Peter Beltus

The Illegal Immigrant Peter Beltus

Patrick, a young Nigerian graduate, travelled to Europe hoping to start life as an engineer. But on getting to Munich, he realized that to avoid being deported on expiry of his visa, he has to become an asylum seeker. But life as a refugee-with no right to work, limited freedom of movement, constant harassment from the police and having to queue for food every day- was not what he wanted. Feeling trapped, he resorted to peddling drugs and doing illegal jobs to raise money to buy a passage to London. He arrived in London on borrowed documents only to realise that he has simply traded his status as an asylum seeker to that of an illegal immigrant. Nonetheless, he was able to secure jobs with forged documentations with relative ease. Living in the UK was easier although tainted with the constant reminder of his illegal status, which he tried many times to overturn but with no success. Then the European Union expanded, bringing to a stop all he was enjoying. Suddenly, illegal immigrants became hunted, and with a looming long jail term if caught, he decided to end it all by moving back home. While in Nigeria, he secured admission to a university in Norway and, for the first time, was able to live legally in Europe. Sadly, neither his new legal status nor educational achievement was able to stop the subtle racist behaviors he experienced in everyday life in Europe. Finally, he decided to relocate back home where at least he wouldn't be treated as a second class citizen