The Current - A son's fight to save his mother from the Taliban

Episode Date: August 20, 2025

Four years after the Taliban retook Kabul, Afghan refugees are facing deportation from countries where they sought safety. Ottawa resident Noorullah Hakemi fears his mother could be forced back to Afghanistan, where she was beaten by Taliban guards and left with broken bones. He tells us about his family’s fight to bring her to Canada before it’s too late. Plus, Asma Faizi of the Afghan Women’s Organization explains how deportations from Tajikistan, Pakistan and Iran are putting thousands of women and girls at risk and what she wants Canada to do now.

Welcome to the dudes club, a brotherhood supporting men's health and wellness. Established in the Vancouver Downtown East Side in 2010, the dudes club is a community-based organization that focuses on indigenous men's health, many of whom are struggling with intergenerational trauma, addiction, poverty, homelessness, and chronic diseases. The aim is to reduce isolation and loneliness, and for the men to regain a sense of pride and purpose in their lives. As a global health care company, Novo Nordisk is dedicated to driving change for a healthy world. It's what we've been doing since 1923.

It also takes the strength and determination of the communities around us, whether it's through disease awareness, fighting stigmas and loneliness, education, or empowering people to become more active. Novo Nordisk is supporting local changemakers because it takes more than medicine to live a healthy life. Leave your armor at the door. Watch this paid content on CBC. Jim. This is a CBC podcast. Hello, I'm Matt Galloway, and this is the current podcast. Afghanistan marked the fourth anniversary of the Taliban takeover of the country just a few days ago.

Men gathered waving flags and military helicopters dropped flowers on the crowd. Afghan women were banned from attending. Since the Afghan government fell in August 2021, the Taliban has placed strict limits on girls and women. They are not allowed in parks or most public spaces. They're barred from working or attending school past grade 6. The country's economy is a mess and many people have fled. One of them is a woman whose son lives in Ottawa. Bibi Hatoon Yakubi escaped after Taliban officials beat her unconscious in front of a crowd in Kabul. breaking her legs and ribs. She's now living in Tajikistan while she waits for her refugee claim to be processed so she can come to Canada.

But Tajikistan has begun to deport Afghans back to Afghanistan, and she fears she'll be sent back before she ever makes it here. Nerula Hakimi is her son, and he's with me in our Ottawa studio. Good morning, Nerula. Hi, good morning. What is it like for you knowing that your mother is in jeopardy at this time in Tajikistan? First of all, thank you so much for inviting me here and let me to share a little bit how I'm feeling and I know after four years how the people feeling and how the woman and a new generation how they're feeling.

They are away from the school, from the knowledge, from the modernization, from freedom, everything. This situation is happening in all the world and international community. silent. And for my mother specifically, I'm a victim of war. I'm an orphan of war. I was only six year old of my life when I lost my father during bombing by Soviet Union. I was the only kid in the family, no brother, no sister, nobody to take care of me. Just a lady, young, married, there was nothing. And she was taking Kirmy. You're talking about your mom. I'm talking about my mom. This lady is familiar with pain and with fighting with difficulties, fighting with the challenge of life. And she was expecting, and someday I will help her.

And then I finished my school and I go to the university. I graduate and then I go in a higher level in the government, this advisor with the Ministry of Defense. And I was taking care of her. I was giving her back good days. Unfortunately, something happening in 2019. By mistake, I share some documentation. It was a huge corruption in the government. And by mistake, I share with media. I just want to move ahead a little bit here. And is that why you left Afghanistan because of that? That was a concern. And then what happened to your mother after you left? She was, she was She faced a severe assault by the Taliban. Yeah. August 15 in 2024, she was on the way to a dental appointment with another lady, which is our relative.

In the same day, Taliban pretending August 15 is an independent day. For us, it's a dark day. It's losing everything, hope, dreams, everything. Nightmare for women, but for Taliban is an independent day. The block everywhere, there was a lot of checkpoints. My mom trying to reach the schedule, but it's so late. It's too late. To go to her appointment. And finally, she is starting to complain and saying some bad word to the Taliban.

And there was another lady. Usually in Afghanistan, the taxi is right here. It's like picking somebody and somebody else. That lady in the next checkpoint calling to the Taliban to stop this lady because there's she is saying some bad word to the Taliban leader. When she is late and she's like probably aggressive on being late, she's saying some other word in front of Taliban as well. On the spot in front of hundreds and hundreds people

in the middle of one of the busiest spot of the Kabul city, which is like almost 5 million population. And he's starting beating, wiping and torturing my memory. ma'am in the front of public. She's losing her consciousness, and I got a call 11 o'clock in the evening in Afghanistan time, and it was from a clinic. It was a private clinic. I just immediately asked, she is alive.

They said, yes, she is alive, but she cannot speak. How is she doing? She's good now. She cannot walk freely or independently. But, I mean, like, she survived. We are happy now, at least she survived, and there's not a big danger. But the right leg was broken from three joints. And she passed three more operations when she was not able to breathe deeply due to the pain from the broken.

