Liliana Guadagnoli
Liliana Guadagnoli Liliana Guadagnoli We would like to thank Liliana Guadagnoli for her time and supporting our community and newcomers. Liliana Guadagnoli is an Intuitive/Spiritual and Energy Healer with expertise in the Natural Healing Arts as a Reiki Master and Hypnotherapist. She is a two time International Best Selling Author and Poet. She has been leading Art Therapy sessions for many years to all age groups, both through pubic and private organizations. She has multiple qualifications specializing in supporting Children, Teens and Seniors. Liliana is also the Owner and CEO of LLG Enterprises Inc., a business which provides Spiritual Guidance and Coaching, Consulting and Support Services, and Hosts Healing Retreats.Over the last 40 years Liliana has been awarded for her exceptional services and prided herself on the ability to deliver excellence in all areas.
Canadian Justice | Crisis in Afghanistan
Canadian Justice | Crisis in Afghanistan Ali Mirzad, CHHS senior advisor interview with Canadian Justice about Crisis in Afghanistan. #SaveTheHazaras https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zztcuN8q7yY&t=3s
Ali Mirzad’s Interviews
Ali Mirzad’s Interviews Ali Mirzad’s interview with Canadian Media CHHS’s Statement in Canadian Parliament Interview with CBC about dangers of Taliban rule Ali Mirzad, CHHS Senior Advisor interview with CBC’s All in A Day with host Alan Neal, on the dangers of a Taliban rule to the Hazaras and the need for Canada to RESCUE those Hazaras that have not made it to the airport and are stranded in the capital. #SaveTheHazaras https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxIYViHOcEg Interview with CTV News Toronto Ali Mirzad, CHHS Senior advisor interview with CTV News Toronto on the dangers of a Taliban rule to the Hazaras and the need for Canada to RESCUE those Hazaras that have not made it to the airport and are stranded in the capital. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8uJCPMXMOc Ali Mirzad on CBC Radio’s Ali Mirzad, CHHS Senior Advisor talk on CBC radio’s The Current, about the current situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban and the danger that it all poses to the Hazaras. During the Radio interview, the Minister of Immigration Canada Mr. Mendicino assured all that the Hazaras will not be forgotten. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP_M4Co05Uc Ali Mirzad on CTV NEWS Ali Mirzad, CHHS Senior Advisor, talking on CTV News Toronto about the current situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban and the danger that it all poses to the Hazaras. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyGMqeH859Q&t=1s CHHS Senior Advisor, Ali Mirzad’s interview with CBC News Ottawa Television and Radio on the current situation and the Hazara ethnic minority concerns and danger they are facing in Afghanistan. #SaveTheHazaras Watch Full Interview Here
Mes réflexions
Mes réflexions Mes réflexions avec Radio 104.7 COGECO Mes réflexions avec Radio 104.7 COGECO une chaîne de radio francophone pour les régions d’Ottawa Gatineau sur la situation actuelle en Afghanistan, les talibans et le danger que tout cela représente pour le peuple Hazaras. https://youtu.be/iyBtibnPd7U Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts Mes réflexions February 5, 2026 Mes réflexions Mes réflexions avec Radio 104.7 COGECO Mes réflexions avec Radio 104.7 COGECO une chaîne de radio francophone pour… Read More Support for Newcomers April 16, 2025 Support for Newcomers Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More Helping Families Reunite April 16, 2025 Helping Families Reunite Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More
Press Release
Press Release Canada must prioritize the rescue of the persecuted Hazaras Ottawa – Hazara-Canadians are horrified by the return of the Taliban – in Afghanistan – for they have suffered unspeakable atrocities during that regime’s reign of terror. The Hazaras have suffered over a century of perpetual persecution based on their race and religion. From 1891 to 1893, tens of thousands of Hazaras were forcefully displaced from their lands and exiled, while many other thousands were forcefully proselytized, raped, and enslaved. During the 90s Taliban rule the Hazara’s suffering continued. In 1998, the Taliban systematically slaughtered thousands of Hazaras in the cities of Mazar-e-Sharif and Bamiyan alone. Despite