Julio is a Rasta from Mauritius, a small island nation east of Madagascar. He was a talented young footballer, but he suffered discrimination and was targeted by police violence due to his ethnicity and religion.

The descendants of slavery from Africa do not have equal rights or opportunities in Mauritius. People who have been classified as part of the “General Population” are outside of the main three communities who hold power, and they lack political representation.

In this interview, Julio tells us about his experiences of growing up on the island and about the persecution that forced him to leave. We also talk about what it was like to come to the UK and the challenges of making a new life in a new land.

Julio has recently appeared in a documentary by Allez Productions entitled “Voice of the Voiceless – The story of a Rastafarian footballer.”

The post Julio: “Let me go outside” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Usman Khalid is a social entrepreneur and refugee. He founded HAVEN Coffee in 2019 as a coffee brand with a social mission. In this interview he tells us all about the story behind the project and the flagship café in London.

We also have news of Usman’s forthcoming Laff-ucino comedy fundraiser with Shappi Khorsandi, coming up in Refugee Week 2025 on 19th June at the Big Penny Social! Tickets are available now for £15.

The post Usman: Comedians in Charities Getting Coffee appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Dr. Nooralhaq Nasimi MBE is a human rights activist and founder of the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association (ACAA). He struggled against the Soviets and the Taliban before fleeing to the UK with his family in 1999.

He has been awarded an MBE for his work to support refugee communities, as well as the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Services 2018, the London Prestige Award, the London Asian Business Award, the Mayor of Lewisham Award and an Honorary Doctorate in Law and Social Science from Royal Holloway University.

In this programme Dr Nasimi talks to Refugee Radio about his activism and community work, as well as the story of his family’s dangerous journey across Europe in a perilous search for safety.

The post Dr Nasimi: “The next Secretary General” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Patrick interviews Qahraman, an veterinarian from Kurdistan (Iraq), about his experiences of going through the asylum system. Qahraman was housed in Derby, Manchester and finally in Brighton where he started to attend Refugee Radio. Qahraman talk about some of the funny stories that happened to him as a vet and shares some of the painful experiences he has suffered in his long quest for safety.

The post Qahraman: “Lovely place and lovely people.” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

The post Jordan: No one wakes up thinking- “Today I want to become a refugee” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Kolbassia Haoussou MBE is the co-founder of Survivors Speak OUT, an anti-torture network of refugees at Freedom From Torture. He has been appointed Survivor Champion for the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office initiative Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict  He has addressed the UN General Assembly in New York and the United Nationals Committed Against Torture and now he has given an in-depth interview with Refugee Radio about his life and work.

The post Kolbassia: “Loud and fearless” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Steve and Julie G visited the Hummingbird Young Leaders project in Brighton to meet the young refugees who are going to be the future leaders of tomorrow. They told us all about the things they love (and hate!) most, as well as sharing some of their favourite songs.

We would like to say a massive thank you to Bex and Phati for helping us make this programme, and to all of the Young Leaders- Doong, Anita, Ahmed, Roka and Leah.

The post Young Leaders: “Our voice matters” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Nanaha lives in a refugee camp for Saharawis in the Algerian desert. She works as a teacher for the Sandblast charity. In this programme Nanaha talks about her life and the experiences of her mother and grandmother when they were driven out of their home and forced into a life of exile for more than forty years. We also talk to Danielle, the director of Sandblast about their work in the camp and how people can get involved.

Find out more about Nanaha’s story >>

Find out more about the history of the Saharawi struggle >>

Find out more about the work of the Sandblast charity >>

The post Nanaha: “they run from death to nowhere” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Osba left his home in Ethiopia aged 15 after he was persecuted as a member of the Oromo ethnic group. He crossed the desert to Libya in search of a safe place to settle, but found himself in more danger than ever. His journey took him across the Mediterranean and through Europe where he slept rough in Paris with other asylum seekers. In this interview he tells us about his journey and about the people who helped him to find a new home.

