Torquay connection to refugee’s Canada flight

A TORQUAY local helped inspire a refugee on Manus Island make it all the way to Canada, and she says his successful resettlement should be an example to others.

Chelsea Taylor met Amir Taghinia – who fled Iran as a teenager – while she was co-ordinating the immunisation service on Manus in 2014.

About two years ago, a friend of Ms Taylor’s passed on Mr Taghinia’s contact details.

“He was obviously desperate to find other options,” she said. “So I approached my dad, who is a bit of an activist, and said ‘can we help this guy?’.”

Her parents, Wayne and Linda Taylor, who live just outside Vancouver, helped organise a group of their friends to raise about $18,000 and privately sponsor Mr Taghinia.

Despite the approval of the Australian and Canadian governments, it still took many months of paperwork before Mr Taghinia left Manus and flew to Canada, where he arrived earlier this month.

Ms Taylor said it was “agonising” not to be at the airport to greet Mr Taghinia in person, but spoke to him over the phone soon after he arrived.

“It was very emotional for everyone… I’m thrilled that he’s there and that he’s safe.”

She said Mr Taghinia was very concerned about his friends that were still on Manus, given the conditions on the island, and she believed the Australian government should be using private sponsorship for refugees much more widely.

“There’s absolutely the potential for this happening for a lot of other people.

“It sets a precedent – the only outcome is for them not to be in the situation they’re in.

“At some point, we’ve got to step back and say ‘we’ve gone too far’.

Ms Taylor has set up a GoFundMe page to support Mr Taghinia at gofundme.com/help-amir-start-his-new-life.