Getting to know Najaf



• In the late-1980s the former (Soviets) dropped a rocket on his family home, killing his brother and brother-in-law, and permanently injuring his mother and himself (he suffered leg injuries).

• The Taliban murdered his uncle and cousin in 1998

• Nearly died on the boat overturned by a cyclone but the navy rescued them

• Washed dishes for a dollar an hour

• His wife and three-year-old daughter remain in Afghanistan and he regularly sends money to them and other family members

• A member of the Hazara ethnic minority

• He is a rug-maker

• Former soviets dropped a rocket on his home in the late 1980s

• The Taliban murdered his uncle and cousin in 1998

• Paid a people smuggler $3500 in 2001 to bring him to Australia

• Sent to a refugee camp called Woomera

• As a child he had a bomb dropped on his home, it killed his brother and brother-in-law.

• He badly injured his leg and was no help to his family so they were unhappy with him

• He then got a job at the rug repair shop. He loved going to work.

• He married his wife and had a daughter.

• He got captured by the Taliban, and put in a room with many other Hazara men. They took them out one by one and tried to make them admit to killing Taliban, and some men admitted to it just so they could die and escape the whippings.

• He was released from this place and decided to flee to Australia.

• He was kept in a detention centre for four months.

• Najaf was then released and bought a building to open his rug shop.

• His wife and daughter were then granted entry into Australia and they gained citizenship.

• In the late-1980s the former (Soviets) dropped a rocket on his family home, killing his brother and brother-in-law, and permanently injuring his mother and himself (he suffered leg injuries).

• The latter (Taliban) murdered his uncle and cousin in 1998 by setting their house alight.

• He travelled by car to Pakistan, then by plane to Indonesia where he boarded a small fishing vessel with 96 other asylum seekers.

• He was incarcerated for four months while his case was assessed.

• He witnessed acts of frustration and despair, including detainees cutting themselves.

• He moved to Melbourne hoping to find factory work.

• He sells all manner of rugs from Afghanistan and India, and carries out repairs sent to him from around the country.

• He went on to work with carpet and rug manufacturer Customweave, before friends helped him open his own business, Afghan Traditional Rugs, in 2002

• One customer has since become his "Australian mum". Robin Bourke, a retired teacher from East Hawthorn, was looking for a cushion cover but ended up with a new student. Now Mazari visits Bourke and her husband on Thursday nights for a meal and an English lesson.

• Mazari's life has been enriched since he was granted permanent residency in July.