Hashmat Suddat’s Struggle – UNHCR

When they handed out the envelope with our acceptance, when they said the word "refugee," tears came to my eyes. This means we really have to leave Afghanistan now. It's a really bad experience to leave your homeland. Where you were born, lived ... your community. Everybody cried. We were happy to get out of there, but everybody cried when we got the letter that stated we were accepted as refugees.

Hashmat Saddat is not your ordinary nineteen year old. As a result of hostilities in Afghanistan, Hashmat

lost both of his parents. At the end of 2000, he and the remaining members of his family fled their home

in Kabul and sought refuge in Pakistan for nine months.

In Pakistan, Hashmat kept a low profile for fear of being noticed by the Taliban. "I was not in contact

with the community," says Hashmat. The situation in Pakistan was less than ideal, but it was significantly

safer than Taliban occupied Afghanistan.

"Every single family in Afghanistan, during Taliban, every second . . . they were unsafe. I was with my

sisters and the only man in the house. Every minute I was worried that one of the Taliban would come

and take one of my sisters. "We were all very scared," says Hashmat. "The Taliban have never gathered

and eaten with a mother, father, brother or sister. They do not know what a family is."

On November 16, 2001, the Saddats arrived to the United States and came to realize that their

hardships were not entirely behind them. The pain of being forced from their home weighed heavily on

the family. "You don't want to do something, but you're forced to do it. It's the same as if someone said

to you, "Now you have to leave the United States. How do you feel?" It's really hard."

Making matters more complicated for the family was the fact that they were arriving in America just

three months after the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center.

"Because of September 11, I suffered a lot from the backlash. Students, people in the community, they

thought that Muslims were killers. Terrorists. People don't know and I don't blame them, because they

are ignorant.

When he feels "perfectly secure" he wants to return to Afghanistan. “I will go there when I finish my

education to help educate people, to tell people about how hard they should work. If someone would

have told me that at night, I would look out as far as my eyes could see and one side of the road would

be all white lights and the other all red moving at 60 miles per hour, I would have said that they were

exaggerating. That many cars! I would never imagine how American people are living. People cannot

imagine how it is living in Afghanistan. There is no war in Afghanistan, but that does not mean peace.

Peace means education, construction . . . everything, you know?”

Hashmat recently graduated high school in Richmond, Virginia and is currently beginning his first

semester at a local college where he is studying computer science. When his schedule permits, he helps

a newly arrived family from Iran in the area. "Since we were helped, I learned that we should help

people. I believe in humanity. I love humans. If I have time, I go and help other people."

Labor Migration in the United Arab Emirates: Challenges and Responses

By Froilan T. Malit Jr. and Ali Al Youha University of Oxford

September 2013 Over the past few decades, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — one of the world's pre-eminent oil-rich nations located in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region — has become a popular

destination for temporary labor migrants seeking employment opportunities and higher standards of living. In 2013, the UAE had the fifth-largest

international migrant stock in the world with 7.8 million migrants (out of a total population of 9.2 million), according to United Nations (UN)

estimates.

With immigrants, who come particularly from India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, comprising over 90

percent of the country's private workforce, the UAE attracts both low- and high-skilled migrants due to its economic attractiveness, relative political stability, and modern infrastructure —despite a drop in oil prices and the international banking crisis in 2008.

Heavily reliant on foreign labor to sustain economic growth and high standard of living in the country, the UAE government in 1971 introduced a temporary guest worker program called the Kafala Sponsorship System, which allows nationals, expatriates, and companies to hire migrant workers.

Temporary Labor Migration: A Regional Trend

The GCC region — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE — is the most popular destination for temporary labor migrants of any world region, and flows have continued to increase over the past three decades. According to researchers Nasra Shah and Philippe Fargues, these migrants comprised more than 43 percent of the region's total population in 2010, and their share is expected to continue to grow over the next decade.

