1000km bike ride for WAST Manchester

On Sunday 6th September, Tom, Erin, Jerry and myself (Aidan) will begin our cycle ride from Ohrid, Macedonia to Ljubljana, Slovenia to raise money for WAST (Women Asylum Seekers Together) Manchester. The journey is just about 1000 kilometres and we have 3 weeks to complete it.

All the money we raise will of course go straight to WAST, to pay for running costs such as transport, food, rent and campaigning. Anything you could give would be very much appreciated! :)

Here's some info about WAST:

WAST women are often in vulnerable situations - isolated, traumatised, in ill health, facing destitution, homelessness, and deportation. But they refuse to be invisible and are making their voice heard. They are women of all ages, nationalities, ethnicities, language, religion, sexual orientation and disability. Some have children born in this country, some have British spouses or partners. Our families face being split up by deportation.

Aims of WAST:

• Providing a safe and secure women only space and a source of support for each other, social and emotional

• Empowerment for one another, sharing knowledge and information, skills and experiences.

• Helping each other take forward our asylum applications and run campaigns.

• Promoting and improving our skills and experience.

• Involving ourselves in organisational and community development activities and networking with other groups.

• Raising awareness and lobbying on Women?s Asylum issues.

• Promoting a positive image of asylum seekers.

Who are WAST?

• Women asylum seekers of different nationalities who have been through the asylum process and are under threat of deportation.

• Some of us started up our own anti deportation campaigns.

• Some of us are waiting to hear from the Home Office about fresh claims, or working to try and get new evidence to put in fresh claims

• We find ourselves without legal help, and with all legal options to asylum exhausted

• Some of us have had all our support stopped and have been made destitute and so survive on help from friends and Red Cross parcels

• Some of us live with our children, born after our asylum claim was refused, for months or years on Section 4 vouchers

Our reasons for fleeing:

• Ethnicity

• Gender violence: domestic violence and rape, the threat of honour killing, forced marriage, FGM, sexual orientation

• Political activity

• Religion

What we have in common:

• Lack of women's Rights in our own countries

• Persecution

• Lack of Protection; from our own Governments and/or families and now the problems we face going through the British Immigration system.

• Because of some of our cultures women are pushed to the background we're not used to talking, but at WAST we do all the talking. We can encourage women to talk if they want to, and have the courage to confront issues.

WAST provides a space from which women asylum seekers can:

• Empower ourselves, help each other set up our own individual anti-deportation campaigns

• Build expertise on women's issues, rape, honour killing, domestic violence, etc., sharing info useful for campaigning, asylum and human rights claims amongst ourselves

• Link with other groups and organisations about support and services, or the lack of them, to women asylum seekers

• Collaborate on things like fundraising together which as individuals on our own we wouldn't have the time, energy, resources or contacts to do.

• Raise awareness in the community and through the media about asylum seekers and in particular women asylum seekers, the issues that concern us and our families, promote a positive image of ourselves and ensure our voice is heard.

• Brings the wider community together with WAST women who may otherwise be 'invisible'

• Hold meetings in a mixture of relevant languages and child-friendly environment.

• Give mutual support, understanding, and friendship.

See more at: wast.org.uk/what-is-wast/