This Ramadan, two refugee sisters aren’t alone

When the Muslim month of fasting, Ramadan, began in May, Zaenab* joined the fast. A 19-year-old Somali refugee living in a CWS-managed group home in Jakarta, Zaenab was excited to mark Ramadan with a large group this year.

Zaenab and her younger sister are now refugees in Jakarta, Indonesia. They had originally fled Somalia to Yemen, where they had lived in relative safety. They have been in Indonesia since 2015, though, after fleeing the violence in Yemen.

Zaenab and her sister now live in the group home with 38 other girls and young women. Anyone who wanted to observe the holy month of Ramadan was able to do so. “Ramadan is a good month; I love it. And celebrating it in this group home is just amazing! When we first came to Indonesia, my sister and I lived alone, even though we were both children, and we had only each other during Ramadan. But here in the shelter there are many other girls and young women from Somalia, and we cook together and break our fast together and then go  to the neighborhood mosque for evening prayers. I hope Allah will accept all of my prayers, good deeds and fasting this month,” says Zaenab.

For these sisters, their new life in safety and security is really something in light of their difficult past journey.

*name changed to protect identity