When you ask Fior Muyinda why he left his home in Zaire and came to America, he answers quickly in his native French: "Liberty, justice and human rights."
Muyinda, who has been jailed several times and had several attempts made on his life, has been granted political asylum, along with his wife, Olga, and their three children: Huguette, 13, Yuna, 4, and Beni, 5 months. The family, sponsored by St. Michael's Catholic Church of Bedford, lives in Euless. Both are northeast suburbs of Fort Worth.When he escaped from jail in February and fled Zaire, another daughter, Gisele, 15, was left behind with relatives. They miss her greatly but don't have the money to send for her.
The church's six-month sponsorship will end Dec. 31, and the Muyindas will have no money for rent, clothing and food.
They're not looking for handouts, however; they're looking for work. Fior, who was a journalist in Zaire, earned a doctorate in economics while living in exile in Geneva, Switzerland. Olga, who speaks fluent English, has a master's degree in literature.
The Muyindas have much to be thankful for, considering all the hardship they've gone through since 1975, when Fior was first forced to flee the wrath of Zaire's dictator/president, Mobutu Sese Seko. He had vigorously opposed Mobutu, one of the world's richest men, who has turned his country into a nation of paupers.
Fior, the first prime minister of Zaire's government-in-exile in Switzerland, wants to go home eventually, but he knows he can't as long as Mobutu is in power.
The reason the family didn't remain in Switzerland after Fior's latest escape is that he had been poisoned there earlier. He was rushed to the hospital just in time to have his stomach pumped to save his life.