This Afghan refugee arrived in Sask. last year. Now he is on a mission to help other newcomers feel at home
CBC
Hardly two hours before the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul was bombed on Aug. 26 last year, Najibulla Sorosh was there with his family.
A month later, he arrived in Saskatchewan. Now he is helping other Afghan refugees resettle.
Sorosh, 47, said he understands their plight.
"They are always scared. Many tried to hide from the Taliban soldiers trying not to be seen outside. It's the main experience for almost everyone," he said.
Last week, a charter flight of 350 Afghan refugees landed in Saskatoon, with 221 staying in Saskatchewan.
Twenty-eight of them are settling in Prince Albert and receiving help from Sorosh, a settlement counselor at the local YWCA.
"My brother and I were the only Afghan families in P.A. (Prince Albert) … but we never felt we were in a foreign country," he said.
"I'm happy it has increased to six with the recent arrivals."
Back in Afghanistan, Sorosh was the co-founder of two well known high schools, where half of the 5,000 students were girls.
Sorosh said that threatened his safety.
"According to the Taliban's rule, girls are not allowed to be educated, at least those over Grade 7 are not allowed to go to school," he said.
"Women aren't allowed to go outside their house to work. When the Taliban took over, we were terrified and all the girls went into hiding."
According to the federal immigration department, nearly 23,500 of the 40,000 Afghan refugees Canada has committed to resettle by the end of 2023 have already arrived.
Sorosh said the Canadian government should bring his female students, who often call him crying, to safety here.
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