On Friday, 17 May #TeamOrrick will be taking on its second cycling challenge – four countries in four days – from London, down through the Garden of England to Dover, catching the early morning ferry to Calais and cycling along the French and Belgian coastline to Bruges, across the Zeeland peninsulas from Bruges to Rotterdam, arriving in Amsterdam on Monday, 20 May. Our total riding distance will be 480km / 300 miles.

Each participant is self funding the ride, so all donations go directly to the charity.

We’re riding for our pro bono partner, Refugee Legal Support, a team of frontline UK and Greek asylum lawyers and activists who provide displaced people with casework support, legal advice and advocacy.

This is an organisation that’s close to our hearts. We’ve been working together for the last 3 years and have seen the impact of their work first-hand.

RLS:

● Helps families torn apart while fleeing violence to be reunited in the UK

● Helps people who have fled the Taliban to find safety

● Helps people to gain asylum in Greece

This work is life-changing. But RLS needs our help to keep going. Every donation can make a difference:

● £30 can pay for RLS to answer a call from someone who needs their help

● £60 could pay for RLS to visit a refugee camp in Greece

● £100 could help to prepare somebody for their interview with the authorities

Qaed’s family’s journey

As Bidoons from Kuwait, Qaed and his family have no rights at home. They have no access to education or even the most basic healthcare and face regular harassment or worse from the state. Kuwaiti Bidoons (not to be confused with Bedouin) are denied citizenship and are left stateless. An incredibly precarious situation.

Like many others, Qaed was determined to push for change and took part in protests against these intolerable conditions. The government started cracking down. When they started arresting people, he knew he was in danger and needed to leave.

This wasn’t easy and he had to leave his wife and four children behind. He planned to find safety in Europe so that they could follow him.

“I miss my family, my siblings. You can’t have a happy life in Kuwait.”

To the UK and detention

Qaed eventually made it to the UK where he was put into detention within days of arriving. He was moved to a detention centre somewhere near London. He’s still not exactly sure where.

He was due to be removed from the country. He was 24 hours from his flight when he had a reprieve as he found a solicitor to help him. His removal was stopped and it was clear that Qaed needed protection. He was eventually granted asylum in the UK.

RLS’s work to bring the family back together

However, this was far from the end of his journey. His family was still stuck abroad without their father. There’s almost no legal support available for family reunion cases, but RLS and Orrick could help.

Together, we worked with Qaed and his family for two years to:

● Met with the family for multiple interviews to fully understand their case and situation

● Provide detailed advice on the options available to them

● Gather the evidence of their family relationship - this is a challenge as Kuwaiti Bidoons have no documentation

● Draft a statement to detail their experiences and need to reunite

● Obtain expert evidence to attest to the strength of the family relationship

With no answer from the Home Office after 14 months, we sent chaser letters to highlight the urgency of the case.

It took two whole years of work, but we recently found out that the case has been successful.

Finally, the family is back together after three years apart.

A new life

Qaed and his family have been on the move for years, but they’re now getting to a point where they can start a new life. This won’t be easy - we’re helping them to overcome a new set of administrative issues and they need help to find proper housing.

But they’re finally together, with secure status and can start to think of their future.

The strength that the family has shown to get to this point has been enormous. Most people would be broken and bitter from such an experience. But Qaed’s able to see the positives, constantly thanking those who have supported the family.

Asked what he’d tell others going through similar journeys, he replied “the journey will be difficult, with obstacles. Stay strong and carry on until you reach your destination.”