Just to introduce myself...

[BriD]

Hiya Everyone,

My name is Bridgette. I currently live in Johannesburg, South Africa with my husband and my 2 kiddies (4yr & 2 1/2yrs)

We have come to the sad realisation that staying here would mean a very uncertain future for our children. I just recently was shocked to

hear of a young woman with a 90% matric average was not accepted into UCT for Medicine. A classmate of hers (previously disadvantaged)

was accepted with a 66% average. This young woman was welcomed with open arms to Yale in the states. The US has just gained an accomplished

young student who will become a doctor there because her own country did not want her because she did not meet the 98% average required of her race

for acceptance into Medicine here.

This story was just the cherry on top of all the concerns we have for our children staying on in this country. I am 99.9% sure that if we stayed in SA, in

15 or less yrs we will be waving goodbye to our children when they leave SA.

And of course, in addition to concerns over education and equal opportunity, there is the safety and security issue as well. Just the other day my

husband and I sat down and wrote all the crime incidents that has happened to our immediate families. We were shocked to see how much crime has

affected our families and ourselves. Several cars stolen, several burglaries, some hijackings, 2 cases of armed robberies (guns to head -I experienced

this personally) and 1 murder for a cell phone. We have become so desensitised it is scary. This is simply unacceptable....unacceptable to live this

way. It is not ok to say "thank goodness they left you with your life"...it should not even happen in the first place!!!!

Somehow at some moment that I cannot pinpoint, I lost faith that this country will improve any time soon.

So, we have decided to look seriously at Austrailia. We have extended family and friends there, so makes more sense for us than anywhere else.

My husband is a qualified Industrial Engineer with6 years

[AlBrough]

Welcome to the forum and good luck with your journey.

[Erik]

Hi BriD

We have all taken stock of our lives in SA and come to much of the same conclusions you did. Welcome, you are among friends.

[joweni]

Every time I read an article like this I am so thankful that we made the decision to come to Australia:

Accountant and Pieter Dirk Uys' theatre worker Mrs Susan Armstrong Flight murdered in Darling West Cape home -- Nov 28 2012 - The town of Darling is mourning the death of well-known resident Susan Armstrong Flight who was murdered in her house on Thursday last week. In a small west coast town where residents often leave doors unlocked, the murder of 60-year-old Susan Armstrong Flight, a well-known character, has put the community on edge. Flight’s body was found in the bedroom of her house in Darling on Monday morning by her domestic worker. Police believe bandages were used to strangle her on Thursday afternoon. A number of electronic items, including two laptops, a camera, two cellphones and a DVD player had been stolen. Darling police spokesperson Warrant Officer Johan Horn said the woman who was employed by Flight to clean the house on Mondays, found it strange that the front door of the house was open when she arrived for work. “She saw flies in the house and sprayed them”, before finding Flight’s body in the bedroom. Horn said as the body was badly decomposed the CSI team was called to establish the time and cause of death. There were no signs of forced entry. He said due to the quick-wittedness of a resident, a 29-year-old suspect who had tried to draw money from Flight’s account at an ATM in Darling was arrested on Monday after the card was swallowed. Following the man’s arrest, Flight’s DVD player, camera, one of two stolen cellphones and a laptop had been recovered. The suspect, who lives in Darling, had apparently already sold the camera in Atlantis, approximately 15km away, said Horn. He said the suspect had been released from jail about a month ago after serving time for a previous conviction. Long-time friend Kotie Reid said Flight lived alone and worked from home as an accountant for a game and tourism farm on the west coast. “She used to backup her laptop with the farm’s servers at 3pm every day and the last backup she did was on Thursday,” said Reid. She said Flight always locked her doors at night but, as her gardening tools were still outside, it could be that her murderer approached her while she was working in the garden and forced her inside. Besides working as an accountant from home, Flight worked at the annual Voorkamerfest in Darling and used to work in the office at satirist Pieter-Dirk Uys’s theatre, Evita se Perron in Darling, as well as help out at the annual flower show and at the SPCA. The only family Flight had were her sister and niece who live in Australia. She was due to visit them for Christmas.“She was terribly excited about the trip,” said Reid. – Steve Kretzmann http://westcapenews.com/?p=5361&cpage=1#comment-639380

[WaitingEon]

Welcome

This is one of the biggest decisions, but let me tell you this, when you are there and happy, not scared, not locking all windows in the middle of summer of fear of being robbed, you children getting the best education, with unlimited possibilities in a 1st world country, you will smile and say thank you to the lord that he gave

you strength to go thru the daunting task of immigrating.

