Ershad Hussaini, a Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, faced threats and violence from the Taliban and local powers. To save his life, he escaped to Indonesia by boat in 2014.

While living in limbo, he cannot work or pursue education. Now, he seeks a haven through Canada's private sponsorship program. Ershad, certified by the UNHCR, awaits a chance for a new life. His story reflects resilience and hope amid adversity. He now hopes to find a group of five Canadian friends who can bring him to Canada where he can live with freedom.

Name: Ershad Hussaini

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, good English skills, experienced farmer and sales associate.

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

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Early Life 

Ershad Hussaini was born on October 22, 1997, in the Jaghori district in Ghazni province in Afghanistan.

The Hazara people of the region have long been targets of persecution and massacres because of their culture, religion, and love for education. Ershad’s home was at the corner of his village which was a border place of a Pashtun populated village where most of the people were members of the Taliban. for several times, the Taliban used to stop at Ershad’s home and force his family to cook food and make tea for them. They used to eat and drink and be on their way. The members of the Taliban also threatened Ershad’s family not to inform the local police.

Ershad’s father had a grocery store. Besides running the store, his father used to work as a farmer too to support the family. Ershad was busy preparing for his Kankor Exam (a high-stakes university entrance exam). Unfortunately, in 2014, Ershad’s father died due to a car accident on the way from Jaghori to Ghazni. After his father, Ershad was responsible for feeding his family, so he started running his grocery store and farming his land.

Beaten for the Land

There was an elder of the village named Nawroz whose two sons had high ranks in the Afghan National Army, and he had power in that area. He wanted to buy Ershad’s farming land. A long time ago, Ershad’s father had bought that same land from Nawroz.

Since a large part of his family’s expenses was coming from the land, Ershad’s family did not want to sell their farming land. Eventually, Nawroz started threatening Ershad and his family to sell the land or he would take over it by force.

In early September 2014, Nawroz and his men entered Ershad’s home and beat his mother. At that time, Ershad was in Kabul, preparing for his Kankor exam. When he returned home, his mother told him that she was beaten, and Nawroz had taken all the documents of the land.

The Incident 

Later on, Ershad was outside when he saw Nawroz’s younger son bringing all his livestock to the farming land of Ershad. When Ershad went to his land and asked Nawroz’s son to take his livestock out of the farming land, Nawroz’s son started attacking Ershad physically. While trying to hit Ershad, Nawroz’s son fell and his two teeth broke.

Listening to his son’s crying, Nawroz and his men rushed towards Ershad.

“Despite doing nothing, I was about to be punished by Nawroz. Seeing Nawroz with a gun, I ran towards my home.”

Nawroz shot at Ershad, and luckily, Ershad was not hit. He ran to his home and then to a nearby mountain from where he could see his home.

Later on, Nawroz came to his home along with some local policemen. Unfortunately, at that time, some members of the Taliban had come to Ershad’s home to force his mother to cook for them. There was a big clash between the Taliban and police as a result of which a member of the Taliban was killed and another one was injured. Also, two policemen were injured.

Accusation

Taking advantage of that incident, Nawroz said that Ershad was in touch with the Taliban and he had sheltered the Taliban at his house. He was trying to make Ershad’s arrest inevitable. On the other hand, the members of the Taliban believed that Ershad had informed the police about the Taliban, and they were also after Ershad.

Knowing that the Taliban and Nawroz had been looking for him, Ershad escaped to another village Baba where he stayed hidden at his friend’s house whose name was Shukrullah. His mother sent a message through his younger brother that he had to leave the country immediately, or he would be captured and killed by the Taliban.

“It was the most challenging decision of my life to leave my hometown, but I had to do it to save my life.”

The Way to Indonesia

With the help of his friend, Ershad hid inside a cargo car and went to Kabul where he stayed hidden at a hotel. His friend then arranged for a people smuggler.

In late September 2014, Ershad flew from Kabul to New Delhi, India. From there, he went to Malaysia and then on to Pekanbaru, Indonesia by boat in October 2014.

Life in Limbo

In November 2014, he registered himself with the UNHCR in Pekanbaru. Due to not having the right to work or a way to support himself, Ershad went to Pekanbaru Immigration Centre to ask for assistance.

On November 23, 2015, he was transferred to a detention centre that was overcrowded and badly ventilated. Refugees faced many challenges there like, lack of food, water and proper medical care. While being detained, Ershad kept himself busy learning the English language.

On November 18, 2017, he was finally freed and transferred to a community house in Pekanbaru, Indonesia. Since then, he has been living there.

Hope is Possible!

Ershad has been living in a state of limbo for a decade. As a refugee, he cannot work, get a proper education, drive and even open a bank account. This is the time for him to resettle in a safe country where he can have access to his basic human rights.

It is possible! Since Ershad is officially certified as a refugee by the UNHCR – unlike the vast majority of the world’s refugees – he qualifies for Canada’s private sponsorship program.

If you would like to sponsor him – or if you’re just interested in helping to bring him here – please contact his friend Stephen Watt on Facebook. 

You can reach out to Ershad Hussaini directly on Facebook – or through WhatsApp: +62 895-0957-1316.

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

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