Page 62 - MY Book - My Voice

Atiq from HazaratownI am Atiq from Hazara Town. I am 15 years old, and I have just arrived in Norway, after a long journey from Pakistan to Norway, alone.I was born in Afghanistan. My parents ed from Afghanistan to Pakistan when I was little, and settled in Hazara Town, Quetta in the province of Baluchistan. I have four younger siblings.My home townHazara Town is a con ned area in the city of Quetta, inhabited by the Hazara people. Before, Hazara Town used to be a nice place to grow up, people were smiling, and playing cricket, and the children played outside. We went to school and moved freely. During Id, everyone used to stay outside in the streets celebrating, and there were marriage parties with music and a lot of people and joy. Some years ago, everything changed.Gradually harassment and violence towards the Hazara people started, carried out by Taliban, the soldiers and the police. The Hazara people are mainly Shia Muslims living in Sunni dominated areas. We face a lot of discrimination and racism. At check-points, the soldiers would stop the bus and point out all the Hazaran-looking people and arrest them or kill them. The last twoyears it has been too dangerous to move outside of Hazara Town. Taliban is attacking students in schools and people shopping in the market, I have seen too many dead people. All Hazaran boys used to protest against the target killings. We used to throw stones at the police or organize demonstrations, once my whole family participated in a demonstration. Usually my mother didn’t want me to go out, she was so afraid something would happen to me, but I went out anyway.In Hazara Town there are mostly women and children. The boys and men are gone. The mothers have to manage everything themselves.60