A short film created for ASHA (Asylum Support Housing Advice) from footage of a training workshop on Asylum Destitution on 22nd February 2013, a Virtual Migrants production by artist / film maker Kooj (Kuljit) Chuhan / Metaceptive Media.
Destitution effectively means poverty and mental suffering at a chronic level, and this workshop involved a range of strong and emotive presentations and dialogues on the experience of destitution among people seeking asylum, the legal and wider political framework for this, and what kinds of support and action can be possible.
The film also features interviews with Virginia Ncube (an ex-client of ASHA), Tony Openshaw (director of ASHA) and Gerry Hickey (from ASAP – Asylum Support Appeals Project), along with musical footage of and soundtrack by the WAST (Women Asylum Seekers Together) Choir, who enthusiastically supported the event.
ASHA helps asylum seekers whose applications have been refused and fully determined, and whose status renders them homeless and destitute.