Personal stories

Alebachew Desalegn

Alebachew Desalegn was born in Ethiopia in 1959 and came to London in 1993. He talks about how he feels he now has two homes.

Listen to Alebachew (in Amharic, mp3, 842kb)

Transcript

Read transcript in Amharic (pdf, 31kb)

'Basically the good thing is that there is no conflict of interest between these two countries of mine. My sense of belongingness to Ethiopia has developed inside me since my childhood. It is one of the inseparable parts of my identity.  Then after, when you run away from persecution and get protection, you have to be grateful for the hospitality of the host community without any reservation.

'Britain is my other Ethiopia in my heart. The main thing is not being granted citizenship but the love you have for that particular country. As I told you, Ethiopia is not taken from my heart although I am living in exile. It is kept in my heart. I think it is possible to commit your heart to the love of two, three and even four, five, six countries.

'The main thing is avoiding hatred. And it is possible to fall in love with more than one country. Britain is my second country, where I have been made most welcome when I was in a desperate plight. My love for Britain is the same as for Ethiopia.'

Copyright Evelyn Oldfield Unit


Alebachew Desalegn (Photograph by Museum of London)


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