Help an Afghan Journalist and Her Family

Our Rideau Bridge to Canada Facebook page 

The family is arriving July 13th, finally! The photo shown was taken by Khatera's sister.
We need to raise $10,000 beyond our original target because the cost of renting (and food) is so much higher. Your help is vital. Khatera's story is shown below.


My name is Khatera. I am from Afghanistan, currently and temporarily in Greece, and awaiting notification of transport to Canada for me and my family. Approval from the Canadian government to enter Canada as a refugee under a private sponsorship program has been confirmed and all documents/interviews completed. Arrangements are in place by a sponsorship group in the small Canadian community of Merrickville to welcome me, my mother, my sister, and my two children (14 and 11) into their community. They have already successfully sponsored two refugee families from Syria. I am overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers.

 

Until recently, I worked as a human rights specialist and journalist in Afghanistan. The radio station that originally employed me was created thanks to a Canadian development program. My job was to broadcast news and information that would help empower women, a very challenging role in the context of my homeland. After the Canadian program ended in 2008, I joined the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) where I rose to become a manager. Because of my work in human rights and my link to Canada and the international community, I became immediately under threat with the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan. We fled in a terrifying process, first to Kabul, and finally in late October onto a chartered airplane to Greece. I want to express thanks to a British lawyer, Baroness Kennedy, who worked tirelessly to help a group of women judges leave Afghanistan bringing me and my family along with them.

Rideau Bridge to Canada (www.merrickville-bridge.ca), the sponsorship group in Canada, needs to raise a further $10,000. These funds will support me and my family during our first year in Canada. We are making progress, but we need help. The village is small, and collectively they are moving mountains to help families like mine that have been forced to leave home and resettle safely and gratefully in a new country.

 

I am already hard at work developing new contacts and new opportunities for my family’s future. Although the current crisis may be the most challenging of my life, I am no stranger to difficult struggles. But in this moment, we need help. I am so grateful to those who can offer assistance.