PAGE LINKS: The Afghan Family ~ Mari Abad ~ Afghan Refugee Presentation ~ Hazaras ~ Welcome Corps ~ Status of Our Efforts

 Mari Abad

Because of lethal threats and the murder of Rana’s brother/Nasiba’s husband, the extended family fled seven years ago from Kabul, Afghanistan to Mari Abad, a Hazara enclave on the side of a mountain, in Quetta, Baluchistan, Pakistan. There is one larger Hazara enclave, Hazara Town, several kilometers away in Quetta.

There, they have been stuck, living at great risk because the ISIS and al Qaeda leadership, both the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban, and many others in live in Quetta. All seek to kill Hazara as infidels.

 Many local Pashtun taught to believe they will go to Heaven if they kill seven Hazaras. Their situation is described in the following two BBC reports:

 Quetta Hazara: BBC Article: The Community Caged in its Own City

{https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42219669}

 BBC Article: "Hell on Earth", Inside Quetta's Hazara Community

{https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-22248500}

Hazaras live in Mari Abad, encircled by Pakistani police for protection, but isolated from the rest of the City of Quetta, its commerce, transportation, markets, education, hospitals, etc. There are few employment opportunities and little money in Mari Abad.

 The seven family members have been renting two to three rooms to live in. They have been forced to moved between places about a dozen times with little notice (e.g., owners having relatives moving into Mari Abad or seeking large increases in rent). Power and Internet often go off with no notice. Water is provided only a couple of hours a day.

 Ali has worked more than a dozen different ways trying to support his family (from selling bananas from a cart to turning on and off the water around Mariabad to being a school security guard.)

 They have registered with UNHCR and have received refugee-seeking status. However, that status does not grant them any rights (e.g., to have bank accounts, to travel, to setup a business, or to attend a university). So, while Ali’s programming is supporting the family, it has been impossible for the botanical team to get him more than about $750/ month (through a circuitous route) for the programming that he does for them --far less than what he could earn elsewhere.