By BRIDGET SCOTT
FEW could predict the torturous tale Sarah O’Shea has to tell.
The mother of one has a management degree under her belt and was recently named runner-up for Chisholm Institute’s International Student of the Year award.
But she fled war-torn Zimbabwe with her family just a few years ago – one of the world’s most poverty-stricken countries where political unrest rules.
Ms O’Shea described the situation that overcame the southern African country as “like no other” – the government wanted to get rid of white people and would go to any length to do so.
Her brother-in-law suffered a heart attack, which she and sister Mariead believe was triggered by the stressful climate.
It was then they made the decision to move to Australia, where their two brothers already lived.
“It’s totally safe here, it’s unbelievable,” Ms O’Shea said
“When we first came we locked windows, doors and would hear cars coming and we would think, ‘will our tyres be stolen when we wake up tomorrow morning?’”
Ms O’Shea was unable to resume her occupation as a secondary school teacher, so started a management course at Chisholm Institute in Dandenong.
The TAFE presented her its International Student of the Year runner-up award at Parliament House late last year.
The experience made the difference between Australia and Zimbabwe even clearer, and the discrepancy shocked Ms O’Shea.
“To think we went to an actual government set up and we weren’t even searched,” she said.
“There was the Premier, and there was the Governor – that would never happen in our country.”
Ms O’Shea still calls Zimbabwe home and said forging a life in a new nation was difficult.
But tapping into one of her greatest loves has helped.
“In Zimbabwe I was a professional squash player,” she said.
“Every Friday night I play squash, with 15 Australian men.”
She said it was a release and her first real opportunity to interact with Australians.
“I think it literally saved my life,” she said.
“Without it, I think I would have gone mad.”
The Nar Nar Goon resident is now on the hunt for a job and fears she might not find employment in time.
She’s living in Australia on a student visa and could be forced to move to Ireland, where she holds a dual passport, if she can’t find work by the time it expires in March.
“The day I get the good news, or that I am made a permanent resident, I will get a piece of grass or soil, and I will taste it and say, ‘to eat this and earn this, what a trip’,” she said.