The post Obsa: My journey from Ethiopia appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Shahireh Sharif is an Iranian writer and photographer. She recently performed her solo work, “I am an Orange Dot,” about a refugee in an orange life vest floating in the ocean, for Refugee Week 2022. Some of her fiction in English and Farsi is available via her website, Jar of Words. In this interview about her life and work we are joined by our dear friend, Farah Mohebati.

In this programme, Farah also discusses Táhirih (طاهره, “The Pure One”), who was an Iranian poet living in the 19th Century.

The post Shahireh: “Travelling with the clouds” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Part Two of the interview:

Nasrin Parvaz is a women’s and civil rights activist from Iran. She published her book “One Woman’s Struggle in Iran” with Victorina Press in 2018 about her experience of being arrested, tortured and sentenced to death for her activism. Her first novel, the Secret Letters from X to A, is out now.

You can find out more at Nasrin Parvaz’s official website.

This interview was recorded by Alex Evangelou as part of our new oral history project funded by the Heritage Lottery.

The post Nasrin: One Woman’s Struggle in Iran appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Abdelrahman was arrested at the age of 17, just a curious young bystander in Egypt’s revolutionary chaos. He thought the police would soon realise their mistake and let him go. But they never let him go for, no for more than six years of his young life and his family’s tireless campaigning.

In this interview, Abdelrahman talks to Refugee Radio about how he learnt to survive in his new life as a political prisoner, about some of the characters he met and about the ever-present fear of becoming another ghost, forgotten by the outside world.

The image on this podcast shows Abdelrahman conducting an act of everyday resistance as he refuses to stop smiling for his prison mugshot, frustrating the guards and inspiring other inmates to assert their humanity in the face of dehumanising treatment and abuse.

Abdelrahman now writes for the independent news outlet, Mada Masr, and you can read some of his articles online: https://www.madamasr.com/en/contributor/abdelrahman-al-gendy/

With music from Cairokee.

Refugee Radio would like to thank Prisoners of Conscience for their help in putting us in touch with Abdelrahman.

The post Abdelrahman: “You forgetting everything outside and everyone outside forgetting you” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Herbert is a Kenyan journalist and human rights defender who was forced to flee his home after exposing police violence in his country. In this show he tells us about his life and work and we discuss the situation in Kenya today.

Refugee Radio would like to acknowledge the help of Prisoners of Conscience, a charity that supports people who have been persecuted and imprisoned to settle in their new homes and achieve their goals. Prisoners of Conscience relies on donor support to help people like Herbert. Please visit their website to find out more about their important work and how you can get involved.

The post Herbert: “The rude boy with nothing” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Hyab is a researcher at the Institute of Technology and is an expert in human trafficking. He was forced to flee his home in Eritrea because of persecution by the government who have been held responsible for extrajudicial executions, a lack of elections and the use of indefinite military service. In this interview, Hyab talks about his experiences, the question of “human rights” and about his hopes for the future. You can find out more at his fascinating blog.

Refugee Radio would like to acknowledge the help of Prisoners of Conscience, a charity that supports people who have been persecuted and imprisoned to settle in their new homes and achieve their goals. Prisoners of Conscience relies on donor support to help people like Hyab. Please visit their website to find out more about their important work and how you can get involved.

The post Hyab: “The neighbour who calls me a neighbour” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

When the Taliban gave an order for the execution of Hamed Amiri’s mother, the family knew they had to escape, starting what would be a long and dangerous journey, across Russia and through Europe, with the UK as their ultimate destination.

Travelling as refugees for a year and a half, they suffered attacks from mafia and police; terrifying journeys in strangers’ cars; treks across demanding terrain; days spent hidden in lorries without food or drink; and being robbed at gunpoint of every penny they owned. The family’s need to reach the UK was intensified by their eldest son’s deteriorating condition, and the prospect of life-saving treatment it offered.

