On the 1st September 2013, a British family will be divided

On the 1st September 2013,  a British family will be divided

Background on Sean's story was posted here : http://britcits.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/sean-i-am-desperate-to-return-home-to.html . Sean is a British citizen, with a non-EEA spouse, who has lived in South East Asia for a few years. The couple has a son, also a British citizen. Because the rules lock so many expat Brits into exile, Sean is desperate to return to the country of his birth to care for his elderly, sick parents. Sean is in the process of pursuing the EEA route to be with his family - a family divided. He continues to fight to be with all his loved one.

On the 1^st of September 2013, a British family will be divided. A British father and his three year old British son will be forced to live in exile. They will have to live and find work in Spain. They have never been there and don’t speak the language.

Father and husband:

I desperately want to stay in the UK, work and help look after my aging parents. They are in their seventies and both have been fighting cancer. My father had a fall this week and mother is in severe pain with her back. I worry so much and I can’t bear to leave them. I can’t help thinking I may never see them again.

My little boy has brought them so much pleasure over the last months and he in turn has learned so much from them. He loves them so much it will be a terrible thing to take him away from them. There will be real heartache and lots of tears when we leave. I really do not want to go, but if we stay my son will loose his mother. What choice do I have?

I have chosen Spain as I think it might be the best place for me to find work as an English teacher. I am scared though. How will we cope? What about language and culture problems? How will my son get on? If I we can’t survive there what will we do? I can’t work in my wife’s country and she will not even be able to enter mine. We will be in limbo. We will have to split up. My son will have a broken family.

Grandparents:

We are coming to the end of our years and all we want is our family around us. Having our son and grandson around is the best medicine we could possible get. But now we have to say goodbye to them at the airport. We don’t know when we will see them again. This is tragic.

We don’t understand why after all these years as hard working, law abiding British citizens we are faced with this situation. What makes us really angry and ashamed to be British is that any other European citizens can just walk into England and live and work just like that. An unmarried Polish/Thai couple with no children can just move here without restriction, yet our British grandson is expected to live without his mother.

Wife and mother:

This is all my fault. I feel so bad for breaking up my husband’s family. My parents in law need their son and grandson. I said maybe I should just leave and go home. I couldn’t though. How can any mother be expected to leave her child. I would be quite happy to go back to my rice farming village in Thailand, but it is not a good place for my child and my husband cannot work in my country. I only want what is best for them. I don’t really matter in all of this.

I thought western countries were very civilized. I don’t really understand why this is happening. I am sure no other country would allow a mother to be taken from her child or expect a father and child to live in another country.

Three year old boy:

I want to be with nanny and grampy. I don’t want to see anyone cry. I don’t want my daddy to be so anxious and sad. I don’t want to loose my mummy. I want to go to school and learn. I want everyone to be happy.

Read and share, please. #spouse #child #elderlydependants #britishcitizens #surindersingh #expatinexile #dividedfamiliescampaign

Mirrored here : http://www.scribd.com/doc/154379210/British-Family-to-Be-Divided