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A new book, Never Arrive, tells the story of Farah Abdullahi Abdi, a young Somali man, who is forced to flee his home in Kenya because of persecution and stigma associated with his sexual orientation. The publication was launched at the President’s Palace in Valletta under the patronage of President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca.

The author is a young Somali refugee who came to Malta without his family at the age of 16. The book is based on his journey, not only physical but also mental and emotional, a story about one man’s dreams and aspirations and his challenges as he crosses borders and endures unspeakable hardships in search of the future he believes he deserves. It is a story of self-acceptance and the will to risk it all for freedom. The often dangerous, brutal and terrifying events that most asylum seekers experience are vividly portrayed in Never Arrive.

The book, available from outlets around Malta and Gozo, costs €10. It forms part of the first phase of Bodyless, a project financed by the Malta Arts Fund, UNHCR and the International Organisation for Migration. The project is supported by the Terre des Hommes International Federation and the Destination Unknown Campaign.

Bodyless is coordinated by the Maltese human rights NGO Kopin. The second phase of the project tackles migration issues through contemporary poetry in Maltese. For this phase, Kopin is collaborating with poet Glen Calleja.

A visual arts exhibition will close the Bodyless project.