The post Hamed: “The Boy with Two Hearts” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Featuring music from Kalochori, a refugee camp in Greece, by Amar, Rody and Ronav Zeno.

This interview was recorded on the event of the publication of a new anthology entitled Resistance- Voices of Exiled Writers, which is available now from Palewell Press.

The post Amir: “We want to live” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

“Resistance- Voices of Exiled Writers” is available now from Palewell Press.

Shirin Razavian: British poet born in Tehran, has been writing poetry since the age of 9. She studied Persian literature and psychology but due to the censorship and lack of freedom of expression in Iran, she fled her country and started building a new life in London where she became a qualified accountant and continued a career in finance.

Shirin’s poetry has been featured in Poetry London, Index on Censorship, Exiled Writers Magazine, The London Magazine, Agenda and Persian Book Review among others. She has published 5 Farsi and English poetry collections in the UK, the latest of which was Which Shade of Blue featuring original works and translations by the poet and translator of Russian literature, Robert Chandler.

She has worked with the Iranian PEN Centre in Exile and Iranian Writers Association in Exiles as a member of the the management committee, is currently a member of the editorial committee in Exiled Writers Ink! and sits on the panel of judges for the Jaleh Esfahani poetry prize.

Her first selection of poems in Persian, titled “Words to thoughts” was published in London in October 1995

Shirin’s second book was published in June 1999 called “The Sad Universality of Oyster”. Her third book named  ”Sweet Sonnets” was published in 2001 includes 50 “Ghazals” on social and political themes.

In 2008 she was nominated as one of the wriers to be featured in a translation project facilitated by Exiled Writers Ink! and funded by the Arts Council where a selection of her poems was translated into English and published in a book called “Free Fall”.

Her fifth selection of English and Persian poems “Which Shade of Blue” was published in London and was equally well-received by both Iranian and English-speaking readers.

Shirin has been accredited for being one of the few poets of her generation to have captured the traditional Persian poetry and write Ghazals with comfort and passion.

For more information please visit: www.ShirinRazavian.com

Instagram @ShirinRazavianPoetry

Instagram @ShirinRazavianArt

Facebook @ShirinRazavianPoetry

The post Shirin: “The silence of the night” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

The post Paul: “My heart is back home” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Xinjiang is west of the Great Wall, and was not historically part of China. The residents refer to it as East Turkestan. These days it has become a police state of checkpoints and futuristic surveillance, while anywhere between one and three million people are interned in concentration camps and subjected to forced labour. The official line is that the camps are “re-education” centres for students, but witnesses say that this a cover for brainwashing and torture.

In this podcast, Rahima shares her experiences of growing up in the area and the latest revelations from those inside the camps. She also shares ways that people can get involved in raising awareness and taking action.

Rahima finds relief from all of the sadness and pain in music, and we are happy to share some of her songs in this podcast.

The post Rahima: “Save my people, stop China’s Uyghur genocide” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Excerpt from the chapter about Farah’s life story from the Castaway Heritage book:

Farah was born in Yazd, Iran, in the summer of 1942 to a respected family. Her parents were esteemed in the community, but her father belonged to the Bahá’i Faith, which was a minority religion, and not officially recognised by the government.

            The family left Iran and moved to India when Farah was just a baby and she spent most of her childhood in Bombay, present-day Mumbai. She loved India; she has fond memories of playing around the harbour with her friends (speaking Urdu), starting school (speaking English), and enjoying home-life with her family (speaking Farsi).

            The family did well in India. Farah’s father opened a shop selling coffee and medicines. Her parents both made many friends. But, sadly, their happy life in India was to come to an end around the time of Gandhi’s assassination. Widespread rioting led to hundreds of deaths and an escalation of the Hindu-Muslim violence that had beset Bombay for decades. Thousands of people fled the city. Bombs were being planted on ships in the harbour and rioters were arming themselves with knives. Farah’s father decided that it was time for the family to leave when he saw two men fighting outside of his shop, with one man murdering the other horribly. Farah was six years old.

