When the Taliban took over Kabul, Afghanistan in August, Nowroz Ali feared for his life. A wanted man for many years for his work with the New Zealand Defence Force, he was supposed to be on a Hercules sent to evacuate people, but such was the pandemonium he couldn’t get to the plane.
Ali and his family have spent much time fleeing the Taliban. They killed many in his community in Bamyan province when he was just a child. He went on to become a volunteer interpreter and then official interpreter with the NZDF between 2003 and 2013. He has been trying to get to New Zealand ever since.
Photo: Supplied
Listen to the full interview with Nowroz Ali
After a long, often frightening journey, Ali is finally here, staying in an Auckland hotel awaiting resettlement. Two of his sisters and a brother have also made it, while his parents and other siblings have been left behind. Ali hopes to get the rest of his family here as he turns his mind to finding work and completing a Masters in international relations.
Ali tells Kim Hill he’s happy and excited to be in Auckland after being in “severe danger” in Afghanistan.
“I’m looking forward to a good life in New Zealand.”
He’s currently at an immigration facility in Auckland and says it could take several months before he’s properly resettled. He’s eager to remain in Auckland for the education opportunities.
Ali says he decided to move to Kabul this year and arrived on 13 August where he saw armed Taliban forces smiling and laughing in the street.
“I went directly to one of my friend’s houses and stayed there for a couple of nights. The next day, Kabul fell. I was terrified, panicked, very scared. I never thought it could happen. Taliban were heavily armed, in the streets patrolling everywhere.”
His visa was approved on 26 August and he and some colleagues and friends decided to go to Kabul Airport.
“We went there and there were crowds of people and chaos. We tried everything but there were no foreign soldiers. After an hour, we departed the area and, an hour later, we came to learn an explosion took place. At the end of the day I was dispirited… it was very tough and risky.”
In the end, MFAT were in touch and he was evacuated to another Middle Eastern country and flown to New Zealand.
He says it was a tough and frightening journey and he’s still suffering the effects of it.
“When a door slams, I suddenly get up. When I hear something in the city, I get suddenly scared. I’m still suffering, it will take time for me to recover.”
Ali first tried to come to New Zealand in 2015 after he discovered the Taliban had his picture and knew he had worked with foreign forces. He sensed the Taliban’s growing power and influence but never thought they would completely take over.
“They were toppled once and that’s why the international community came in, to have a free and democratic society with a free media and rights for women and education, access to technology and good governance. We were moving very good, everything was quite good.
“We never thought it would happen, it was a shock for us.”
He doesn’t believe the last 20 years were a waste of time in Afghanistan, particularly for those who grew up without Taliban rule.
“This was an opportunity for us to move forward, to have a better future, to have a good education and be looking forward to the future.”
And elements of foreign influence remain in Afghanistan with schools and education becoming more widespread across provinces and education being normalised for the younger generation.
“I could be one of the examples of the last 20 years. I went to school, I graduated from school in 2011 and went to do my Masters degree. My siblings are doing the same. This is one of the examples of the achievements that has been made in the last 20 years… This has not been a waste at all.”