Nargis’ Story
Newlyweds, newly reunited
A young couple torn apart
Nargis and Siar knew each other from childhood, often crossing paths when their families had dinner or celebrated festivals together. When Siar lost his father, Nargis was there to support him. They became close friends and their relationship grew from there.
On their wedding day, so many strangers came to congratulate them that they had to change the location of their photo shoot. That’s a fond memory that Nargis has of that day: being overwhelmed by well-wishers.
The newlyweds were a promising young couple with a bright future ahead of them. She was a lecturer in law and politics. He was a journalist who also ran his own business. “We had a normal life and we thought tomorrow we would do this and that. We never thought that the Taliban would take over Afghanistan.,” Nargis said
But when Kabul fell to the Taliban, Nargis’s life was suddenly in more danger than ever before. As an educated woman and a vocal women’s rights advocate, she was no longer safe in her own country.
Just three months after they were married, the newlyweds were torn apart. Nargis was evacuated to Australia with her family but Siar had to stay behind in Afghanistan – simply because, at the time, he didn’t have a passport.
Arriving in Australia: a future on hold
“I lost everything in Afghanistan: my home, my degree, my identity, I lost everything there.
“I came here without anything. It was really, really hard to stand up again and make a life from zero.”
Nargis found RACS shortly after her arrival in Australia and our lawyers helped her and her family to apply for permanent visas. This wasn’t the end of her story, though. She had found safety in Australia, but how could she have a future here without her husband?
“It’s emotionally hard, especially when I was seeing other people who have a normal life,” she shared. “They get engaged, they get married and they’re together, just normal and they go out, they go shopping, they have their normal life, they think about the future. When I was thinking about myself, I didn’t know what would happen.”
The long-distance marriage was tough – especially when communication lines weren’t always reliable. Nargis would spend her days worrying about her husband’s safety. They would call or message each other constantly, but if the Taliban cut the internet, Siar couldn’t respond and she could never be sure if he was still alive.
Meanwhile, Siar preferred audio calls to video calls because it was too hard to see his wife and yet be so far away: “I do not want us to get used to seeing each other over video call. When we talk using audio calls, it is easier to think that our separation is only temporary.”
Legal help to reunite the newlyweds
Once Nargis secured her permanent visa in Australia, reuniting with Siar finally became a real possibility. Legal help would be crucial in this process.
“It was really hard but RACS did everything. One of the days they wanted to talk to Siar the internet was not working, but they were so patient. Until 7.30 to 9pm they tried to contact Siar and talk with him,” Nargis remembers.
Our lawyers guided the young couple so they understood what they needed to do to have the best chance of being reunited. We worked with them to complete the right application forms, draft accurate and compelling statements in support of their relationship, gather relevant evidence and manage Department deadlines and questions.
It wasn’t just the practical legal help. Having a lawyer to fight for her gave Nargis the hope she needed to get through a difficult and lonely period of her life:
“[My RACS lawyer] was so kind... The application was in process with Home Affairs and she couldn’t do anything more, but when I called her to say something thing happened, Siar is not safe, she would listen and try to motivate me.”
Together again and free to dream
Nargis remembers the moment she received a life-changing phone call about Siar’s visa being granted. “I just shouted and cried,” she said. “My mum was in the kitchen, she got scared and said, ‘What happened? Why are you crying and shouting?’”
Then she spoke to here husband:
“I called Siar and I was crying. He was like ‘Why are you crying? Tell me what happened?’ After that crying, I shouted and cried, finally we can get to be together.”
Now, for the first time in three and a half years of marriage, they will end the year together. They will begin 2025 in the same time zone and country, full of dreams for their future.
“After all the bad things that we had and all the bad experiences, this is the start of our life.
Now is the time that we have to find our way and build a good life for us.”
Even as she once received help to settle in Australia after being evacuated from Afghanistan, Nargis now has a job returning the favour: “I help the new arrival migrants. When I help them I think of myself, about the days that I came and I had so many problems and people came to help me, and I needed too many things. Now I help them and I feel really good about that.”
She has a few words of encouragement to refugees still waiting for safety, or to be reunited with loved ones: “Be patient and never lose hope, because the darkness will never be here all the time. The night will be over and the sun will rise.”
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