being one of the first to lay down their arms and give peace a chance – in post 9/11– Hazaras continued to be the subject of daily attacks, be it within the sanctuary of religious places, in gymnasiums, in the streets, or on public buses. Attacks such as the May 2020 assault on the Médecins Sans Frontière’s maternity ward in Kabul’s Dasht- e-Barchi (where infants still in incubators were targeted) or the May 2021 assault on the Sayed al- Shuhada all-girl school (where as many as 94 young girls died) have proven that Hazaras are a target regardless of age or gender. The Immigration Refugee Board of Canada’s April 2021 Afghanistan Human Rights report quotes that “societal discrimination against Shia Hazaras continued in the form of extortion of money through illegal taxation, forced recruitment and forced labor, physical abuse, and detention.” Here at home, Hazara-Canadians coast-to-coast-to-coast are relieved by the Government of Canada’s decision on resettling 20,000 vulnerable individuals from Afghanistan – however – we beseech the Government to not forget the Hazaras and condemn them to another genocide. On the ground, reports obtained from witnesses and International news outlets have thus far shown that the Taliban – while once again plunging the country into the dark abyss of barbarism – have renewed their genocidal focus on the Hazaras. With every city captured, Hazara men (children included) are singled out and beheaded; while the women are raped and forced into sex slavery. Based on these extraordinary circumstances, we urge the Government to invoke subsection 25(1)(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to: Prioritize Hazara journalists, rights defenders, civil society leaders and women. Expedite the processing time for existing applications for Private Sponsorships of Refugees. Remove restrictions on current sponsorship programs. Exempt Afghans who fled the country from providing proof of refugee status under the group of five and community sponsorship. Expand the Afghan Resettlement program by increasing the intake of applicants from 20,000 to provide all vulnerable individuals a chance to escape the crisis. While our network of social service organizations and private citizens – across this great Nation – remain on standby to assist with the settlement process; we urge the Government to follow the footsteps of Ret. General Roméo Dallaire, by saving the Hazaras swiftly, in order to avoid another Rwanda. The Hazaras of Afghanistan live on borrowed time and tomorrow might be too late! Canadian Hazara Humanitarian Services (CHHS) President Ibrahim Mohebi president@uniquem20.sg-host.com Senior Advisor Ali Mirzad amirzad2001@gmail.com Global Kindness Foundation President Dr Hasnain R. Dewji globalkindnessfoundation.ca Vancouver Assoc. for the Survivors of Torture Co-Facilitator Fatima Haidari http://vast-vancouver.ca Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights Media media@rwchr.org Hazara Women Organization Founder Zahra Hafiz hazarawomenorganization.com University of Pennsylvania Annenberg School for Communication Postdoctoral Fellow Ali Karimi www.alikarimi.org Northern Lights Canada Co-Founder Stephen Watt www.northernlightscanada.net Northern Lights Canada. Co-Founder Jaivet Ealom www.northernlightscanada.net Journalist Freelance Journalist Robyn Huang www.robynhuang.com Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts Press Release February 5, 2026 Press Release Canada must prioritize the rescue of the persecuted Hazaras Ottawa – Hazara-Canadians are horrified by the return of the… Read More Support for Newcomers April 16, 2025 Support for Newcomers Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More Helping Families Reunite April 16, 2025 Helping Families Reunite Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More
Hazara-Canadians Bracing After Afghan Bombings
