Escape From Manus is an autobiographical memoir by Rohingya refugee

Jaivet Ealom Jaivet Ealom is a Toronto-based author, former refugee, refugee advocate, and the only person known to have escaped from Manus Island Detention Centre in Papua New Guinea. Early life Ealom was born in Myanmar where he faced persecution, as a Roh ...

documenting his escape from the genocide in Myanmar, his journey to Indonesia, his arrest upon arrival in Australia, and detention in Australian offshore detention centres in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. While in detention Ealom suffers prison-like conditions, is the victim of a violent attack, attempts suicide, and goes on hunger strike. After three and a half years of detention is becomes the only person to escape Manus Island. After his escape he travels to the Solomon Islands and finally Canada.. The book has received positive reception in Australian and Papua New Guinean press.

Plot summary

Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre (5424306236)

Ealom is a

Rohingya The Rohingya people () are a stateless Indo-Aryan ethnic group who predominantly follow Islam and reside in Rakhine State, Myanmar (previously known as Burma). Before the Rohingya genocide in 2017, when over 740,000 fled to Bangladesh, an ...

refugee whose story starts with his 2013 escape from the

genocide Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people—usually defined as an ethnic, national, racial, or religious group—in whole or in part. Raphael Lemkin coined the term in 1944, combining the Greek word (, "race, people") with the Latin ...

in Myanmar. He travels by boat to

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

, Indonesia but nearly drowns during the journey and is rescued by a fisherman. From Indonesia, he starts a journey to Australia, planning to seek asylum upon arrival. During his boat journey, Australian Prime Minister

Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...

makes the policy change that Australia would not accept refugees arriving by boat. Upon arrival in Australia he is arrested by Australian authorities and put in detention, initially in

Christmas Island detention centre Christmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre (Christmas Island IRPC) or commonly just Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre, is an Australian immigration detention facility located on Christmas Island in the Indian Oce ...

. Ealom is assigned a number and which is put on a permanent wristband. After six months, at the age of 21, he is moved to

Manus Island detention centre The Manus Regional Processing Centre, or Manus Island Regional Processing Centre (MIRCP), was one of a number of offshore Australian immigration detention facilities. The centre was located on the PNG Navy Base Lombrum (previously a Royal Aus ...

. The conditions in the detention center were prison-like, toilets are overflowing with raw sewage, the food is rotten, Ealom is housed in an unbearably hot shipping container. Ealom is subjected to psychological torture. In May 2017, after three and a half years of detention, a suicide attempt, a hunger strike, and serious injuries from an attack, Ealom orchestrates his escape. Posing as an interpreter he escapes the detention center with some aid from detention center staff. One outside, he purchases and boards a flight to

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

. In Papua New Guinea he learns

Tok Pisin Tok Pisin (,Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh ; Tok Pisin ), often referred to by English speakers as "New Guinea Pidgin" or simply Pidgin, is a creole language spoken throughout Papua New Guinea. It is an ...

, pretends to be a Solomon Islander and obtains a

Solomon Island Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

passport. He flied to Solomon Islands and then, benefiting from the travel rules between

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

countries, buys a flight to Toronto, Canada. The book contains criticism of

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...

, the Australian government's refugee policies and addresses common myths about refugees and migrants.

Reception

In March 2020, Escape From Manus was described as "incredible" in The National. It was described as a "compelling refugee’s tale" and "an amazing escape story" in the

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

in 2021. Chris Breen, writing in Australian magazine Solidarity, notes the books clear critique of Australia's refugee policy and predicts that it will be made into a film.

References

{{reflist

External link

Penguin Book's page about Escape from Manus.
Books about human rights Rohingya diaspora Rohingya conflict Literary autobiographies 2021 non-fiction books Refugees Political autobiographies Current affairs books Rohingya people Australian literature

Plot summary

Reception

See also

References

External link