[KangaRoux]

Welcome and all the best!

[Lynnie]

Welcome :ilikeit:

It is not an easy decision, but SO worth it!!! We have been here for almost 2 yrs and loving every minute of it. Of course we long for our family (en die BULLE!!!), but we have not regretted our choice for one second. Our kids thrive here and we now experience a full, happy, active life in a free and safe country...

Good luck and let us know how you progress :ilikeit:

[Kappie]

Hi BriD

You mention all the reasons we are also on our way. My cousin is also one of the academic stars in her school. In the top 3. She was also not accepted in Stellenbosch to study Medicine. I want my kids to be able to study whatever they want too and have the aptitude for, not what they have to settle for due quotas. We'd also leave with them then wait for them to leave us here. We also think that when we retire we will be better of in OZ than here. Better, affordable medical care in our old age etc. I would not want to get stuck in the system in this country if I do not have money for a private old age home or something.

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Hi BriD

Welcome to the forum and good luck with the journey. When I read posts like this I feel sad on the one hand that we have been forced to do what we are doing and happy on the other hand that we have an new family join the forum.

Leaving this country (which I have been wanting to do for the last 15 years) is turning out to be the hardest thing I have ever done but I know that we have to, not just for the crime or political instability, but as you say, for our daughter, like our generation, I want here to be able to study whatever she wants to and not be forced to accept second best because of the colour of her skin.

Make no mistake that emigration is not going to be easy and you will go through lots of different and tough emotions but it will all be worth it in the end. Stick to your guns no matter what happens and always remember why you're doing this.

[deroche]

Welcome to the forum.

You are making the best decision for your family!

I am horrified to learn about the education. So you dont only have to worry about the cost but that your child wont get in.

Crime has effected us as well as I thank God my girls were not in the car when my husband was hi-jacked.

However I am so tired of being scared leaving the house because of crime.

We are leaving in Feb next year and cant wait.

Good luck with the process, it it difficult at times but just hold your head up and push forward. It is so worth it.

[BriD]

Thank you all for your kind words of understanding and encouragement.

[AlBrough]

Welcome to the forum

[AllisonW]

Welcome to the forum.

[Sharon]

Welcome and enjoy the ride

[claudiodr]

We have become so desensitised it is scary. This is simply unacceptable....unacceptable to live this

way. It is not ok to say "thank goodness they left you with your life"...it should not even happen in the first place!!!!

Hi Bridgette, great introductory post - really hit home for me. I left SA 6 yrs ago leaving behind my girlfriend at the time (now wife) and spent a year apart from her as I went to the UK to 'set up the nest' for a better life for us. A better life for all the reasons you mentioned, equal opportunities, recognition based on achievements and not race, the security of a society which doesn't resort to extreme violence because there is a festering hatred between cultures which has been swept under the rug rather than addressed and resolved.

Your comment about the nation's desensitisation could not be more spot on - reading what you've been through is awful and unheard of in Europe (that's not meant to be a boast, it's just true)! But to Saffa's it's 'Oh well, what can you do' - Crazy!

In the last 5 years since my wife joined me we've made a pretty comfy life for ourselves but the pull of home and an outdoor lifestyle has been strong and we realised that we're both sunshine babies and UK was never going to be 'home'. But, as sad as it is to say, when we started discussing our options SA was not even a consideration...breaks my heart, I feel like a nomad. Sorry, don't mean to hijack your post.

Listen, All the best for wherever life takes you, sounds like you and your family have been through enough - Time to live it up for while;-)

C

[heidim]

Welcome and good luck! This place is a wealth of knowledge (the forum I mean, not the country!).

[McCabes]

_{Bri - are you the same BriD from PM? Hi!}