Name: Zakir Jaffari

Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia.

Advantages: UN-certified, Excellent English skills, a volunteer teacher, a photographer,

FULLY FUNDED

Risk: At risk of being killed if returned home.

Canadian contact: Stephen Watt

Zakir’s family fled to Pakistan after his father was killed by the Taliban. In Pakistan, he survived two terrorist attacks and he got badly injured in a bomb blast. His mother decided to send him to a safe country, and at his age of 16, he arrived in Indonesia by boat in 2014.

He developed his English skills in a detention centre, then he started teaching refugees. His dream has been to be a photographer, and he got a camera with the help of his friends.

Now, he volunteers at weddings as a photographer, and he shows his creativity to the world with his photos.

He needs to find five Canadian friends who can help him start his life again.

His Childhood

Zakir Jaffari was born in 1998, in a small village in Qarabagh district of Ghazni province in Afghanistan.

The Hazara people of the region have long been targets of persecution and massacres due to their culture, religion, and love for education.

Zakir was a child when his father was killed by the Taliban, and then, his family fled to Quetta, Pakistan.

In Pakistan, they had no supporter, so Zakir continued his study as well as he worked as a tailor to support his family.

During those years, he got interested in photography, and he used his friend’s camera most of the time to learn.

“Due to poverty, I couldn’t continue and pursue my dream.”

Survived the attacks

Unfortunately, the attacks on Hazara people began in Quetta, due to their religious and political beliefs.

On the morning of May 6, 2011 Zakir and his friend (Jawad) went near the graveyard in Hazara Town to play football. people play football and jog in the morning there.

Suddenly, some armed men started firing, and everyone was trying to cover themselves beside graves. Zakir also reached beside a grave, but his friend fell on the ground.

“He wanted to come towards me, but a bullet went through his head in front of my eyes. I couldn’t do anything and, I remained shocked for a week.”

On February 16, 2013 there was a tragic blast in a fruit market in Hazara Town, which caused more than 100 killed and approximately 200 injured. In that blast, Zakir also got badly injured, and he luckily survived. His mother insisted to send him to a safe country because he was her only hope. She arranged for a people smuggler with the help of Zakir’s uncle.

The Way to Indonesia

In February 2014, he flew to Thailand and stayed there for two weeks.

“I was only 16 years old and in Thailand, I met many strangers and I was scared of the journey, but I had to face it in hope of finding a safe place.”

From there, he flew to Malaysia, then he arrived in Indonesia by boat.

His Life in Limbo

On March 26, 2014 he registered himself at the UNHCR office in Jakarta, and after a few months, he moved to Pontianak Detention Centre where he met other refugees who faced the same difficulties but with different stories.

He developed his English language skill in the detention centre then started teaching other refugees.

After remaining in the detention centre for one and a half years, at the beginning of 2016, he received his freedom and was transferred to a community house in Makassar.

His Life Now

Zakir has been living there with other refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Burma.

Zakir has been deprived of his basic rights and proper education but he is not a man of losing hope. He got some donations from his friends and bought a second-hand camera to utilize and develop his skills for something he loved and enjoyed.

“During my free time, I go out with my friends to distract myself from negative thoughts and capture photos. Also, I volunteer at weddings as a photographer.”

His Hopes and Dreams

Zakir’s camera keeps him away from negative thoughts and he uses his camera to take photos and make videos and share them with other people around the world.

“One day I hope I can do something significant for the world through my photography and I hope to support my sisters with their education.”

Zakir dreams to live like a free bird, get proper education, as he believes education is the key to a successful life.

An Opportunity

Zakir’s only option to be able to get a proper education, find work and move forward with his life is to find a group of citizens to bring him to Canada. As a UNHCR refugee, Zakir is eligible for Canada’s private sponsorship program.

“I strongly believe that there’s light at the end of every tunnel.”

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

You can also reach out to Zakir directly by Email.

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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