After fleeing Taliban, Afghan refugee in Edmonton shares message of hope

A woman who fled the Taliban is on a mission to help other refugees.

Razia Saramad and her family found refuge in Edmonton after fleeing the war in Afghanistan. She is sharing her ordeal to raise hope among other refugees.

“I didn’t want to lose my country, I wanted to be part of the change, but when Taliban took power, there was no option for us except leaving the country or leaving our life,” said Saramad.

She fled to Pakistan after the Taliban took over Kabul in late August last year. She stayed there for a few months before arriving in Edmonton with her parents and younger sister in January.

“We are feeling at home because we passed so many difficulties. Here we feel safe, and this is the most important thing. We feel our life and our dignity is important here”

Although she’s grateful for her new life in Edmonton, Saramad often recalls the harrowing escape from the Taliban.

“When you go out, you have the scare and fear inside of you,” she recounted. “Whenever I hear the ambulance sound, I become shocked.”

Afghan refugee Razia Saramad (right) with her mother at her Edmonton home on June 19, 2022. (Credit: CityNews/Hiba Kamal-Choufi)

Saramad and her mom couldn’t hold back tears as they recalled life in Kabul.

“She’s glad we are here, but there’s so many people back home,” said Saramad of her mother. “All her brothers, the home, the land, the memories, the past. Everything is there.”

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According to Catholic Social Services (CCS), about 650 Afghan refugees have been resettled in Edmonton since August 2021.

The Saramad family arrived in Canada along with 170 Afghan refugees with the help of Afghan Human Rights and Democracy Organization (AHRDO).

“Every family is different, they come with their own experiences,” said Kathyrn Friesen, the immigration and settlement service director at CCS. “That whole experience is quite an ordeal for people to go through and to be in that constant state of fear and uncertainty for many months has a big impact on people.”

As the world commemorates World Refugee Day on Monday, Saramad wants to help other refugees while raising awareness of the global refugee crisis.

“It’s wonderful for someone like Razia to lend her voice to refugee communities to let them know that there’s opportunity here, there’s hope here,” said Friesen.

Saramad’s dream job is to work as a social worker to help other refugees. While she completed a Master’s degree in social work and social development, she’s planning to go back to school in September.

“If one person understands me and cares about what the refugees are feeling, I’m happy I did it,” she said. “I’m trying to do my own part.”

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Dreaming of a better future for her country, Saramad hopes one day to return to the Afghanistan she called home before the country was under Taliban rule.

“I want to see the country the way I saw it before,” she said. “I want to see the happy faces. I want to see the boys and girls going to the shops and buy books. I want to see the younger generation going to school.”