            She knew leaving was not an easy decision, as her mother was in the later stages of pregnancy and the journey would be dangerous. But foreigners were being targeted and it would be even more dangerous to stay.

            Farah remembers watching the ceremony of their Indian friends saying goodbye, presenting gifts, kissing her parents and placing garlands of flowers around their heads. She was deeply moved by the scene.

            “My parents were loving and caring people,” said Farah. “They taught me to love all humanity, show kindness to everybody, to be polite to everyone. My parents were magnificent people who always opened their house to everyone. They came for prayer, meditation and to eat, and I learned a lot from them. They were always kind to family, relatives and everybody.”

            The family returned to Iran and settled in the capital city, Tehran. Her father opened a furniture business and they prospered, enjoying balmy summers in the citrus groves on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

The post Farah: “All together like a family” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Kumar talks about the horrific persecution he faced as a gay man growing up in India and his desperate search for somewhere that would accept him.

“The main thing in England is that homosexuality is legal. I can freely live openly with my sexuality. I have no need to hide and no need to be scared. My childhood friend he told me if you go England you can live safely there. After I had been here for a few days, in the night times I started hearing my partner’s voice, the one who was killed. He is trying to talk with me and I am seeing he is passing in front of my eyes and he is saying to me to come to him, like that. But after that I facing like that day every day. Every day like that and I didn’t know what’s happening to me.”

The post Kumar: “I have no need to hide and no need to be scared” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Peter from Zimbabwe talks about his work supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking children with mental health needs. We discuss how they struggle with social isolation and adapting to a new life in Brighton without their families around to help them.

The post Peter: supporting the mental health of refugee children appeared first on Refugee Radio.

“It was a nightmare, wasn’t good at all. According to the Home Office, they can come and take you away but you can’t say no. They can take you anywhere they want to, because the moment you say no, they can put you in detention. So they can take you were they want to. So they take me to Manchester.”

Paul is a refugee now. He left his home in East Africa when he was 30 and travelled to the UK. He did not want to leave his family, but he knew that if he stayed behind he would die.

In this interview, recorded for the Castaway Heritage project, Ayah talks to Paul about his life as an asylum seeker and a refugee in the UK.

The post Paul: “Never Give Up” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Luqman Onikosi was born in a tiny village near the lakes and forests along the river Niger. I first met him when he was a student at the University of Sussex, about ten years ago. At that time he was the president of the All-Africa Student Union and was organising a big fundraising concert, something he has continued to do over the years. He had just marshalled his fellow students into a campaign for him to be allowed to stay in the country, which is also something he has continued to do over the years.

I have interviewed Luqman a few times over the years and in this show, recorded in 2019, I find him still fighting with the Home Office for the right to remain in the UK.

The post Luqman: fighting for life appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Ayah interviews Esraa, a young woman from Syria who came to live in Hastings with her family as part of the resettlement scheme. We find out about the shock of relocation and the challenge of adapting to cultural differences.

The post Esraa: “I still drink my tea in the Syrian style” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

“I arrived into this country over twenty years ago and I’m currently working as an interpreter. I started interpreting on a voluntary basis in hospitals and then I thought I liked it, and then I thought I would like to have this as a career. It’s quite flexible as I can manage it with a family.

“Some of the older adults arrive with some health issues. Sometimes there is the problem of they can’t physically go to the college and attend so they would have someone to come and teach them at home, either as tutoring or on a voluntary basis. Now with any learner, if you are determined, nothing can stop you, but I’ve seen someone who doesn’t even read and write in Arabic and yet they were so determined they learnt English language and they managed to pass the driving test as well, so with determination you can conquer anything.”

The post Mrs Husni: refugee interpeter appeared first on Refugee Radio.

