I was born on Sunday 21st August 1977 at the Victoria hospital in Seychelles. I grew up in a poor neighbourhood at Val Den Dor, in the South of Mahe, the main Island of the Seychelles. I come from a family of 8 children, 3 brothers and 5 Sisters. My mum is a Chagoscien and my Father a Seychellois.
I grew up in a very poor family, my father was an alcohol abuser and almost everyday he use to beat up my mum when he was drunk. In general at home there were so many social problems, but my mum tried everything she could to provide for us and make sure we go to school and have a good education.
At the age of 7 my parent was separated and I end up being an orphan in the St Elizabeth orphanage, later I was transfer to the boys Orphanage, Foyez De Nazareth at Anse Etoile in the North of Mahe. I started my primary school at Anse Etoile and continue at Anse Royale School after I came out of the orphanage when my father got custody of me. Even after she got custody and found himself a stepmother for me, my father didn’t quit drinking. He was so bad that even my stepmother has to leave him. Being on his own and could not take care of us, he send me to live with my grandma, his mother. My grandma did everything she could to raise me up. She was a very nice woman and I was happy at her place except that I miss my mum.
At the age of 16, i decided to go and live with my Mother because I could no longer live with the rules of my father who treated us like slaves. I was welcome at my mum’s house with open arms. I continue my secondary school and went to Post Secondary School the National Youth Service (NYS). I was an average student academically and was obtaining good result in all subjects at School. On other occasion i was also rewarded for my good performance and conduct in class.
But it seems to me that happiness was not on my side. My stepfather didn’t get along well with me at all. He hated to idea of having an extra mouth to feed at home and was always complaining my presence at my mum’s place. In the end my mum will interfere and they will end up fighting and this makes me sad. So after I complete the NYS, I had to quit school. I was qualified to pursue my studies at the Seychelles Polytechnic in the school of Hotel and Tourism but unfortunately with all the social problems at home I had to focus on getting a job and find myself a place of my own.
Even if i was a good student academically since I had no certificate except for the certificate of attendance at the National Youth Service, I had to get myself use to the idea of getting any job. Anything will do as long as I get a good salary to find myself my own house. So in 1995 I started to work as a General Helper at the Port And Marine Services. As a General Helper I manage to work in various field such as Telephone Operator, Ordinary Seaman and sometimes I help out doing dispatch of letters. With my good conduct and devotion at work 6 years later I was promoted as a Store Clerk, from there I manage to get access with computer and became computer literate.
At home things continue to get worse, now that I was working I was ask to pay rent of the room in which I was sleeping and also to buy myself my own food and do my own cooking. Since I was working I took this as a challenge and do as I was told. Later I was also asked to pay for the electricity I use at home. Again I did as I was told without complaining but still my stepfather was no content. My life was so misery that finally I started to seek for my own apartment.
It took me a long time to succeed and during that time things at home continue to get worse so and In the end I was kicked out of my Stepfather’s house without any valuable reason at 9pm. With tears in my eyes I kiss goodbye to my mum, pick up all my clothes and went to live with my elder sister. Even there I was not happy, like my stepfather my sister’s husband was not happy with me living with them and again I had to seek shelter elsewhere, this time I went to live with another one of my sister at Mare Anglaise, there I was more at peace since my stepbrother got along well with me. But this time I didn’t wait for the worse. I continue to put more pressure on the Seychelles Housing Development Company and finally in 1999 I finally got my own apartment.
I was the most happy men in the world, now my focus was on my own life. I started to take my responsibility as a man living on his own and concentrate on the happiness that I’ve been seeking for so long. Having a place of my own, soon was a bit too much for me to handle, so I found myself a girlfriend but 3 Months after our date she decided to end this relationship because according to her she was not in love with me. Again I was on my own. So I decided not to engage myself into any new relationship, to the contrary I decided to take time to find myself the perfect wife. Unfortunately when everything seems to be going really well, an incident happen that change my life completely. 6 months after the incident I find out that I was HIV positive.
To read about my life as a HIV positive person click on
My testimony.
