Iranian refugee Laila Rahimi, 36, was scared when she became an immigrant in New Zealand, where she struggled to leave the house. Sometimes she can spend several days encouraging herself to walk to grocery stores to buy her basic necessities.
`` I arrived in New Zealand in March 2018 and I was afraid to leave the house, '' says Rahimi, a football player and coach.
A few months after Rahimi settled in New Zealand, she received an invitation to join the local cycling club Rob, and she received a second-hand bike from the local charity RepaCycle. Within a few weeks she began to get rid of the depression as she was able to take a bicycle and see the country from the green slopes, hills and harbor routes in Wellington, sometimes traveling 45 kilometers at the weekend.
“The bike has completely changed my life,” Rahimi said. I love the bicycle, I drive it every day and feel free to ride it. ”
New Zealand accepts 1,000 refugees a year under the quota system, and many struggle to get safe and cheap transport options. It can take several years to get a driver's license. Helik Townsend, co-founder of Ribaiskal Ekroa, says many former refugees have not learned to ride a bicycle in their own country, and women in particular, because it can be rejected for social reasons. Long, loose clothing can be an obstacle for women to drive.
The RepaCycle has donated more than 200 bicycles to former refugees in Wellington, and offers cycling lessons around the capital, given the growing demand for bicycles. Another 500 bicycles have been donated to the Kiwi people, a native of New Zealand, who are struggling to get one. “Giving refugees a bicycle means they can travel long distances at no cost, giving them a greater chance to socialize and live a normal life,” says Townsend, who explained that many former refugees spent about three hours a day walking to learn English. ».