The majority of migrants in GCC countries are male, although the share of women — especially in the

cases of Bangladesh, Indonesia, and the Philippines — has increased over the past few decades. The vast majority of foreign-born working men are employed in low-skilled service sectors, while women are most often employed in domestic services and retail jobs. The region also attracts large numbers of high-skilled migrants from countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), particularly in the oil and gas, education, finance, and investment sectors.

Immigration has been the primary driver of population growth in the UAE since the 1990s, with

immigrants making up the vast majority of the total population in 2013. Immigrants from Asia and the

Middle East and North African (MENA) region have dominated the low- and semi-skilled sectors, while

workers from the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Canada, and various Western European

countries have become concentrated in the UAE's key high-skilled sectors: the oil and gas industry as

well as banking and finance

Migrant workers in Dubai. India, Bangladesh, and

Pakistan are the top countries of origin of temporary labor migrants in the United Arab Emirates. (Photo

courtesy of Paul Keller)

Lidia B interviews Iraj B, Iran

My dad, Iraj Bighash, was born in the town of Abadan, Iran—a picturesque coastal town situated

on the edge of the Persian Gulf. "It's a beautiful country," he commented. "Our house was right

on the Gulf and I used to sit there all the time, dreaming about the world." He also remembers

encountering many Arabs while in Abadan, as the town is near the border between Iraq and Iran.

Bighash immigrated to the United States in 1975 at the age of eighteen, arriving at the port of

entry in New York. He initially came to the United States because education opportunities in Iran

are extremely limited and he wanted the freedom to pursue what he loved rather than what the

government chose for him. Additionally, he desired the freedom and opportunity to prosper and

learn about the world. His first impression of the United States was that of surprise. "When I

arrived in Houston, Texas, I was surprised that not many people were walking along the

streets—most people were driving," he said. "In Iran people walk everywhere and the streets are

constantly flooded with people."

Furthermore, Bighash said he was pleased to see how clean and beautiful the streets were,

compared to Iran. "I thought the United States would be a different world," stated Bighash. "I

always pictured romanticism and a completely different way of life when thinking about the

United States as a little boy. But it turned out that this country was more similar to my life back

home and to reality." Moreover, Bighash encountered several initial challenges as a newly

arrived immigrant. He had to learn English quickly, as he was not fluent when he arrived. He

also had to live with very little money.

"Keeping a job and being on my own in everything was the hardest thing," Bighash said.

"Getting to know the customs and getting over my homesickness was also challenging."

Overall, Bighash was treated very well as an immigrant. He noticed the friendly and caring

atmosphere immediately. However, he did experience discrimination during the hostage crisis

some insulted him and others threatened him during this period.

Bighash contains an optimistic view of the American political institution, saying that the system

is very good because people can freely express their opinions. "Freedom of choice, the

friendliness of the people, the opportunity, all of it is great," said Bighash. "People generally do

not bother you here, which is the most important thing."

Bighash believes that immigrating to the United States was and still is incredibly rewarding to

him. "I have achieved the 'American Dream.' I did not have anything, and now I have

everything...I have cultured well, I have a successful job, and I have seen the world.

Cornell Notes Topic/Objective: Name:

Middle Eastern Immigration Class/Period: 1

Date:

Essential Question: Who is an immigrant? Why do Middle Easterners move? How have Middle Eastern immigrants

faced discrimination? How can we stop discrimination of Middle Eastern immigrants?

Questions: Notes:

Summary:

Questions: Notes:

Summary:

Name: _________________________________________ Period: _______

Directions: Read your story with your group and complete the questions below. Be ready to

share the information that you read with other students.

1. In your story, who immigrated?

2. Why did the people or person in your story immigrate?

3. Where did they immigrate?

4. How is this reading similar to our other immigrant case studies? Be specific.

5. How is this reading different to our other immigrant case studies? Be specific.

6. Would these immigrants return to their home countries if possible? Why or why not?

Directions: Fill in as much information in each circle as you can. Then, create a title for the entire chart and new titles for the three main circles.

Main Chart Title:

_______________________________________________________________________

___

UAE Labor Movement

Hashmat Suddat’s Story

Iraj B.’s Story