother suffers from a chronic illness at home in Australia, and I am unable to help her from here. I need to get back to her as soon as possible. Your involvement in this journey means the world to me, and I cannot thank you enough for standing with me during this critical time. In the coming weeks, I will continue to update you on our progress and the challenges we overcome. Please share this story with anyone you know. Your support can bring us closer to reuniting my family and providing them with the safe haven they deserve. With heartfelt gratitude, Peroz Zayee
Artículos relacionados