Hazara-Canadians Bracing After Afghan Bombings When a bomb explodes in Afghanistan, Hazara-Canadians brace for the worst Earlier this month, bombs once again hit the Dasht-e-Barchi area of western Kabul, this time targeting the Sayed Al-Shuhada all-girls school. The aftershock of the three blasts in the Afghan capital could be felt across the Atlantic by Hazara-Canadians. And whenever a bomb goes off back home, Hazaras here in Canada brace for the worst. Zahra Nader — a PhD student in gender, feminist, and women’s studies at Toronto’s York University, and a former New York Times journalist — fled her native home in 2017 due to mounting dangers she faced as a Hazara, a woman, and a female reporter. On May 8, her phone suddenly lit up; within minutes, she was getting Facebook alerts about the bombing. Shukriah Hussini, Nader’s 17-year-old niece, was a student at the targeted school. Last week, I caught up with Nader and asked her to describe that terrible day. “I called my sisters incessantly,” Nader said. “I knew my sister-in-law is a teacher in that school, and my niece studies there. They weren’t picking up. My anxiety was rising by (the) minute.” Those minutes turned into the longest half hour Nader has ever lived. Feeling the full weight of every passing second, she kept trying to connect with her loved ones back home. After what felt like 30 hours, not 30 minutes, she finally learned that her niece survived the horrific attack. Her sisters told her: “We are all fine, (but) we don’t have electricity; the Taliban has blown up an electricity pylon.” Nader continued: “I was terrified and worried for my family, and couldn’t stop thinking about other families. … I thought about students who will never return home, and of mothers who must bear that pain. As a mother, that thought was choking me. It was like a pain in my throat that didn’t go away with a silent cry; I needed to sob. So I spent the afternoon sobbing at a nearby creek.” The principal of the girls’ school that was attacked, Aqeela Tawakoli, told a local news reporter that, before the bombs went off, security officials from Afghanistan’s Ministry of Interior Affairs showed up to do a security sweep of the school. They asked how many guards the school had, and the location of its security cameras. Tawakoli said: “I was surprised by their questions, and told them we are a public school with no funding. Where would we get the budget for guards and cameras?” Hours later, a huge car bomb tore apart the school’s structure, shooting projectiles of human flesh and furniture through classroom windows. As students rushed to the exit doors in panic, the perpetrators detonated two additional bombs to inflict maximum damage. Although initial reports capped the death toll at 27, it has now been confirmed that 94 girls — aged 8 to 17 — died, and 165 students were critically wounded. Mohammad Taqi, the father of one of the few survivors, said his daughter has gone deaf, suffers mentally, and doesn’t recognize him anymore. Mohammad Baqir, one of the first civilians who rushed to the scene, reported, “When I got there, all I could see was burned bodies and piles of mutilated and headless cadavers of little girls. Some didn’t have hands. Others were cut limb from limb.” Dasht-e-Barchi is located in the slums of Kabul. Loosely translated as the Desert of Barchi, it’s a gladiator’s arena where, every day, nearly one million Hazaras try to survive. If unsanitary sewage systems and a lack of running water and electricity don’t end up killing them, atrocities like this recent terror attack will finish the job. This isn’t the first, and certainly won’t be the last, heinous attack on the Hazaras. In October, 24 Hazara students were killed at the Kawsar education centre. Last May, Hazara newborns — still in their incubators — were killed in an attack on a maternity ward managed by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). A month later, MSF announced it was closing the ward permanently, mainly because of security threats to its staff and patients. A Shia Muslim ethnic minority, Hazaras have long been considered infidel heretics, a crime for which they’ve endured over 150 years of physical, mental, and psychological abuse. In the late 18th century, by way of dictator Abdul Rahman Khan’s genocidal campaign, a vast number of Hazaras were slaughtered; many thousands more were forcefully displaced and enslaved. In the 1990s under Taliban rule, Hazaras were the subject of yet another series of ethnic-cleansing campaigns. It’s estimated that as many as 8,000 were rounded up and butchered by the Taliban in the cities of Mazar-e-Sharif and Bamiyan. The last two decades have proven to the Hazaras that they will never be safe. Now they must brace themselves again for the Taliban’s return, compliments of a U.S.