The journey
During the civil war in the early 1990s in Afghanistan, my family and I fled to different provinces to stay alive. We eventually migrated to Pakistan. I completed my primary and high school in Pakistan and returned to Afghanistan with great hope after 9/11 and the collapse of the Taliban regime in 2002.
However, the hope for peace was always faced with security challenges due to the Taliban’s ongoing attacks. In 2008, after I completed my undergraduate Law and Political Science degree from Kabul University, I was awarded a scholarship to complete my Master’s at the University of Technology in Sydney. I returned to Afghanistan after this to participate in the country’s reconstruction process and worked for a law firm while in Kabul. But due to the security crisis after the international troops’ early withdrawal in 2014, I returned to Sydney and sought protection in Australia.
Arriving in Australia
I am an admitted lawyer at the Supreme Court of New South Wales and the managing partner of my law firm, LexGlobal Partners in Sydney. I have ten years of extensive legal experience as a corporate and commercial lawyer, working for private law firms and major Australian financial institutions like Macquarie Bank, Westpac, Commonwealth Bank and PayPal, and most recently for a federal government investment corporation.
Giving back
Australia is a great country and I have proudly called Sydney home for the past 15 years. Through my work and volunteering, I sought to contribute to Australia for the betterment of myself, my family and my community. Since my arrival in Australia, I have been actively involved with refugee resettlement organisations and refugee-led national advocacy networks representing my community. I also volunteer for the ZamZam Foundation Australia, which helps orphan girls in Afghanistan.
Most recently, after Afghanistan fell into the hands of the Taliban for the second time, I have been engaged with multiple advocacy programs to raise awareness about the crisis in this country. I have participated in TV interviews and attended different conferences and gatherings. I also run fundraising campaigns and so far, I have managed to provide essential food packages for more 300 families in Afghanistan.
