Name: Esmatullah Haidari

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, excellent English skills, experienced mechanic, tailor, driver and coffee brewing professional.

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

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Esmatullah Haidari, a Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, survived a brutal attack that claimed the lives of his family members. Forced to flee, he sought safety in Indonesia, where he has been living in limbo as a UN-certified refugee. Despite restrictions, Esmatullah has honed his English skills and become a skilled mechanic, tailor, driver, and coffee brewing professional.

He dreams of being resettled in Canada, where he can work, receive an education, and support his vulnerable siblings back in Afghanistan. Esmatullah needs a compassionate group of five Canadian friends who can help bring him to Canada for a fresh start and a chance at a better life.

Early Life

Esmatullah Haidari was born in January 2000, in Jaghori district in Ghazni province in Afghanistan. Due to financial problems, he could not continue studying at school, and he started working at a mechanic workshop. His elder brother used to work as a constructor in different areas with Pashtuns.

Attacked

The Hazara people of the region have long been targets of persecution and massacres because of their culture, religion, and love for education. Esmatullah’s elder brother fell in love with a Pashtun girl and they both decided to get married. Unfortunately, The Pashtun girl’s family members disagreed with their decision due to the difference in their religion and ethnicity. Finding no other way, his elder brother and the Pashtun girl escaped to Esmatullah’s home to get married and live together.

The girl’s family and relatives came to Esmatullah’s home several times and asked the girl to return with them, but she did not agree and stayed with Esmatullah’s elder brother. Later on, her family members asked the Taliban for help, and one night in mid-2014, members of the Taliban attacked Esmatullah’s home. They killed his parents, his elder brother and the Pashtun girl. Fortunately, Esmatullah and his sister had been invited to their relative’s home and they both were at their relative’s home at that time. Esmatullah’s younger brother also survived as he had hidden somewhere at home.

“The attack broke me badly. I was in shock since I had lost my parents and elder brother within one night.”

His Journey to Indonesia

Before the attack, the Pashtuns had threatened to kill the whole family of Esmatullah. Knowing that they would come back to kill him and his siblings, Esmatullah decided to seek a safe place. He left his siblings at his aunt’s home and arranged for a people smuggler with the help of his cousin. After his travel documents were arranged by the people smuggler, he flew from Kabul to New Delhi, India. From there, he went to Malaysia by plane and then on to Indonesia by boat in late September 2014.

Life in Limbo

After arriving in Jakarta, he registered himself with the UNHCR on October 10, 2014. Due to not having the right to work or a way to support himself in the new country, he went to Pekanbaru Immigration Centre to ask for assistance. Since Esmatullah was under the age of 18, he was transferred to a shelter that was for adolescent refugees. On February 16, 2016, he was transferred to another adolescent shelter in Makassar. After about two years, he turned 18 and was transferred to a community house in Makassar. Since then, he has been living there.

His Life Now

As a refugee, Esmatullah cannot get proper education, work, drive and travel to another city. Despite such restrictions, he kept himself busy learning the English language and Bahasa Indonesia. He says:

“Instead of crying like a baby about life, I decided to simultaneously find ways to improve my language skills.”

Also, Esmatullah successfully received a valid certificate of Coffee Brewing Professional from Barista. It has been about four years since he has been working unofficially as senior staff at a café.

It is Possible!

Esmatullah is a multi-talented refugee. He is an experienced mechanic, tailor, driver, and now senior staff at a café. His dream is to be resettled in a safe country where he can work officially, get proper education and support his siblings who are left in Afghanistan in danger.

It is possible! Since he 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 Esmatullah directly on Facebook.

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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