Name: Abdul Aziz Sultani

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, good English skills, excellent baking skills, FULLY FUNDED.

Risk: At risk of being tortured and killed by the Taliban if returned home.

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Abdul Aziz was a refugee and he used to work as a fruit seller in Quetta, Pakistan. He was once attacked by an extremist group and luckily, he survived. Then he fled to Indonesia by boat to save his life in 2014.

While living in Indonesia, he completed a baking training course, and he dreams to improve his skills. His hope now is to find a group of Canadian friends who can help him start his life again in Canada.

Childhood

Abdul Aziz was born in January 1995 in Jaghori district in Ghazni province in Afghanistan.

Abdul’s father defended his land from the Taliban. After his village fell under the Taliban’s control, the Taliban started looking for those who were defending and fighting for their land. Some friends of Abdul’s father told him that the Taliban had been asking about his location to arrest and kill him. To save himself and his family, Abdul’s father moved to Quetta, Pakistan. Abdul was about 4 years old during that time.

Situation in Pakistan

In Quetta, Abdul’s family members had refugee cards issued by the government of Pakistan. His father used to work as a fruit seller to support his family. In November 2013, his father passed away due to high blood pressure. Abdul then took his family’s responsibility and started working as a fruit seller to support his family.

The situation in Quetta was dire for Hazaras. They were being targeted by the extremist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. On October 23, 2014, a friend of Abdul was killed by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi while buying fruits in Hazarganji (a large marketplace of vegetables and fruits).

“I used to get terrified whenever I had to go to the marketplace to bring fruits and vegetables.”

Attacked

On October 30, 2014, Abdul and some other Hazara fruit sellers were on their way to Hazarganji when they noticed 2 suspicious men chasing them on a motorcycle. Their faces were covered and they seemed to be armed.

“I was horrified. So were the other Hazara fruit sellers and the car driver.”

The car driver turned back and increased the car speed, and suddenly, those 2 men opened fire on the car. Luckily, no one was shot. When the car reached Frontier Crops’ checkpoint in Hazara Town, the two men stopped following them and turned back.

Leaving Home

Abdul was very shocked and he shared the story with his mother. She got very worried for Abdul because the situation in Pakistan had been very dangerous for Hazaras. The number of target killings and bomb blasts had been increasing day by day.

Abdul’s mother decided to send his son to a safe country. So, she arranged for a people smuggler with the help of her relatives and on November 4, 2014, Abdul went to Kabul, Afghanistan by land. On November 10, he flew to New Delhi, India. From there, he went to Malaysia by plane and then on to Indonesia by boat on November 30, 2014.

Life in the Detention Centre

After arriving in Jakarta, he registered himself with the UNHCR on December 3, 2014.

With no right to work or way to support himself, he went to Balikpapan Immigration Centre to ask for assistance. On December 18, 2014, he was transferred to a detention centre where he started learning English and Bahasa Indonesia. Also, he kept exercising to stay healthy.

“While being in the detention centre, I was hoping to get out of there and live like normal people one day.”

His Life Now

After months of protest for freedom, Abdul was freed from the detention centre in June 2018 and was transferred to a community house in Tanjung Pinang. Since then, he has been living without having access to his basic human rights. As a refugee, he cannot work, study, drive and travel to another city.

His Dreams

While living in the community house, Abdul attended a baking training class and he successfully received its certificate. It is his dream now to improve his baking skills.

“I dream to resettle in a country where I can live with peace, get an education and reunite with my family.”

As a UNHCR refugee, Abdul Aziz is eligible for Canada’s private sponsorship program. He needs a group of five Canadian friends to support him.

To help support Abdul Aziz as a sponsor, please contact Stephen Watt on Facebook.

You can also reach out to Abdul Aziz, directly on Facebook – or by email: abdullaziza467@gmail.com – or WhatsApp: +62-831-9116-5628.

Reach out and discover how wonderful it is to privately sponsor a good family to start a new life – with your help – in Canada!

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