[Rutabega]

My goodness! What an absolutely horrific story!!! My thoughts and prayers are with you!!! With my ex, he said he never wanted to move back to Sweden when we married, and it was a series of unfortunate incidents (he was a contract engineer, and working on three month visas, we tried to get him his green card after he was married, the INS dropped the ball with one of the apps, but didn't inform us, the company he worked for had a hiring freeze, and all contracts were stopped, we moved to Sweden for six months to get the visas worked out--I was not working at the time because my daughter was a baby!)
That said, I feel for all the young women (and men, because this happens both ways!) who trust someone that they love, and end up in a foreign country with none of the rights were acustomed to! Is it our fault? Well, I know in my case, I was too naive and trusting. Does that make me a criminal? No.
I am really hoping that things are resolved for you, I am feeling slightly luckier about my situation though, God Bless you and your daughter!!!

[LPStar]

Your situation is not ideal, but it sounds like you are working to make the best of it for your sake and your daughter. It sounds like you have food and shelter and are relatively safe, so I hope you can make the best of it. Maybe if you have access to a computer, you can pick up some telecommuting work from the US. Please don't feel bad about using the welfare system - I am sure you'll be right back to work as quickly as you can. I'm sorry to hear of nasty Swedes, but I'm glad you are not stuck in an Arab hellhole country. Maybe consider writing a magazine article on this subject - more women should know what you have had to learn the hard way.