Each colleague is connected to a different life, a new fear, a unique story.
Many callers are women, mothers with young children, widows, single women who have built their entire lives in Pakistan but now fear that everything could change overnight.
Sumaya’s job is to help them in their most vulnerable moments.
Return to Afghanistan
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021, hundreds of thousands of Afghans have fled across the border into Pakistan, joining an already large refugee population that has been there for decades.
But uncertainty has increased following the Government of Pakistan’s decision to proceed with the implementation of its ‘Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan’ (IFRP), more than one million Afghans have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan.
For decades, many of them have called Pakistan home and struggle with the prospect of returning to a country in a protracted humanitarian crisis.
Houses raided
When Sumaiya, who works for UNHCR, receives callers, she refers them to relevant services offered by UNHCR, which also support the helpline.
Provide guidance and share practical information.
But what weighs most on him is not being able to provide security to those who call.
She recalls a conversation with a single mother who burst into tears and explained that her house had been broken into and demolished, and that none of her neighbors would open the doors to her and her children.
Some days she finishes her shift feeling exhausted – “helpless,” she admitted – but every morning she returns to support those less fortunate than her.
Bridge between fear and clarity
Refugees and asylum seekers, especially those residing around Pakistan’s capital Islamabad, can no longer easily access UNHCR offices or the locations of its partners, as movement has been further restricted.
Many callers now seek help clearing up rumors, misinformation about deportation, or false promises of resettlement in exchange for money. The helpline has become a lifeline for many.
“If the helpline didn’t exist, many people would be deceived, deceived or terrorized for no reason.” Sumaiya said.
For people who cannot leave home, conversations with Sumaya and her colleagues are often the only bridge between them and accurate information; sometimes the only bridge between fear and clarity.
hope prevails
Amid the many painful calls he faces, one memory continues to give him strength.
An elderly Afghan woman, all alone, once called her simply to thank her. She had received life-saving cash assistance from UNHCR and wanted Sumaya to know what it meant to her.
“The woman had no family, no support system, no safety net. She lives completely alone,” Sumaiya recalled. “He must have been around 55, but he looked much older. For a brief moment, I felt like my work really mattered. Our work at UNHCR reaches the people who need it most.”