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"To Be A Refugee In Britain Is Hard": My Journey From Rwandan Civil Servant To Care Support Worker

Then, I was a civil servant with a comfortable lifestyle in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, a large house and servants to help with my four children, the housework and the garden. Now, I am a Rwandan refugee in my 40s and I live in a small flat in London. What happened?

In 2013, I was unexpectedly summoned to a meeting at my place of work. There, the managers told me that I had been chosen for a special mission and that I was to infiltrate the rebel group, M23. I was very disturbed by the proposal and politely declined. But consequences followed this decision.

I found myself in a room about four metres square, with no windows, almost empty except for an upright chair; that was the first consequence of my decision.  I suffered more and more consequences in detention, including torture. They do it to punish and silence you – it’s commonplace.