Jamalida Rafiqu, speaking in Trinity College, Dublin
JAMALIDA Rafique, a fifth-year student in St Leo’s College, Carlow, was invited to speak at the ‘Together: homeless, migrants and refugees in search of dignity’ public seminar in Trinity College recently. The event was organised by the school of religion, theology and peace studies at Trinity and was chaired by Professor Linda Hogan. Jamalida, who studies politics and society at St Leo’s, was one of four speakers. The keynote speaker was Fr Peter McVerry, alongside Dr Stephanie Hanlon, Dr Skaykh Umar Al-Qadri and Vuyokazi Njikelana.
Jamalida talked about her journey from a refugee camp in Bangladesh to Ireland, when her parents were forced to flee Myanmar, formerly Burma. Jamalida spoke movingly and eloquently about her arrival in Carlow and the importance of education and the opportunity for a second chance that continues to evade so many millions of children in conflict zones around the world.