Right. That was the terrible part. To know that now she's in Tajikistan, and we are hearing that that government, as well as ones in Iran and Pakistan, are starting to send Afghan refugees back to Afghanistan. What does it mean to you? How fearful are you that she may go back? I've been in Tajikistan. I travel from here and I visit her

and I visit multiple of other refugees where my mom is living. There's like a lot of refugees and they're afraid of deportation and it's happening every day. Sometimes they're making harsher and they're coming to attack in the houses, apartments, and take people by force. And sometimes they're targeting some people.

Every day, one or two or five, up to ten families, they're deporting back. I don't know that Tajikistan government, why doing this business to send people back? At the same time, their embassy in Kabul is open and you can go easily take a visa. You mentioned the international community has been silent on all of this, not paying attention. If you had the ear of the Canadian government of Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, if you had the ear of Prime Minister Mark Carney today, what would you want to tell them about what's happening right now? Honestly, Canadians did a lot to me, a group of ladies, the advocate for myself,

and for the Afghan women's and entire Afghanistan people. here and they brought 56,000 plus people here. That's more than enough. I know. And the government, the member of parliament, senators, they helped me. And I was in different event, parliamentary events and different conferences online. And I shared this story and they helped me a lot. And all immigration pathway was closed, but still they find a spot for my mom to bring her here. The problem is everything is slow. For some reason, Afghanistan, situation is taken away from the decision table in Canada. I fell in the parliamentary events.

We had a protest in August 15. In the first year when we did, there was like hundreds of Canadians here to join with us. When we did this year, there was nobody from Canadian government. And when we share the stories, Tajikistan situation is a small part, but the biggest problem is 50% of our population is denied to be in the public. And their basic right, education right, human right, and being in the public is banned by Taliban. Unfortunately, some organization or some lobbyists, they're working to convince the government to pay the kids.

Canadian taxpayer to the Taliban government under the humanitarian assistance or whatever. The Canadian tax is going to the terrorist regime, which is recognized by Canadian government and the terrorism. I'm asking from the IRCC at the same time from the Mark Carney and the entire government to stop funding them at the same time, please hear the voice of immigrants. They're not going for a journey. They're not going for vacation. You're fleeing Afghanistan and they're leaving Afghanistan because of torture, because of killing, kidnapping, and so on. I just, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada did send us a statement to CBC News saying that it was deeply concerned about reports of Afghan refugee deportations by Tajikistan authorities. It said it is working with the UN to liaise with authorities in Tajikistan to protect and support Afghans destined for resettlement in Canada.

Are you encouraged at all by a statement like that? I believe it's general speaking, but a real action is to release an official statement or to send a diplomat or to make contact, to ask them why you're deporting. They're a victim of war. They're victim of torture. They're victim of kidnapping. They're victim of killing their family. They're victim of terrorism, which is now leading a country and ruling a country in Afghanistan. Why a government, a neighbor government, to send immigrants to the Taliban?

No, really, you have three young daughters, knowing that their grandmother is not safe. How, what do you tell them about that? I'm not telling them reality, honestly. And the moment before to be here, I was talking over the phone with my mom. And she said, yesterday, the Tajikistan government sought another series of mass deportation. and they were knocking the door. My mom was for almost two weeks. She was out of the apartment

because they were knocking the door and they were taking by force. She was somewhere. It was a kind of clinic or I can say like long-term cares somewhere. And she said now they start mass deportation. I feel sorry and she said, oh, the kids are hearing this.

I said, no. I'm in the car. I'm going somewhere. Because my mom grew these three kids and they're always talking about phone in a video call they're dancing for her and they're saying why your legs is like this even they don't know the Taliban did this I never tell to my kids that my mom is tortured by Taliban I'm saying that it was a traffic accident and they're waiting impassionately when I was in Tajikistan and they were just crying

why are not taking me to the grandma And you're waiting here for her. Well, it's an unimaginable story, and we are grateful that you were willing to share it with us. Thank you for sharing the story. You're welcome. Nerula Hakimi is a civil engineer in Ottawa. We did request an interview with Immigration Minister Lena Diab, but she declined. Welcome to the dudes club, a brotherhood supporting men's health and wellness.

Established in the Vancouver downtown east side in 2010, the dudes' Club is a community-based organization that focuses on indigenous men's health, many of whom are struggling with intergenerational trauma, addiction, poverty, homelessness, and chronic diseases. The aim is to reduce isolation and loneliness, and for the men to regain a sense of pride and purpose in their lives. As a global healthcare company, Novo Nordisk is dedicated to driving change for a healthy world. It's what we've been doing since 1923. It also takes the strength and determination of the communities around us, whether it's through disease awareness,

fighting stigmas and loneliness, education, or empowering people to become more active. Novo Nordisk is supporting local change makers because it takes more than medicine to live a healthy life. Leave your armor at the door. Watch this paid content on CBC Gem.

