Name: Mohammad Aqa Salmani

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, good English skills, experienced driver, tailor,

FULLY FUNDED.

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

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Needed: A group of five friends to sponsor him

Mohammad Aqa and his father were captured and tortured by the Taliban due to volunteering in the Afghan Presidential Election 2014. Knowing that they both would be killed, his father sacrificed his life and made Mohammad Aqa flee to Indonesia by boat in 2014.

In Indonesia, he spent more than 3 years inside a detention centre. He has found a generous donor to provide the funds needed for his first year in Canada. He just needs a group of friends who can bring him to Canada where he can get proper education, work and support his family.

His Story

Mohammad Aqa was born in 1997 in a village of 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. The Afghan Presidential Election was held in 2014, and Mohammad Aqa and his father volunteered in distributing posters in the election campaign for Dr. Abdullah Abdullah who was one of the candidates.

Captured and Tortured

On May 6, 2014, Mohammad Aqa and his father were stopped by the Taliban in a place called Tangi votla while coming from Ghazni to Jaghori. After searching the car and finding some election posters, the Taliban blindfolded both of them, took them to an unknown place and locked them in a room.

“The Taliban tortured me and my father. Due to being tortured continuously, my father was not able to walk and I remember he told me to escape from there.”

The Escape

Mohammad Aqa escaped through a small window and kept running till he reached a highway. From there, he went to Kandahar by bus. In Kandahar, he contacted his mother and told her what had happened.

“My mother was so scared for me, and she wanted me to save my life in any way.”

After his mother contacted his uncle who had been living in Quetta, Pakistan, his uncle sent him some money and told him to come to Quetta.

In Quetta, Mohammad Aqa heard the tragic news that his father had been killed by the Taliban and they had been searching for him as well. Quetta was also not an option for Mohammad Aqa to live, because he did not have any legal documents to stay there and he was at risk of being deported to Afghanistan at any time.

The Way to Indonesia

His uncle decided to send him to a safe country, so he arranged for a people smuggler and sent Mohammad Aqa to Kabul, Afghanistan. On November 10, 2014, he flew from Kabul to New Delhi, India where he stayed for about a week. On November 19, he went to Malaysia by plane and then on to Pekanbaru, Indonesia by boat on November 21, 2014.

“We entered a small wooden boat which was terrifying. I had never been in a boat before, and every minute was followed with terror that we might get caught by the navy police border.”

Life in Indonesia

Mohammad Aqa arrived in Jakarta on November 28, 2014, and he registered himself at the UNHCR office on December 3, 2014.

With no right to work or way to support himself, he went to Pontianak Immigration Centre to ask for assistance.

In February 2015, he was transferred to a detention centre in Pontianak.

The detention centre was overcrowded and badly ventilated, and he and other refugees faced many challenges like, lack of food, water and proper medical.

“We were locked up inside our room and not allowed to see the sunshine.”

While facing such difficulties, he and some other refugees spent their time learning the English language.

He received his freedom from the detention centre on March 8, 2018 and was moved to a community house in the city of Tanjung Pinang.

It is Possible!

It is possible for Mohammad Aqa to start his new life in Canada.

As a UNHCR refugee, Mohammad Aqa is eligible for Canada’s private sponsorship program. He needs a group of five Canadian friends to support him. His has all the funds ready for the application - he only needs 5 sponsors.

To help support Mohammad Aqa as a sponsor, please contact Stephen Watt on Facebook.

You can also reach out to Mohammad Aqa 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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