-imposed peace deal. As part of that deal, President Joe Biden declared that the U.S. military will withdraw completely from Afghanistan by September of this year — the 20th anniversary of 9/11. As one of America’s biggest allies and trade partners, Canada has wholeheartedly participated in the U.S. war against the Taliban. A total of 158 of our men and women in uniform died while fighting bravely to oust the Taliban. The Canadian government has sent $3.6 billion in aid to Afghanistan. Now that the Taliban is being ushered back in, Canadian foreign policy can no longer exist in the shadow of American policy. As a champion of human and women’s rights, Canada must define its own focus and purpose in the face of renewed Taliban rule. It must state clearly how it will ensure that Nader’s niece, and the millions of other Hazaras, are not killed tomorrow. Ali Mirzad is an Ottawa-based human-rights activist with Canadian-Hazara Humanitarian Services. Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts Hazara-Canadians Bracing After Afghan Bombings February 5, 2026 Hazara-Canadians Bracing After Afghan Bombings When a bomb explodes in Afghanistan, Hazara-Canadians brace
An interview of Ali Mirzad
An interview of Ali Mirzad CHHS is excited to share details of a project led by the University of Ottawa’s Human Rights Research & Education Centre (HRREC) and Law faculty entitled Voices In Exile (Voices). The aim of Voices is to profile human rights activists that are in exile. To that end, we are thrilled to see CHHS’s very own, Ali Mirzad, profiled by VOICES. CHHS conveys its heartfelt gratitude to the University of Ottawa’s Law Faculty as well as the Human Rights Research & Education Centre for giving a voice to the millions of voiceless Hazaras. You can watch Ali Mirzad’s full-length interview, his side-commentary video about the recent forms of persecution, and his profile on #Voices‘page. https://www.voicesinexile.me/Home/cpl63xxa86c42wc4hwpmqengy0clnr-sbajc-hmg4w-p3e7b?fbclid=IwAR32-EyG2EeGezRksHsNGKtsB1o2xrKKMoVNiRg2qSNxxXFcVqwVlx_oIWk Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts An interview of Ali Mirzad February 5, 2026 An interview of Ali Mirzad CHHS is excited to share details of a project led by the University of Ottawa’s… Read More Support for Newcomers April 16, 2025 Support for Newcomers Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More Helping Families Reunite April 16, 2025 Helping Families Reunite Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More
Intra-Afghan Peace Talks
Intra-Afghan Peace Talks Peace Cannot Be Achieved in Afghanistan Without Guaranteeing and Safeguarding the Security and Human Rights of Hazaras and other Persecuted Communities Statement of Hazara Diaspora regarding the ongoing “Intra-Afghan Peace Talks” in Doha, Qatar 30.09.2020 The ongoing peace process is an opportunity to establish long-term peace and stability in Afghanistan. In order to ensure the success of the negotiations, the global Hazara community encourages the steadfast commitment of the negotiating parties as well as the supporting states and international organizations to protect the fundamental principles of human rights, justice, freedom of religion and belief, the rule of law, and equality of all citizens of Afghanistan. We strongly wish to see an end to the war and suffering on all sides. At the same time, we emphasize that any political settlement needs to consider both the history and the diverse needs, interests, and concerns of all citizens of Afghanistan, particularly historically persecuted and marginalized ethnic groups such as the Hazaras. In particular, we emphasize the central importance of protecting the security and human rights of all disadvantaged or marginalized groups such as women, religious minorities such as Hindus and Sikhs, and persecuted communities, particularly the Hazaras, who have been victims of ethnic and sectarian violence throughout the modern history of Afghanistan. The Taliban have committed mass atrocities against Hazara civilians, including the massacres in Mazar-i-Sharif [1998], where they publicly declared their intent to kill Hazaras based on their ethnicity and faith. Other massacres took place in Yakawlang [2001], Robatak [2000], and Mirza Olang [2017], as well as other locations. The Taliban also destroyed our cultural heritage sites such as the Buddha statues [2001] in Bamiyan. In more recent years too, Hazaras have suffered targeted violence by extremist groups, particularly the Taliban. We regret that the Government of Afghanistan has consistently been negligent in protecting the Hazara people, nor has it addressed the pleas of its Hazara citizens for increased security and justice for the victims of targeted violence. We are concerned by the Taliban’s increasing offensives in recent months in Hazara-populated regions where they have threatened the local communities and killed civilians. This inevitably has resulted in deep apprehensions and mistrust, raising concerns among the Hazara community about the Taliban’s views and commitments to peace. To read the report, please click here to download it. Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts Intra-Afghan Peace Talks February 5, 2026 Intra-Afghan Peace Talks Peace Cannot Be Achieved in Afghanistan Without Guaranteeing and Safeguarding the Security and Human Rights of Hazaras… Read More Support for Newcomers April 16, 2025 Support for Newcomers Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More Helping Families Reunite April 16, 2025 Helping Families Reunite Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More
Letter to UN Secretary General
Letter to UN Secretary General Letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in view of the 2020 Afghanistan Conference – Geneva HE Mr. Antonio GuterresUnited Nations Secretary-GeneralUnited Nations Secretariat42nd Street,New York, NY 10017 23 November 2020 RE: Protecting the Fundamental Rights of Hazaras in the Peace Settlement with the Taliban Your Excellency, We, the undersigned diaspora Afghanistan civil society organisations, write this letter to draw your attention to the present and escalating threats to the rights and physical security of Shi’a Hazaras and other vulnerable minorities in Afghanistan. We request your office to urge participating states and organisations at the upcoming 2020 Afghanistan Conference in Geneva (henceforth the Geneva Conference) to place the protection and promotion of minority rights at the centre of UN peace efforts and development programs in Afghanistan. To read the report, please click here to download it. Read the latest UPDATES Latest Articles All Posts Letter to UN Secretary General February 5, 2026 Letter to UN Secretary General Letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in view of the 2020 Afghanistan Conference – Geneva… Read More Support for Newcomers April 16, 2025 Support for Newcomers Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More Helping Families Reunite April 16, 2025 Helping Families Reunite Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s… Read More
Canada’s Compassion and the Hazaras
Canada’s Compassion and the Hazaras Why does Canada’s compassion not extend to the persecuted Hazaras? The slaughter of members of the Shia Muslim minority group continues unabated in AfghanistanAuthor of the article: Ali Mirzad, Special to National PostPublishing date: Apr 16, 2021 By Ali Mirzad Is Canada really a beacon of hope to the destitute and hopeless? That’s the question that Hazaras — from across Afghanistan and the slums of European and Asian asylum camps, to here at home — are asking themselves. Ottawa’s Yasir Mehrzad, a former interpreter with the Canadian forces in Afghanistan — whose father and uncle were both killed in a targeted attack in Kabul in April 2018 — has been anxiously waiting for his sisters and severely ill mother to join him for over two years. Toronto’s Javad Ibrahimi is another Hazara-Canadian who has been waiting for over five years for his loved ones to settle in Canada. The Hazaras, a Shia Muslim ethnic minority group in a country with a Sunni Muslim majority, have suffered over a century of perpetual persecution. Is Canada really a beacon of hope? In the late 18th century, dictator Abdur Rahman Khan labelled the Hazaras as kaffirs (infidels) and launched a genocidal campaign against them while displacing and selling thousands into forced slavery. In 1998 the Taliban issued a similar fatwa (decree), continuing that genocide by killing as many as 5,200 Hazaras in the cities of Mazar-e-Sharif and Bamyan alone. In February 2020 the White House signed the U.S.