AN ATHLETE AND A SCHOLAR,
FIGHTING FOR BETTER
KHAN'S STORY

Name: Khan Musaiee
Profile: Hazara refugee from Afghanistan, living in Indonesia
Risks: At risk of being caught and killed by the Taliban if he returns to Afghanistan
Advantages: FULL FUNDING, FULL refugee status
Needed: A team of five people to sponsor him to come to Canada.
Canadian friend: Stephen Watt

Hazaras in Afghanistan have long suffered persecution, systematic discrimination and deprivations of all kinds because of their ethnicity, religious and political beliefs. Hazaras are Shia Muslim and the third largest ethnic minority in Afghanistan. They are the target of a vicious genocide.

Khan Musaiee was raised in a middle class Hazara family of five children in the province of Uruzgan, in southern Afghanistan.

Losing a father

Due to the high unemployment rate and the family’s weak financial situation, the father started work on a project for the U.S. military, helping to build a checkpoint at Dashte Leewanai. After finishing the project, he was identified by the Taliban.

In the eyes of the Taliban, Americans and foreigners are considered infidels and invaders of their soils and anyone who helps them is also seen as an infidel and mercilessly executed. A month after finishing the project, Khan's father was killed by the Taliban.

His killing badly shocked and saddened the entire family. His five children were left fatherless and his wife a widow. The family started to think of escaping the province before the Taliban caused more harm to the rest of our family.

“The day we received his coffin we cried over his bullet-riddled body for hours.”

The district where the family lived was entirely surrounded by the Taliban and one day armed Taliban members came to the house looking for the eldest son, Farzand, who worked with the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) in the province. After failing to find him, they beat and tortured the mother in order to get information of his whereabouts and broke up the home and their belongings.

As the Taliban members were leaving the house they told the mother that if they found Farzand, he would be killed like his father because of working with the “infidels” who had come to Afghanistan to impose their religious faith and way of living upon the great Afghan-Muslims.

After that the family felt completely unsafe and found someone to help them move to Pakistan.

Life (and death) in Pakistan

They lived for a couple of years in Quetta, Pakistan. During that time, Khan worked in the shop of a Hazara man sewing rugs and at the same time started learning martial arts.

Two things prompted Khan to leave. His mother died tragically in an accident, leaving the remaining children with no parents.

Then the security situation deteriorated in Quetta, Khan fled and sought protection from the UNHCR in Indonesia.

Surviving detention

After registering with the UNHCR, Khan was moved to various detention centers, forced to stay in overcrowded rooms and often being locked up and treated like a criminal.

“There was no proper place for sleeping; we had not enough water and food to consume. We barely survived. ”

In order to try to keep his body and mind healthy while in detention, Khan regularly exercised and practiced martial arts. As well, he began providing his fellow refugee brothers with lessons in basic English.

Finally, after over 2 years, Khan received his UNHCR refugee status and was moved to community housing in March 2018, where he is currently living.

Hope for the future

Khan's greatest dream is to get settled in Canada where he can be safe and pursue his education that has been stalled since leaving Afghanistan.

His dedication to martial arts has taught him discipline and taking on the role of teacher to his fellow refugees has shown him the rewards of helping others. He would be a wonderful addition to a community in Canada.

The opportunity

Khan has shared his story in the hope of finding sponsors in Canada. He has friends who have the necessary funds to sponsor him. This is a game changer - no fundraising is needed! All that we need to bring him to Canada is five caring people to be on his settlement team, to welcome him to his new life in Canada.

If you would like to sponsor Khan - or if you’re just interested in helping to bring here - please contact his friend Stephen Watt.

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

“I hope five kind – hearted Canadians will band together to help rescue a young Hazara refugee who has been displaced from his home by war and violence since he was born into this world.”