Zoe* and Ramona*
Funding Progress
($10,000 AUD)
About Zoe and Ramona
We invite you to read their story below, to pray for Eliza and Mara, and to consider partnering with us as we continue to stand with them.
Please be wary their story may contain some distressing themes.
August 2026: Eliza and Mara are not doing well. Mara has been mentally struggling and has been in and out of of hospital.
Zoe’s Story
“My name is Zoe (b. 2006) and I am with my sister, Ramona (b.___). We are from Afghanistan, and are Hazara believers.
Our father was a police officer. He was taken by the Taliban just before I was born. She always hoped he would return but he never came home. Her brother was also taken by the Taliban.
Life was very turbulent for us as our family had worked for the previous Afghan administration, so our mother took us along with our two brothers and fled to Pakistan in 2007.
Encountering the Gospel
We were split from our eldest sister. She was old enough, so she chose to stay in Afghanistan. When she eventually fled to Pakistan for safety in 2021, she gave Ramona and I the Gospel. She had become a believer in 2020 through a friend in her neighbourhood who had told her about Christ.
Targeted
We managed to find a Christian gathering in Pakistan, a congregation who prayed together and taught the Bible. We joined with them on Sundays in 2022. But the last time we tried to go, we were stopped. There was a guard monitoring who went in the building to attend the meeting. We mistakenly thought he was a believer.
He did not let us in. He asked, “What are you doing here? This place is for believers, they come here for prayers – what are you doing here?” We were frightened, and we told him we had come for charity. We tried to convince him that we did not know anything of the church, and he told us to leave.
Unfortunately, as we left, he followed us. No matter where we turned, he kept on our trail. We ran away, eventually escaping.
Recently, our older brother discovered that he had converted to Christianity. When he found out, he wanted to kill us, he was so angry.
He said, “Why did you become believers? Why did you give up on Islam?” He was physically abusive towards us, and we almost died – only our mother’s crying stopped him.
He told us to leave them, because now that the police had seen our faces, they were also at risk. Here, if someone changes their religion, they humiliate the whole family. It is not unusual that the family members try to kill the converted, to keep the shame hidden.
So, we were kicked out of our home. This was the worst thing that ever happened to us.
Our Situation
With the help of a Christian brother, we are now relocated in Pakistan, but our situation is not good. We have no money, and my sister has health issues. We are two girls with no support. We have an uncle in Australia, but we cannot contact him, as only my mother has his contact and we do not think it is safe to do so considering our religion.
As young Hazara women, who have lost multiple family members to the Taliban, and are Christians, we are unable to return to Afghanistan. But we do not know how much longer we can survive here in Pakistan as refugees with no male support.”
Every bit you give will change Zoe and Ramona's lives.
More Artwork by Mara
‘For Sale.’
“This is an Afghan woman who, out of desperation, has been forced to sell her daughter. She has no other choice. By selling her daughter or marrying her off, she believes it’s the only way to keep her safe. That mother cannot afford to provide even daily food for her child. She is forced into this painful decision because she wants to protect her daughter in the only way she knows how.”
‘Resistance.’
“The Afghan flag over the mouth shows that not only society, but national identity has become a cage for women silencing their voices and cries for freedom. Despite her mouth being closed, her eyes are filled with anger and protest. She is forced into silence, but has an inner resistance. Their mouths are shut with the very things that should have protected them – their flag and their people. Yet, deep inside, there is still hope, protest, and strength.
This artwork is the silent cry of Afghan girls, shouting through art:
You silenced us, but we are not silent.”