Damayanthi’s Journey Back to Her Family – A Story of Hope and Humanity

In a small village called Sinnikkulam in Kebithigollewa, Damayanthi Rajagguru lived with a heavy heart. As a mother of three, she dreamed of building a better future for her children and completing their half-finished home. Faced with severe financial struggles, she made a difficult decision that she would leave her family and work overseas.

“I left for Kuwait with just one hope. That is to give my children a secure future and finish building our home,” Damayanthi recalls.

With the help of an agency in Anuradhapura, she completed her training at the Foreign Employment Bureau and left for Kuwait. For the first seven months, everything seemed to go well. Damayanthi worked hard and cared for the family she was assigned to. She got along well with them, believing she had found a way forward.

But one unexpected day, her life took a dark turn. Damayanthi was unexpectedly told to pack her things and return to the agency, leaving her confused and frightened. Confused and scared, she asked what she had done wrong.

Without clear explanation, she was dropped off at the agency and from there, Damayanthi’s nightmare began. She was assigned to another household but soon found the working conditions unbearable. Unable to endure the situation, she informed the agency that she could not continue working in that environment and was brought back to the agency. However, when she requested to return home, the agency isolated her and restricted communication. “They didn’t give me another job, and they didn’t tell me when I could go back home,” Damayanthi recalls, as she recalls the painful memories.

Back in Sri Lanka, her husband, Shantha Bandara, desperate for answers about his wife’s whereabouts, reached out to the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society – Anuradhapura Branch. Their case was immediately referred to Restoring Family Links (RFL) Programme at the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society.

Through the RFL programme, a formal request was sent to the Kuwait Red Crescent Society. The Kuwait Red Crescent Society responded swiftly. They located Damayanthi, made arrangements for her safe return, and even secured her air ticket back home.

“I had almost lost hope,” Damayanthi says, her eyes welling up. “I feared I would never see my children again. But the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society and the Kuwait Red Crescent Society gave me a second chance. Thanks to them, I was able to come home.”

After months of darkness and uncertainty, Damayanthi finally returned to the arms of her family, safe and free.

Today, as she holds her children close, Damayanthi knows the true meaning of hope and humanity. She is deeply grateful for the support she received. “These organizations gave me a second chance,” she says.