But the former UN worker and feminist activist still fears for the safety of family she left behind in her home country.

They are marked for death by the Taliban, partly because they are members of the country's Hazara ethnic minority. They're among the five million internally displaced Afghans, many of them facing specific threats, who can't get out to safety.

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"The Australian government should understand that Afghanistan is the worst place for Hazara people," she said.

"Not only the Taliban is targeting Hazara people to kill, but the [majority] Pashtun people. They are directly saying that killing Hazara people is giving [you] a special place in heaven. Because we allow our daughters to study and we are broadminded. We believe our weapon should be a pen, we don't believe in a weapon that kills people."

Ms Hussaini escaped Afghanistan in the immediate aftermath of the collapse of the US-backed government, one year ago this week. She had previously survived an attempt on her life by the former terrorist group, after she organised a modest workshop on domestic violence in Bamyan.

She spent days stuck in a dangerous and packed Kabul refugee camp before spending another anxious wait in Dubai.

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Multicultural Tamworth head Eddie Whitham was one of the people who worked behind the scenes to pave the way to safety, in Australia.

Today, she's a public servant in Coffs Harbour and a permanent resident.

"The credit goes to Eddie Whitham and Jennifer Donovan [from the UN]," she said.

"I don't really know how to thank them, I really have no words.

"The only thing which really kept me going, especially during those hard days; Eddie was sending messages through WhatsApp.

"When I was in the camp, I was so horrified, and I was so scared and worried ... whenever I was receiving such messages from Jennifer and Eddie, that was giving me hope."

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Ms Hussaini intends to apply for citizenship as soon as she is eligible, in a few years.

Mr Whitham said there were untold thousands of other Afghans in a similar situation to Ms Hussaini's family.

He said the expression is that for every person in a refugee camp, there's a person behind them and another behind them.

The Taliban has "locked everything up" in Afghanistan, and very few people can get out, he said.

"They have just come down heavy and said every woman must be dressed from head to foot," he said.

"They can't go anywhere without a man standing beside her. What kind of life is that? It's a dog's life."

Aside from work, Ms Hussaini is in high demand on the public speaking circuit, regularly talking to professional groups about her experience with the Taliban.

The former UN worker plans to organise a model UN event in Coffs Harbour to teach the local kids the value of diplomacy.

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