Rusti: Separation and Union in the Time of Covid-19

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It was back in May 2020, one year after the COVID-19 pandemic hit Singapore. In the midst of a countrywide lockdown, this family gathered at their lunch table and celebrated Hari Raya, which is the end of Ramadan. They were not Muslims, but they knew how much it meant to Rusti, their domestic worker. For Rusti, it was the most important festival of the year, when families reunite.  

For Rusti, Covid has made everything different, including one of the festivals that means the most to her – Hari Raya.

“We cannot imagine because it is very different (from how Hari Raya is celebrated previously). (In the past) when I go back for holiday, I celebrate the festival Hari Raya with my family. We can enjoy breakfast, dinner, lunch or anything. I can visit any place, any city. I can go to see my parents and do prayers and everything for them. Hari Raya is a moment special for me.”

(Interviewer)“So have you been able to go back this year?”

“Not yet. Not yet. Three years already.”

Rusti is one of the many migrant domestic workers in Singapore who have not been able to return to their home countries. One major barrier workers faced was the government’s “entry approval” that they had to obtain when they came back from a country affected by Covid-19. In practice, this meant that there was no guarantee when workers could return to Singapore again. It’s a risk workers could not venture to take, because many of them are the major, if not the only income earner in their families. 

So Rusti had to stay. Even though she very often missed her family. 

Very, very often. Sometimes when I finish my work here, sometimes I just imagine that Covid never came or Covid disappeared. I always imagine. I had so many plans to do this and that——everything I wanted to do in these 3 years. (For three years)I never went back and never did anything for my family.”

The pandemic has brought separation and losses, but in many cases, it has also deepened our connection with people around us. Not only did Rusti celebrate Hari Raya in 2020 with her employer’s family, but that she was also able to join her migrant domestic worker friends for last year’s Hari Raya. They shared Indonesian food as well as their longing for home. 

At the time of Hari Raya, they(my friends) missed their families. After they had video calls with their families, we had the meal together. (One thing) so funny for me and my friends was we eat and then we cried. We eat and then we cried because with our mouths open, our gum chewing, our minds were blown to our families. Our minds were blown to our country. That’s why we eat and then we cried.”

For you the listener, we may not belong to the same country or culture, but we have a shared longing for home. It’s a resonance that, even just for a moment, pieces the world back together when it has been divided and fractured by the pandemic. If you like this episode of HER Journey, you can subscribe to us on Spotify, Google podcast or wherever you get your podcast.