A leading advocate for refugees, asylum seekers and minority ethnic communities has spoken of his commitment to “pay back Belfast” for the kindness shown to him when he first arrived in the city more than three decades ago.
Dr Raied Al-Wazzan moved to Belfast from Iraq in 1990 to study a master’s degree in physics at Queen’s University.
“I had a scholarship from the Iraqi government to do a master’s degree and a PhD in physics,” he told The Irish News.
“I had been given four countries to choose from, Canada, America, India and the UK, and I picked the UK because it was easier to get a visa at that time.
“I had a list of about 10 universities that taught the subject I was interested in and Queen’s was actually at the bottom of my list because of the Troubles but a friend convinced me to come and have a look.”
Arriving in Belfast on July 4, 1990, Al-Wazzan visited the university’s physics department where lecturer Chris Mee showed him around the department and its facilities, convincing him Queen’s was where he wanted to study.
Dr Raied Al-Wazzan from the Belfast Islamic Centre.
“He took me around the department and I was impressed,” he recalled.
“They had a mechanical workshop, an electronic workshop, a glass workshop and a photographic workshop.
“He told me before I started my master’s degree I would spend time in all these places learning so I could help myself during my research.
“That really impressed me.
“I also asked him if he could give me a list of the papers they had published in the last year. He gave me a big bundle, which was considerably more than the other universities had shown me.
“They’d also published a lot of high-quality research in the field I was interested in. So, on the spot, I made my decision. This is the place where I need to study. Forget about all the Troubles. I’m not going to be part of it.”
Just weeks later, however, Iraq invaded Kuwait, triggering the Gulf War which led to Iraqi assets being frozen and Al-Wazzan’s scholarship payments being suspended.
“Automatically the British authorities froze all our bank accounts,” he said.
“We were not capable of drawing our own money and all the salaries we used to get from the embassy stopped.
“The cheques bounced back and I ended up in a really hard situation. No money. Nothing. I didn’t know how I’d survive.”
With no way of paying his tuition fees, Al-Wazzan said he feared his studies could be over before they had properly begun, until Queen’s found a solution.
“I did the course unofficially,” he explained.
“Queen’s said they couldn’t register me as a student because I couldn’t pay the fees and I understood their point of view.
“But they allowed me to do the course without registering as a student.”
Al-Wazzan said he feared his studies could be over before they had properly begun, until Queen’s found a solution.
Despite the uncertainty, Al-Wazzan was able to complete his master’s degree after a company within the physics department stepped in to help.
“The company had just started up and needed someone to work on a new project,” he recalled.
“I made a deal with them. They gave me a studentship to do a PhD and they paid my fees back to Queen’s in instalments.
“The university took part of the money to pay my outstanding fees and I received the rest as a studentship so I could survive.”
While his original intention had been to complete his studies and return home to Iraq, Al-Wazzan said the aftermath of the war made that impossible.
“After the war there were sanctions imposed on Iraq,” he explained. “There were no jobs, there was nothing there.”
Having completed his PhD he accepted a position with the same company that had supported his studies. In 1996 the business relocated from Queen’s University to west Belfast, where Al-Wazzan continued to build both his career and his life.
Today, he works as a senior physicist at Andor Technology PLC and still lives in west Belfast with his family.
“After that things started to get better for me. I had a job and a normal life.”
It was during those years that Al-Wazzan decided he wanted to repay the support he had received when he first arrived in Belfast.
Raied Al-Wazzan wants to repay the support he had received when he first arrived in Belfast.
“After a few years I decided to pay back the community,” he said.
“The first thing I got involved with was the Belfast Islamic Centre.
“But after a few years I said, ‘No, that’s not enough to pay back the community for all the help I got during my hard time.’
“So I became a governor of a school and, in the last six years, I have also been involved with the Policing and Community Safety Partnership in Belfast.
“And I’m still serving on all of those voluntarily because I want to serve the wider community rather than just the Muslim community.”
Raied Al-Wazzan, a member of the Muslim community (Raied Al-Wazzan, a member of the Muslim community)
That commitment has seen Al-Wazzan become one of Belfast’s most recognisable advocates for minority ethnic communities.
However, he admits it was never a role he deliberately set out to take on.
“When the media contact ethnic minority organisations nobody is willing to talk to them because they don’t want their face to be known,” he explained.
There are lots of people, innocent people, who need help and need somebody to advocate for them and that’s why I keep going, because I believe I could still do more
— Dr Raied Al-Wazzan
“Even in the Islamic Centre nobody wants to speak to the media. But some of the journalists have my number and contact me and, just by replying to them and speaking to the media, I somehow became the spokesman for the ethnic minority.”
As racial tensions have flared in recent years, Al-Wazzan has increasingly found himself speaking on behalf of people who feel unable to speak publicly.
“Because of my community work I get lots of abuse from racists on social media and because of that I do sometimes wonder why I put myself in certain positions,” he admitted.
Raied Al-Wazzan, a member of the Muslim community in Northern Ireland addresses an anti-racism rally in Belfast city centre.
“But at the same time there are lots of people, innocent people, who need help and need somebody to advocate for them and that’s why I keep going, because I believe I could still do more.”
While the demands can sometimes be overwhelming he says he is fortunate to have others equally committed to helping people in need.
“I have lots of friends who help as well and there are lots of people, especially ladies within the Muslim community, who do a tremendous amount of work.”
Despite the challenges, Al-Wazzan says he has never questioned his decision to continue serving the wider community.
Much of that, he says, is down to the unwavering support of his wife, Ayat.
“She’s incredible,” he said.
“I couldn’t do any of the things I do without her support and the support of my family. They’ve always been great.”
Last month Al-Wazzan’s decades of service were recognised when he received the Spirit of Féile Award in recognition of his contribution to making Belfast a more welcoming and inclusive city.
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Dr Raied Al-Wazzan who was presented with the Spirit of Feile Award at the annual Feile an Phobail launch in at St Marys University in west Befast. PICTURE: MAL MCCANN
Despite the honour, he remains characteristically modest about what he has achieved.
“I was surprised,” he admitted.
“A friend phoned me and asked if he could give the Féile organisers my number.
“I thought they wanted me to give a lecture about Ireland because I’d spoken about it in the media and on podcasts.
“But then they phoned and told me they wanted to give me the Spirit of Féile Award.
“I said, ‘Why me? There are lots of people doing a good job out there.’
“They said, ‘No, this year we decided it should go to you.’”
Despite the honour, Dr Raied Al-Wazzan remains characteristically modest about what he has achieved. PICTURE: MAL MCCANN
Although grateful for the recognition, Al-Wazzan insists his work is far from finished.
More than 35 years after first arriving in Belfast, he still believes he has not done enough to repay the city that welcomed him.
“I don’t think what I’ve done is enough to pay Belfast back for all the help I got during my hard time,” he said.
“I’ll continue serving the wider community for as long as I can.”