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It has been over two weeks since Akila died, and his family has barely slept. Their greatest wish now is to bring Akila’s body home and give him a proper burial.

On the morning of 30 June, a tragedy occurred at a club in Bucharest.

Akila was one of 10,000 Sri Lankans who moved to Romania on a work visa in 2023. He was 27 at the time and brought with him a wealth of experience, having worked as a head chef in hotels in Sri Lanka, as well as academic qualifications attesting to his skills.

His partner describes him as a man who was not afraid to stand up for those around him and speak out on their behalf, especially when they were unable or too afraid to do so themselves. A brave and confident man, who helped his friends, who was a true support to his parents and siblings, and who put passion into his work. They had been together for nine years, during which time, she says, “he looked after me with great love. In his spare time, he liked watching films.”

It has been over two weeks since Akila died, and his family is barely sleeping. Their greatest wish now is to bring Akila’s body home and give him a proper burial.

The repatriation costs, however, are beyond their means. Furthermore, Akila, like most non-Europeans who move to Romania on a work visa, had taken out a large, high-interest loan to finance his journey and relocation. He was still paying off the loan when he left.

We are therefore launching this fundraising campaign to cover the repatriation costs, helping Akila’s family in Sri Lanka to bring their son/brother/partner home (≈ €4,000). In addition to transporting the body, we also aim to raise the funds needed to help the family repay the remaining balance of the bank loan (≈ €2,500), for which Akila had put up his house as collateral. We should note that this is a significant cost in Sri Lanka, where the average salary is approximately 1,300 lei.

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Asian workers represent an increasingly numerous and vulnerable group in Romanian society. Although the Romanian Government announces generous new quotas for foreign labour every year, it has not yet implemented any inclusion strategy for the tens of thousands of people coming into the country. State institutions do not organise free Romanian language courses, do not run cultural mediation programmes, do not provide information on rights, responsibilities, legislation or local culture, nor do they offer legal assistance in the many cases where these workers are victims of employer abuse and other forms of exploitation.

And yet, many of them are the people who prepare our food in our favourite restaurants, pack it for supermarket shelves and build our cities for future generations.

This campaign is not just about Akila, but about everyone who comes to Romania in search of a better life and faces invisible hardships. Let’s show them that we see them and that we care.

EN:

Fundraising Campaign to Bring Akila Home

It has been over two weeks since Akila passed away, and his family barely sleeps. Their greatest wish now is to bring Akila’s body back to Sri Lanka and give him a proper funeral.

On the morning of 30 June, a tragedy occurred at a nightclub in Bucharest.

Akila was one of 10,000 Sri Lankans who moved to Romania on a work visa in 2023. He was 27 years old at the time, and had valuable experience as a head chef in hotels back home, along with strong academic qualifications.

His partner describes him as a brave and confident man who stood up for those around him and spoke on their behalf, especially when they couldn’t. He was a pillar of support for his family and friends and put great passion into his work. They had been together for nine years, during which, she says, “he looked after me with great love. In his spare time, he loved watching films.”

It has been over two weeks since Akila passed away, and his family barely sleeps. Their greatest wish now is to bring Akila’s body back to Sri Lanka and give him a proper funeral.

Unfortunately, the costs of repatriation are beyond their means. Akila, like many non-Europeans who move to Romania for work, took out a large loan with high interest to finance his move and new life. He was still paying off this loan when he passed away.

We are launching this fundraising campaign to help cover the repatriation costs and assist Akila’s family in Sri Lanka in bringing their son/brother/partner home. (≈ 4000 EUR) In addition to transporting his body, we also wish to raise funds to help repay the outstanding bank loan (≈ 2500 EUR), which Akila had secured against the family home. This represents a significant burden in Sri Lanka, where the average monthly salary is around 1300 lei.

**********************

Asian workers represent an increasingly large and vulnerable group in Romanian society. Although the Romanian government announces generous new quotas for foreign labour every year, it has yet to implement any inclusion strategy for the tens of thousands of people coming to the country. State institutions do not organise free Romanian language courses, do not run cultural mediation programmes, do not provide information about rights, responsibilities, legislation or local culture, nor do they offer legal assistance in the many cases where these workers fall victim to employer abuse and other issues.

Yet many of them are the people who prepare our food in our favourite restaurants, pack it for supermarket shelves, and build the cities for future generations.

This campaign is not just about Akila, but about all those who come to Romania seeking a better life and face invisible hardships. Let’s show them that we see them and that we care.