Afghan Journalists in Exile: Free Speech, Resettlement, and Advocacy

Said Najib Asil is the Founder and Executive Director of the Free Speech Centre, a Toronto-based independent nonprofit advocating for exiled journalists, press freedom, and the rights of media professionals. Prior to that, he led the Current Affairs department at TOLOnews, Afghanistan’s largest news network before the fall of Kabul. Asil was awarded a fellowship at CBC News through the JHR (Journalism and Human Rights) program from September 2022 to September 2023. With nearly two decades of journalism experience, he has contributed to BBC World News, France 24, NPR, and The Walrus.

In this interview, Scott Douglas Jacobsen speaks with Asil. Asil reflects on his decade with TOLOnews before the fall of Kabul in 2021 and details the Free Speech Centre’s efforts to support Afghan journalists inside Afghanistan and in exile across Canada, the U.S., and Europe. He emphasizes advocacy, training, and mental health programs, while also addressing the economic and professional struggles faced by displaced media workers. The conversation highlights resilience, forced migration, and the challenges of resettlement.

Scott Douglas Jacobsen: All right, once more, we are here with the wonderful Saeed Najeeb Asil. He is now more established in Canada and continues to build various initiatives. Let me confirm a couple of things with you. You founded the Free Speech Centre. You are also part of the board of the Canadian Association of Journalists, Toronto chapter. What else?

Said Najib Asil: That is it. I also work as a freelancer.

Jacobsen: As a clarification, TOLOnews—your original organization—does it still operate in any capacity that you are involved with, even though it is based in a different country?

Asil: Yes, TOLOnews is still operating and remains Afghanistan’s largest independent news channel. I worked there for more than a decade in different positions before the fall of Kabul in August 2021. Since then, I have not been working with them.

Jacobsen: Now, what are the logistical needs of the Free Speech Centre today? Moreover, how do you envision its work for the rest of this year and into 2026?

Asil: Over the past two years, the Free Speech Centre, based on its mission, vision, and activities, has been engaged in three main areas. We are connected with journalists inside Afghanistan, as well as working with journalists in the region, including Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey. On a broader scale, we also organize events and conferences in Toronto, sharing insights into the media sector, current developments in Afghanistan, emerging narratives, and the challenges facing exiled media. We discuss these issues in Canada and with our partners in the United States.

Within Afghanistan, we are working with journalists in over 20 provinces. All of our activities, both inside and outside the country, are carried out voluntarily. Journalists inside Afghanistan share reports, documents, and updates about their cities and provinces, covering issues related to freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and the restrictions imposed on the media. We document every single case happening daily. We monitor the state of the media in the country, including the new policies and changes imposed by the Taliban, from laws to other regulations.

At the same time, we advocate on behalf of journalists, particularly those who remain in Afghanistan. Our colleagues in Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey also continue to require our support. We collaborate with organizations such as Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and International Media Support (IMS), among others, to facilitate long-term resettlement in European countries. Through the Free Speech Centre, we organize conferences, host Zoom meetings, and write narratives on their behalf.

They are sharing their documents, and we provide recommendations and support letters to those organizations when references are needed. This is part of our advocacy work at the Free Speech Centre. In Canada, as well as with some of our volunteer journalist colleagues in the U.S., we are working to share the realities of the media sector over the past four years in Afghanistan, as well as the ongoing struggles. More than 7,000 journalists have left the country and are now residing in North America, Europe, and other regions. The reality of life in these countries is complex, and we are organizing events, conferences, and networking opportunities to address this complexity. For those still struggling with mental health issues and trauma, we organize webinars to help connect them with Canadian media organizations, so they can learn more and adapt. We are also providing training programs. These are part of our activities and mission at the Free Speech Centre from last year to the present.

Jacobsen: Every organization has resource limits. PMany organizations, for instance, base their work around support groups for people who have suffered in various ways. They may have different experiences but similar traumas and backgrounds, which allows them to share and support each other. If you provide a space—such as forums or Zoom meetings—where they can converse and share their stories, it can be a means of coping. Is that a possibility through your center, or perhaps in collaboration with another organization?

