Afghan teen Roya Shams on her first two months in Canada

Helped by the Star and its readers to leave Afghanistan, where her dad was killed by the Taliban,
teen Roya Shams reflects on life in Canada.

Kevin Ferrell Photo / Kevin Ferrell Photo

Afghan teenager Roya Shams, 17, shows off her new mittens, especially knitted for her by Toronto Star
reader Marcia Iwasaki. It took Iwasaki two nights to knit the mittens. "I wanted her to feel like people
across the country are wishing her well and cheering her on, Iwasaki said.
By: Roya Shams Special to the Star, Published on Mon Mar 26 2012

With help from the Toronto Star, staff writer Paul Watson and Star readers, along with the Canadian
International Learning Foundation, Roya Shams arrived in Canada from Kandahar in January to attend
school. Roya, 17, is the youngest of nine children of Afghan police Col. Haji Sayed Gulab Shah, who
was fatally shot by the Taliban in an ambush last July. She and the rest of her family became targets as
well. Roya hopes to become a politician and advocate for womens rights in her country.
I have been in Canada two months, and many people have asked me what is the biggest difference in
my life since I left Afghanistan.
As an Afghan girl I can say that now I feel independent. Now I can make decisions about my life. I
have been able to travel out of my country, I can study, and I can walk on the streets without wearing a
burqa. In Afghanistan women are forced to wear a burqa, though it is not required in our religion.

Sometimes wearing a burqa makes you feel like a horse wearing blinkers, only seeing what is directly
in front of you. It is hard to breathe, and sometimes it gives you a headache.
Once I felt that I was safe, that no one would shoot me or kidnap me, I felt very comfortable. It was so
new to see everything so clearly. Now I can feel nature, sunshine and fresh air and I feel I can benefit
from every moment of my life.
Most important, my mind has opened. In Afghanistan I thought about little things, just about my own
life and studies. Now, the world seems bigger to me and I think I can affect other womens lives by
showing that many thing that seem impossible, dreams of a better future, can be achieved.
I can also say that my mind is more relaxed. By that I mean, that I am not afraid any more that a bomb
will explode at my school.
Kandahar was the most dangerous place, especially for women. Once there was a protest outside my
school. Demonstrators who oppose education for girls set fire to our bus, our library and the school. All
the girls were crying and some were injured and I was slightly hurt, too. But my parents told me that it
wasnt serious and I had to go back to school, though many parents wouldnt let their daughters return.
My father was an unusual man. He wanted the same education for his daughters as his sons.
Object 1

Even though it was not safe, I wanted to go to school, too. I didnt want to stay at home to be forever
under the control of men.
The structure of school is different in Canada. In Kandahar, our classes lasted three hours without a
break, every morning and afternoon. At Ashbury College in Ottawa, where I now go to school, each
class is about one hour. We also have spares, and students and their teachers meet in special groups
where we share problems, ideas and good news. I like being able to take a break for fresh air and to sit
with other students and eat.
In Canada girls and boys go to school equally. Co-education brings lots of ideas and creates strong
minds. I have also seen equality among men and women since I have been in Canada. I was so
surprised to see lots of women driving. (I also want to learn to drive; I think I would feel even more
independent and free.) In Kandahar, I never saw a woman drive a car, I never saw a woman work in a
shop, and I never saw a woman bus driver. I am happy to see that women in Canada have more
responsibility in their work.
Recently, I went to a law class at the University of Toronto. I noticed that the women students were
excited and active in the class more than the men.
I live with a family in Ottawa. I see that they are great parents and role models for their kids and for
me, too. I have also seen Canadian families where men and women help each other at home. It seems to
make life much easier for everyone.
Women in Canada stand shoulder-to-shoulder with men and can even make decisions for their families.
One unusual thing I found in Canada is that people keep dogs in their houses. At first I found that

scary; it was so new to me because I had never been close to a dog before. They were always running
on the street. But I was told to stand like a tree and the dog would ignore me. It worked!
Since coming to Canada I have travelled to Quebec and British Columbia. I have been lucky to learn so
many winter sports skating, curling, tubing and my favourite, skiing. I felt like I was flying down
the mountains. I am so fortunate to be able to learn so much about this country in school and out of
school.
At the end of March break I spent a few days in Toronto. I saw Niagara Falls amazing! Afterward, I
went out for ice cream in Niagara-on-the-Lake. As a woman, I would never have been able to do that in
Afghanistan.
I wish that Afghan women could have the freedom that I have here in Canada.
I know and I have seen in Canada that women are not weak. But here they have the right to an
education, to work, to decide about their own lives. Afghan women are also not weak they are brave
but they need the help of the world to defend their rights.
With help from Leslie Scrivener

Afghan teen dreams of being the 'voice for the voiceless,' but fears for
future of her homeland

CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2014 10:19PM EDT
Last Updated Tuesday, March 11, 2014 10:37PM EDT
An Afghan teenager who came to Canada to fulfill a dream of receiving a formal education said she
fears for women in her homeland as Canadas tour of duty in the war-torn country comes to a close.
In an interview with CTV News Tuesday, Roya Shams said shes concerned that women and children
will once again be denied the opportunity to attend school, and that the absence of Canadian troops on
the ground will lead to renewed violence in her native hometown of Kandahar.
I think the doors will again be closed for women, she told CTV News chief anchor Lisa LaFlamme.
No one can feel safe now in Afghanistan because they are scared the Taliban will just come back and
take over and the same violence will start again.

Shams is currently attending grade 11 at an Ottawa boarding school, but she grew up in Kandahar
where her father, the police chief, was killed by the Taliban.
Before his death, Shams father instilled in her a dream of a formal education. He sent all five of his
daughters to school.
Shams said she was with her father when she first saw Canadian troops in Kandahar. It was a new
picture of another soldier, another hero, she said.
Her father had a really good relationship with foreign troops, Shams said, and told to her that they
were there to help.
They had the same beliefs; that women should be free, that we should have a good educational
system, we should have stable security in our country, Shams said.
It was the people who were against freedom and independence that assassinated her father, she said.
Shams said foreign aid and the presence of foreign troops has led to progress for Afghan women in the
last 12 years since the war began. Many were able to attend school -- something strictly forbidden
under previous Taliban rule -- and as a result, were able to obtain jobs.
After nearly two years in Canada, Shams said she misses Afghanistan, and not being able to see her
family.
I do miss my homeland and it is hard for me, but I really enjoy being in Canada, she said.
But Shams, who has political aspirations, said she wants to return to her homeland one day, and be the
voice of hope for all women and children in Afghanistan.
Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/afghan-teen-dreams-of-being-the-voice-for-the-voicelessbut-fears-for-future-of-her-homeland-1.1725116#ixzz3JWsuWXYh