-Taliban peace deal in Doha, Qatar, to end America’s longest war. Kabul was strong-armed to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners, while the murderous group was to cease all violence. Yet despite the Taliban’s pinky promise, the UN says Afghanistan remains amongst the “deadliest places in the world to be a civilian.” Last month, Canada’s Immigration Minister, Marco Mendicino, announced the approval of new policy that will allow Yazidi families in this country to sponsor extended relatives. The minister said: “By changing the policy to be more inclusive … we are showing compassion.” Thousands of Hazaras, who are rotting in asylum camps across the globe, wonder why they are excluded from that “generous compassion.” Afghan security personnel arrive at a site after two blasts ripped through the city of Bamiyan, home to many members of the mainly Shiite Hazara ethnic minority, on Nov. 24, 2020, killing at least 14 people.Afghan security personnel arrive at a site after two blasts ripped through the city of Bamiyan, home to many members of the mainly Shiite Hazara ethnic minority, on Nov. 24, 2020, killing at least 14 people. PHOTO BY AFP VIA GETTY IMAGESIn 1939, William Lyon Mackenzie King‘s Liberal government turned its back on a boatload of Jewish migrants seeking refuge in Canada after fleeing Hitler’s onslaught. That ship was forced to return to Europe, where most of the passengers died in the Holocaust. Although bringing 25,000 Syrian refugees was a Trudeau campaign promise, Liberals enthusiastically exceeded it by relocating 44,620 Syrians as of October 2020. That magnanimity has been mutually beneficial — despite several scandals such as the SNC-Lavalin affair and cabinet minister resignations, Team Trudeau did win the 2019 election. Amidst an historical deficit — $381.6 billion — Mendicino said that Canada will welcome 1.2 million newcomers in the next three years to give the country the vital economic boost it desperately needs during this pandemic. But who Canada let’s in is an entirely different matter. Who Canada let’s in is an entirely different matter If by some miracle Hazaras fleeing persecution reach a Canadian embassy, they may face new mistreatments. Stephen Watt, co-founder of Northern Lights Canada, a Toronto-based not-for-profit organization that facilitates private sponsorship, says: “Some immigration officers at Canadian embassies have insufficient knowledge or training about certain countries. They may ask questions that make little sense, given the facts on the ground, or may look for holes in the refugee’s story that don’t exist.” He added that in one situation the official cast doubts about the exact height of the refugee he was interviewing. “You said you’re 168 centimetres. But to me you look a little shorter. Why don’t you know? Something about your story just doesn’t add up.” In a 2020 report Amnesty International stated that thousands of Afghanistani asylum-seekers were forcibly returned from Europe, either under the European Unions’ Joint Way Forward agreement (JWF) or other bilateral agreements with Afghanistan. JWF enabled host countries that did not formally recognize an asylum-seeker as a refugee — despite clear indications — to rid themselves and deport them. Many Hazaras asylum-seekers have already been forcefully deported while others helplessly await their doom. They continue to hope that countries such as Canada will step in now, before they are returned to the Taliban’s slaughterhouse. Hasina Habibullah, Sara Rastin and Negin Yari hold signs on the steps at Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 28, 2015, during a vigil held to denounce the beheading of Hazaras in Zabul, Afghanistan.Hasina Habibullah, Sara Rastin and Negin Yari hold signs on the steps at Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 28, 2015, during a vigil held to denounce the beheading of Hazaras in Zabul, Afghanistan. PHOTO BY ASHLEY FRASER/POSTMEDIA NEWSPredictably, the Taliban who were freed have joyfully rejoined their insurgency group, which according to the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), resulted in 8,820 civilian casualties in 2020. In 2021 UNAMA has reported: “80 per cent of civilian casualties to be of the Shi’a Muslim religious minority belonging to the Hazara ethnic group.” In fact, last month, seven Hazara labourers were kidnapped and executed 20 kilometres east of Jalalabad. In October of last year 24 Hazara students aged between 15 and 26 were killed at the Kawsar education centre. In May 2020 a maternity ward in Dashti Barchi district, which was managed by Médecins Sans Frontières, was attacked, leaving a carnage of lifeless newborns and medical staff. Despite an intense and costly campaign, Canada lost its 2018 bid for a seat on the UN security council.