These are challenging times, especially for the homeless, the poor, the sick, and the health workers in the front line of the war against an invisible enemy. Understandably, the Government, the big private companies, and the charities are concerned with the most vulnerable in the first place. However, as the coronavirus crisis impacts everybody's life, some are usually forgotten: the aliens.

             From locked rooms and apartments, foreigners feel abandoned, with tied hands and no one to seek help. If you are an international student like me, you live the double stress of knowing how bad things are in your home country, and not knowing how you will survive for the next weeks. Even being legal aliens, with student visas, paying tuition, and taxes.  

            According to the last annual report from the Tertiary Education Commission, released in December 2018, 5% of all enrolled in higher academic institutions in Mauritius were international students. There were 2380 students from abroad. This number may be higher now, more than two years after the report.  International students come from 73 different countries. The top three are: India, with 33.9% of students, followed by Madagascar, with 11.8%, and Nigeria, with 8.6%.  The majority is in private schools, paying substantial tuition.

           By law, international students are only allowed to work part-time, which means, usually, in the services related businesses, like restaurants, bars, clubs, and hotels.  Since the lockdown, in mid-March, business owners laid-off thousands of workers, including international students.

           The lockdown in Mauritius was extended to May 4th, to contain the spread of the COVID-19.  The Government announced a recovery plan and a stimulus package of 2.5 billion rupees for small and medium businesses. Bills that expire during the lockdown can be settled afterward without fines. The same applies to house loans late payments, that will have no interest fees. However, it seems the Government did not include the landlords of international students in the guidelines to postpone bills. These landlords are menacing students with eviction if they don't pay their rents on time.  The problem is that we don't have the resources, like everybody else in the country!  We cannot even ask our parents' help, since our families are struggling with our own countries' lockdowns.

           I feel we are invisible to the Mauritian Government and institutions. I want to find ways to make ourselves seen and heard. We don't know how long the lockdown will perdure. Before isolation becomes desolation, let's unite and co-create alternatives.