Asil: Yes, it is possible, and it is essential for journalists. Journalists living in exile, as well as those still in Afghanistan, particularly women journalists, face enormous struggles. We understand the daily struggles of women journalists. In Europe and North America, Afghan journalists who have resettled over the past two to three years continue to face challenges. Meanwhile, women inside Afghanistan are no longer allowed to work in the media industry; they have been silenced and confined to their homes. They are struggling with mental health issues and trauma. To address this, we organize programs through Zoom and other platforms. We connect 20 to 30 journalists from various parts of the world, including Afghan journalists, and collaborate with universities and professors specializing in mental health. They share their knowledge, guidance, and strategies to help journalists survive and cope with their circumstances.

Jacobsen: I remember speaking with a Kurdish colleague many years ago about resettlement, before you and I even met. I said that people come to a new country out of necessity—they do not want to leave their homeland—but eventually, they resettle. He responded gently, but rhetorically: “Do they?” That struck me as a good question. From his experience, it seemed that a new place does not necessarily feel like home, even after many years have passed. What is your sense of the character of being forced by necessity out of one’s homeland—resettling, and the psychological process involved in that?

Asil: Right, so from two perspectives. First, for those who want to leave their countries and build a new life elsewhere, that is an entirely different case. However, for us, especially Afghan journalists, it was different. For me and hundreds of friends and colleagues, we already had jobs, good opportunities, and were able to work for our people inside Afghanistan. We continued in this way. We travelled to different parts of the world, but we always returned home to stay and work, because we knew how important it was to be journalists within our own country.

After August 2021, everything changed. There was no longer space for journalists, activists, women, or professors. These people had to leave the country. I never wanted to live in Toronto or anywhere else—I never expected it—but this is what happened. This is the reality. Moreover, this reality is complicated for journalists, activists, and others who were forced to leave their country because of war or oppression.

For us as journalists, it is tough. Many worked in Afghanistan for more than two decades. Some were anchors presenting the 6 p.m. news bulletin to over 20 million Afghans daily. In Canada and other countries, some individuals are working for Uber or in the construction industry. If we look deeply into their lives, it is a constant struggle—working to pay bills at the end of the month. Based on these realities, I would say it is tough to find yourself in a new country. It takes time to reestablish your life, to figure out how to continue, and to pursue the professional dreams you once had. Sometimes you are not allowed the chance to continue in your profession. This is the reality for Afghan journalists who have been exiled.

Jacobsen: What stories have struck you the most of those who have come to a new country and have managed to thrive?

Asil: I know many journalists, especially over the past three years in Canada, particularly in Toronto. I truly appreciate the support of the Global Reporting Centre (GRC), which, following 2021, offered Afghan journalists a one-year fellowship program. Approximately 10 Afghan journalists received this opportunity and collaborated with various media organizations. I completed my fellowship at CBC, while my friends and colleagues worked at outlets such as CBC, CTV, the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, and others for a year.

However, after the year ended, because the media market—especially in Toronto—is so saturated, it was tough to secure permanent positions. I am still in touch with most of them, and nearly all of them were unable to secure jobs in Canadian media after completing their fellowships. This is even though many of them had worked with major international media organizations, such as The Wall Street Journal and BBC World News, and were well-known journalists across Afghanistan and Central Asia. It shows how hard it is for them, even with strong professional backgrounds, to continue their careers here.

At the same time, living expenses—especially in a city like Toronto—make it extremely difficult for journalists to survive, particularly for families of five or six. This is the new reality. Rent, utilities, food, and bills are all very costly. As a result, many journalists have transitioned into other types of work. Some have enrolled in certificate programs to become mechanics or enter trades through programs like Hi-Work. When I see these journalists daily, it is hard because they don’t want to be driving Uber or doing jobs outside their profession. However, this is the reality they are continuing with now.

Jacobsen: Said, Thank you so much for your time today. I appreciate it.

Asil: I appreciate it as well, thank you so much.

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Scott Douglas Jacobsen is the publisher of In-Sight Publishing (ISBN: 978-1-0692343) and Editor-in-Chief of In-Sight: Interviews (ISSN: 2369-6885). He writes for The Good Men Project, International Policy Digest (ISSN: 2332–9416), The Humanist (Print: ISSN 0018-7399; Online: ISSN 2163-3576), Basic Income Earth Network (UK Registered Charity 1177066), A Further Inquiry, and other media. He is a member in good standing of numerous media organizations.

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