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Find an agent today at Dejardin.com slash business coverage. Asma Faisi is the president of the Afghan women's organization, one of the groups that is sponsoring Nerula's mother to come to Canada. Hello. Hello. Naurula, when you hear that story and we know that Naurula's mother is just one of many people in this kind of position, tell me a little bit about your response when you hear this story. Well, I think it's heartbreaking and it's one story among many that we are aware of and that come to our attention every day about the situation of Afghan refugees, not just in Tajikistan, but also, as you mentioned in Iran. Iran in Pakistan and Turkey also. And why is it happening? Why now?

Why are these governments now insisting on deporting people back to Afghanistan? Well, I think, and just so people understand that Afghans make up one of the largest refugee populations worldwide, and this is a result of almost a half-century of conflict and displacement. And, you know, the majority of the Afghans have been hosted by Iran and Pakistan, of the fact that they're neighbors. And so, you know, we can understand that there's also strain on there, those countries also. However, that doesn't mean that they can treat these people with indignity and to force, particularly those that are at risk back into Afghanistan. And it might be because of the fact that these people have been in these countries for such a

long time. And there's been some conflicts with the current Taliban government, both on the side of Pakistan and also on the side of Iran, that some of these political situations also, they tend to take it out on the refugees and the Afghans that are within their countries. So the reports I'm reading talk about 1.4 million people being expelled from both Iran and Pakistan. Can the country handle such a large influx of people right now? Well, I think you can imagine that a country that was on the brink of starvation and that more than half his population is in need of aid. You know, children are acutely malnutritioned. And the estimate is that there's going to be significantly more people deported back into Afghanistan that

the country is not going to be able to sustain and to feed these people that are coming back. Remind us more specifically how difficult it is in Afghanistan right now for girls and women. Yes, because these crises have occurred over the last five decades, a lot of these young people that are being forced to return actually were born and raised in these countries like Iran and Pakistan. And so, you know, where they may have had the ability and the opportunity to go to school and be educated and to force these women back or these girls back into Afghanistan during this time is actually a cruel thing that could be that is being done by these governments,

knowing what is going on inside Afghanistan. and women are essentially being erased from public life. Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand, was not available to speak to us today. We said earlier Global Affairs Canada sent a statement to CBC News that Canada was monitoring the treatment of Afghan refugees in Tajikistan as well as in Pakistan and Iran. But what do you want Ottawa to do to help those who are at risk of being deported to Afghanistan? What is the answer right now? And I know we heard from Naurula that there is this concern that, as you,

you've mentioned that the international community is not paying as much attention to this region as it should be. Yes. In addition to making sure that it's using its diplomatic channels, the cases of Afghans that are being processed in Canada under sponsorship, similar to Nurila's mother's case, these cases need to be expedited. We have many clients or sponsors in Pakistan and Tajikistan in these regions where they have, done their biometrics. These people have done their medicals and they're still waiting for their documents so that they can leave Afghanistan and come to Canada. So we would really encourage the Canadian government to expedite these cases. And for those, particularly those that are

at risk, even if they could provide these people with temporary protection in Canada, bring them to Canada similar to what they have done for many Ukrainians, is to bring them here and to process their cases here, knowing that their families are here, that they're being sponsored here and process those cases so that they're protected. Ultimately, though, for those who are in Afghanistan, and we know Canada does not recognize the Taliban as a legitimate government in Afghanistan, but if that's who you're dealing with, how can governments around the world engage with the Taliban without legitimizing them? My understanding is that there is engagement with the Taliban without recognizing them.

And I think in a situation where they are the current de facto government, authority without communication, nothing is going to move forward. And I think it's really important for our government to keep those lines of communication open, particularly when you're dealing with at-risk individuals or when you're dealing with a situation or a country where it has largely been dependent on aid, international aid, and requires cooperation from international governments to ensure that these people that are being forced back into Afghanistan are supported, including through the UNHCR. Just before you go, we are reflecting on what is the fourth anniversary of the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan and the dramatic fall of Kabul. Many

will remember that. But what are you hoping, especially Canadians, are reminded of and think about during this time? I just hope that, you know, they don't forget about Afghanistan. It has been overshadowed by events in Ukraine and the Middle East, but Afghans remain one of the world's worst humanitarian situations. And they have faced, like I said, a half a century of displacement, war, instability, and now they face mass deportations, you know, deported to a country where that's severe poverty, and the majority of the people that are impacted are women and girls. And so I think it's really important for our government to play a key role to protect Afghans, not only those with ties to Canada, like Ruhullah and his family and other Afghans whose families are left back home,

but also supporting international humanitarian efforts to ensure that there is food, basic needs of Afghans are met on the ground. And it's not just about upholding international law, but showing that Canada remains a country that defends human rights and humanitarian principles, as it has done significantly for Afghans over the past few decades. Canada has been a partner of Afghans, and we hope that they don't forget about what's going on to Afghans, particularly Afghan women and girls. Asma Faisi, thank you very much for spending this time with us. Thank you. Asma Faisi is the president of the Afghan women's organization.

She was in Kleinberg, Ontario. You've been listening to the current podcast. My name is Matt Galloway. Thanks for listening. I'll talk to you soon. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca slash podcasts.