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The Conversation: Migrants: Cynthia Masiyiwa and Mahboba Rawi

Cynthia Masiyiwa and Mahboba Rawi

17/08/2015

Migrants: Cynthia Masiyiwa and Mahboba Rawi

BBC World Service - The Conversation, Migrants: Cynthia Masiyiwa and Mahboba Rawi

Leaving Zimbabwe and Afghanistan, two migrants discuss belonging to two cultures.

Two migrants from Zimbabwe and Afghanistan discuss their journeys to find freedom and fulfilment in a new country and why they help others who have made a similar journey.

Mahboba Rawi was a teenager when the Soviet-Afghan War broke out. She led protests against Soviet control in her high school. After she was nearly arrested, she decided to flee the country. Along with millions of others, Mahboba made the ten day walk to the border with Pakistan, not knowing whether she would ever see the relatives she was leaving behind again. Eventually, she married an Afghan-Australian man and settled with him in Australia. Life took another tragic turn when her son drowned in an accident. His death moved her to set up her own charity, Mahboba's Promise which supports impoverished children and widows in Afghanistan. 

Cynthia Masiyiwa left Zimbabwe ten years ago when the country was in political and economic crisis. Worried for her future, her parents sent her to live with her sister in the UK. Cynthia thought the UK would be a "land of opportunities", but she quickly experienced several setbacks. She disliked the cold climate, the "frosty" behaviour of Londoners - and then her mother died. As the only black student in her class, Cynthia was shocked to experience racism; in fact she jokes that running from bullies helped her become a 'champion sprinter'. Later she gained the confidence to challenge the prejudices of her peers and eventually her classmates became her allies. Now she works for Citizens UK helping other young migrants to navigate the immigration system and even persuading the government to improve it.

(Photo: Cynthia Masiyiwa. Credit: Cynthia Masiyiwa)
(Photo: Mahboba Rawi. Credit: Rob Tuckwell Photography)

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