“I am from Algeria.  I am thirty-eight years old and I live twenty years in Europe, most of that time in UK. I left Algeria since 2000. I was eighteen.

“I followed the Home Office instructions for four years. I went to London Bridge to sign for years but I didn’t have any decision on my asylum claims, so I get tired. I didn’t get any support.  I don’t get any money.  It’s not easy to get money without status. You can’t work.  You cannot do many things.

“Still I had no decision. Even with a fresh claim. But they make me feel like I was wasting my time for nothing. I give them the proof. I don’t know if they read it or not to be honest. “

The post Mohammed: Crossing the Med on a jet ski appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Shintya interviews Valerie, an LGBT asylum seeker from Cameroon who says he will be persecuted for his sexuality if he returns home.

The post Cameroon: Valerie appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Telephone interview with an LGBT asylum seeker from Cameroon who has been persecuted because of her sexuality.

The post Cameroon: Nadia appeared first on Refugee Radio.

A telephone interview with a political activist, Maxwell, who is due to be removed back to Cameroon where he will face persecution as a member of the English-speaking minority

The post Cameroon: Maxwell appeared first on Refugee Radio.

A telephone interview recorded with Soumitra while he was imprisoned in Harmondsworth detention centre awaiting removal to Bangladesh where he faces persecution as part of the Hindu minority.

The post Soumitra: “Prison and detention is the same thing” appeared first on Refugee Radio.

A telephone interview recorded with Alain, a refugee who found himself homeless over the winter, with no family or friends to call on for help. He had been beaten and tortured in his home country because of his political beliefs and was left suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

So why does the UK goverment ignore his medical evidence and pretend that he does not have PTSD?

Alain has been active in the SCNC independence movement for Southern Cameroon. We photographed him and recorded an interview with him in front of Downing Street during a high-profile demonstration in October 2013. We published these photos on our website along with the original interview.

So why does the UK government accuse him of lying and say that he was not even there?

The post Cameroon: Alain appeared first on Refugee Radio.

These shows were produced in a series of Refugee Radio workshops by the young people at the Red Cross Refugees and Befriending projects in Lewisham, Croydon, Islington and Hammersmith, London, in 2014.

The post Red Cross R’n’B: Refugees and Befriending appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Osama Ahmadani interviews David Feindouno from Plymouth Hope about his work in the community using sport as a way to bring people together

The post Plymouth Hope: refugee football appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Osama Ahmadani talks to Waleed Abdallah, the founder of the Give Back project in Plymouth about his life and work combating racism and helping refugees to contribute to the community.

The post Waleed: Refugees Giving Back appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Osama interviews Farah about her life as a member of the Baháʼí Faith from Iran, now living in the UK and working tirelessly for the community.

The post Farah: A Very Long Holiday appeared first on Refugee Radio.

The post Gabriel: you have to remain strong appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Robert has fled Southern Cameroon after being persecuted and tortured for speaking out against injustice for the SCNC. Now he is living in limbo as an asylum seeker.

The post Cameroon: Robert appeared first on Refugee Radio.

Alex Ntung speaks about his book on life in the DRC from childhood in a remote mountain village to a youth caught up in ethnic conflict and genocide. It is a powerful first hand account of the Rwandan genocide and the persecution of the Banyamulenge and a must-read for anyone who is interested in the resilience of the human spirit. On sale now >> 

Bonus feature

Alex speaks at the launch of his new book about his experiences growing up in the Congo DRC and campaigning for human rights after the genocide in Rwanda. 

The post Alex Mvuka Ntung: Not My Worst Day appeared first on Refugee Radio.

A special programme recorded outside Downing Street on October 1st with a group of people from the Southern Cameroon region who are campaigning for independence and freedom. The Southern Cameroonians make up an English-speaking minority who were promised their own country after colonisation, but have found themselves brutalised and oppressed under the regime of Paul Biya, a man who has controlled the country since the 1970s.

The post Cameroon: SCNC appeared first on Refugee Radio.