Darren’s Story

A very modern refugee romance

From a detention centre to years in limbo to, at last, a permanent future in Australia, the RACS team has been journeying with Darren* for well over a decade.

Seeking asylum in Australia

As a young man, Darren found his life under constant threat. In 2012, he fled to Australia with nothing, knowing nobody, knowing not what his future held. He knew only that there was a better chance of safety in this new country than what awaited him back home.

Life in limbo on a temporary visa was tough for Darren, and it was lonely:

“I came from a very loving, affectionate family. Then I had to leave and ... I felt zero when I arrived in Australia because I didn’t know anyone, I didn’t know the faces, the language, I had no money.”

He found solace in a friend he met via Facebook in 2013. Friendship with Karthi* soon blossomed into romance.

The only problem? Karthi was from Darren’s home country, where Darren was no longer safe.

Long-distance love

Through long, late-night shifts at his factory job, Darren would take every opportunity to text or call Karthi. They would speak at least three times a day, during each of his breaks at work and when he got home, after midnight.

“When I fell sick, she literally cried and always made sure that I was safe, called me. I’m very touched by that caring part of her nature,” he says. “She’s been a big support for me. She always supports me and is a good counsellor.”

With his future in Australia still uncertain, Darren didn’t know what a life together might look like for him and Karthi, but he knew as early as 2014 that she was his soul mate. He made his intentions known by sending a very special gift to her:

"He gave me a proposal ring,” she remembers. “He can write poems, love poems. He wrote his own creation. I was most impressed by the proposal ring and the poem.”

But it wasn’t until 2018 that Darren and Karthi had the opportunity to discover if the spark they had long distance would translate into real life chemistry. There was a surprise in store for both of them.

“Because in that time we didn’t have the proper documents for registration, so we had no plan to get married,” Karthi told us. “Our parents decided. Oh, we enjoyed that moment, because we didn’t [plan it]! It was an amazing day, our wedding day.”

They enjoyed a brief month together as husband and wife, going shopping together and each doing their share of cleaning. Sometimes Karthi would cook; other times Darren would order food.

But then they had to part: Darren couldn’t go back to their home country and because his future in Australia was uncertain, he couldn’t bring Karthi to live in Australia with him either.

Out of limbo and towards a secure future

It would be another five years before Darren received his Resolution of Status permanent visa and the possibility of reuniting with Karthi became real.

As a long-standing RACS client, Darren knew he could turn to us to help him reunite with his wife.

“RACS asked for all our communication history, the photographs, the wedding photographs, my bank statements for international transfers. RACS put so much hard work into getting it done. They put so much time into our case, long phone calls to correct our statements.”

In addition to the legal and administrative tasks of applying to bring Karthi to Australia, Darren appreciated that his case mattered – that he mattered.

“RACS takes their client’s problems as their own and put so much hard work in. I’m so grateful for that. The best thing is that RACS staff are empathetic, to understand other people’s emotions. Whatever I’ve gone through, they’re empathetic.”

Reuniting in safety: together at last

Darren remembers where and when he was when he got the good news about his wife’s visa:

“I was just coming back from Canberra to Sydney, looking at my phone, then an email popped up on the screen: visa granted. When I saw that, I couldn’t stop the happy tears from falling. I didn’t call Karthi straight away, I just enjoyed the moment and waited till I got home.”

After 12 long years, Darren and Karthi’s marriage is long-distance no longer. They have a safe future together, and they are excited about what’s to come. Darren plans to start his own food truck business soon and Karthi hopes to study nursing. Like many Australian families, they would love to start a family and buy their own home.

*Pseudonyms used to protect client identities