Name: Mohammad Sharif Hassani

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, excellent English skills, volunteer English teacher, experienced carpet weaver, and can speak Urdu and Bahasa Indonesia.

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

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Mohammad Sharif Hassani, a Hazara refugee, faced a difficult life in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Due to threats from the Taliban over a land dispute, his family had to escape to Quetta, Pakistan. Tragedy struck when his father disappeared while trying to return to Afghanistan. As the oldest son, Sharif had to support his family by weaving carpets. To escape violence, he sought safety in Indonesia where he was detained for about 2 and a half years. While living in the state of limbo, he has been teaching English to his refugee fellows voluntarily.

As a certified refugee, he dreams of a better life in Canada. His hope now is to find a group of five Canadian friends who can bring him to Canada where he can work, pursue his dreams and live with freedom.

Surviving Persecution

Sharif Hassani was born in January 1995, 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. Sharif’s father had farming land in his village. A Taliban member named Abbasi Patho wanted to take over Sharif’s family land. One day in an argument about that land, Abbasi Patho beat and tortured Sharif’s father until he fainted. His father was so badly beaten that he could not walk for a week. Later on, his father went to the Taliban to complain about their member Abbasi, but his complaint was ignored and he returned home.

Consequently, Abbasi learned about the complaint of Sharif’s father and then decided to attack Sharif’s home and kill his father along with the whole family. Luckily, Sharif’s father got informed by villagers about Abbasi’s plan, and his father fled along with his family to Quetta Pakistan to save their lives in 1997.

Family Struggles

To support his family, Sharif’s father used to work as a coal miner in Quetta. In 2008, he got injured in an accident while working there, and later on, he decided to return to Afghanistan.

“My father talked to us on the phone when he reached Spin Buldak (the border town of Afghanistan), and since then, we have not heard from him.”

Since Sharif’s family was living without legal documents in Pakistan, his brother went to Indonesia to reach Australia in 2010. Sadly, he also disappeared after telling the family that he would travel to Australia by boat after two days.

Blast’s Impact

Sharif used to work as a carpet weaver to support his family and he used to learn English from an English language centre. Since the number of attacks on the Hazara people was being increased in Pakistan, Sharif was not safe there. On February 16, 2013, a massive bomb blast took place near that language centre. The blast took the lives of at least 100 Hazara innocents including several classmates of Sharif, and injured more than 200.

“Though I survived, the emotional scars and the trauma of that day continue to haunt me.”

The Journey

Since Sharif was not safe in Pakistan nor it was safe for him to return to Afghanistan, he decided to seek a safe country. With the help of his friend’s father, he arranged for a people smuggler. On August 20, 2014, he was brought to Kabul by a people smuggler where he was kept for 10 days. On September 1, 2014, he flew to New Delhi, India. From there, he went to Malaysia by plane and then on to Pekanbaru, Indonesia by boat on September 28, 2014.

Life in Indonesia

After arriving in Jakarta, he registered himself with the UNHCR on September 29, 2014. With no right to work or way to support himself in Indonesia, he went to Manado Immigration Centre to ask for assistance. On August 9, 2015, he was transferred to a detention centre which was overcrowded and badly ventilated. Refugees there faced many challenges like, lack of food, water and proper medical. While living in the detention centre, he voluntarily taught English language skills to his refugee fellows. After about 2 and a half years of living inside the detention centre, Sharif was freed and transferred to a community house in Tanjung Pinang on February 2, 2018. Since then, he has been living there.

His Dreams:

Sharif dreams to rebuild his life in a country where he can live with freedom, pursue his dreams, contribute to society and reunite with his loved ones.

It is possible! Since Sharif 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 Sharif directly on Facebook – or through WhatsApp: +62 831-6126-9883.

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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