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The Dutch government leaves Afghans who still want to be evacuated in great uncertainty, asylum lawyers say. In conversation with NU.nl, they sound the alarm: the Afghans can no longer contact them in any way and do not know where they stand.
Afghans who worked for years for Dutch aid organizations or Defense have been unable to contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since last Friday. On that day, the government decided to stop registration via [email protected] . In Afghanistan, this led to confusion among Afghans who want to be evacuated to the Netherlands, according to lawyer Barbara Wegelin, who represents about ten Afghan families.
"It is completely unclear where they stand," says Wegelin. "They have to make do with rumors and fragments of information. The Dutch government must announce who is on evacuation lists, whether it is possible to provide emergency papers, which family members can and cannot come. We are now dealing with an unreachable government that has nothing of its own." You can't do that to people in hiding who fear for their lives."
Ministries no longer respond'
A tour of asylum lawyers - who all work for abandoned Afghans without financial compensation - yields the same picture. According to them, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense and also the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) have stopped responding to phone calls and emails since the evacuations stopped.
Lawyer Vivian Oliana has a senior officer from the former Afghan army as a client, who worked closely with Dutch military personnel in Uruzgan and Kunduz. Now he and his family have to change hiding places repeatedly to avoid the Taliban.
Oliana sent three requests to get the family on an evacuation list, but there was no response. "It seems as if the government is trying to look away, debate and evaluate for as long as possible in the hope that the problem will resolve itself," said Oliana.
According to the lawyer, her client runs the risk of falling into the hands of the Taliban due to the lax behavior of the Netherlands. Oliana: "History repeats itself. It reminds me of the drama in Srebrenica, when the Netherlands did not take its responsibility in time. We have learned nothing from those dramatic events."
Why does Germany manage to evacuate people?
Lawyer Claudia van den Berg has similar experiences. She assists an Afghan employee of a Dutch aid organization who is in mortal danger. "This man falls under the motion of D66 MP Belhaj, on the basis of which aid workers are entitled to evacuation. I reported him, but never heard back," said the lawyer.
Van den Berg also pleads for clarity from the Dutch government. "In addition to the immediate family, the local staff of the Dutch embassy could also bring live-in grandparents or others who were financially dependent on them to the Netherlands. Understandable, but why is that not possible for someone who works for an aid organization?"
And then: how is it possible that the Netherlands has postponed evacuations, while, according to Wegelin, Germany has transferred Afghans overland to Pakistan in recent days? And, she says, how come there are American charter flights carrying out evacuations? And what about Afghans without a Dutch passport who, according to Wegelin, have arrived at Schiphol in recent days? It was previously said that the Taliban only allowed citizens with foreign passports through the checkpoints.
Wegelin: "Be transparent, be clear, communicate! If there are secret talks going on to get people out of Afghanistan, fine. But then say so. Then we know where we stand."
'Government sends people off'
During last Wednesday's parliamentary debate, it emerged that the outgoing cabinet, together with other European governments, is in talks with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). It is being examined whether a program for "vulnerable Afghans" can be set up.
Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that the Belhaj motion is only feasible if this international aid is called in. The lawyers see it mainly as a way to put people off and avoid personal responsibility.
Wegelin: "It is clear who is on the lists of the aid organizations and that is not thousands of people. Does the government want to send those people to refugee camps in Pakistan where they have to wait endlessly? That is not how you treat family members of Dutch passport holders and people who were our allies for years."
Oliana agrees with that view. "The outgoing cabinet has a moral obligation to lend a helping hand to the Afghans who have supported us there. Now, before it is too late."
www.nu.nl
Below just a handful of tasty comments from the news site. By all means translate thousands of other comments.
"Where does it stop? This story contains a piece about an Afghan soldier who worked with the Netherlands and expects that he and his family will be on the evacuation list. Does this mean that all Afghan soldiers should be added to this list? And the cooks who did sell something to Dutch soldiers? And the cleaners? The plumbers? I think it's terrible what happened there, but we can't take everyone in. For years we helped build and train an army there, vastly larger than the Taliban but too incapable of fighting for their own country. We cannot solve everything and take care of everyone."
"At my office, the coffee machine is not good. So, I and a number of colleagues have made a small fund that each buys coffee and tea for a few euros per person every month. Whoever contributes to the fund can then use it. Those who do not contribute can simply drink ditch water from the machine. The same should be the case with social provisions in the Netherlands. Anyone who has been integrated and has a Dutch passport and who has already contributed can, in an emergency, call on our social services. I'll bet it won't be that attractive to flee thousands of miles here unless you don't have a problem with that filthy coffee from the vending machine."
"I feel terrible for these people, but we can't help the whole world. In addition, I wonder, who pays these lawyers? And what is their right to assist a non-Dutch citizen if it is pro bono? There is so much misery, injustice and poverty in the Netherlands, let's start there."
"There are more than enough Dutch people who are abandoned by their own government in the Netherlands
Dire cases even with no prospect of normal life."
"Dutch government is abandoning Afghans, the Afghans may be abandoning the world. Soldiers who do not fight for their country, residents do not revolt."
"The example of Srebrenica is misplaced and hurtful. The Netherlands took its responsibility by being there, much too lightly armed, with promised support from the UN. It is the UN that has not fulfilled its obligations and so everyone was allowed to come to the Netherlands? Quack! The same goes for Afghanistan. Asylum lawyers are apparently waiting for work and are certainly not an objective source. The fallacy that Afghans worked for us must also end. We were there for them, so you can at least expect some. support, for example by interpreters."
"This is something new again. Most lawyers really don't care. Barring one exception. They mainly care about their own name and wallet. If those smooth counselors start interfering with this non-problem, it will only become more expensive for the Netherlands. Those refugees really don't pay those lawyers themselves. Let the lawyers deal with Dutch cases and leave the refugees in the region. We don't want them here."
"Dogs and cats that roam the streets weakened are very fragile. Of course you want to help them all and take them home. However, if you clutter your whole house with dogs and cats, you can no longer live there. Unfortunately, the truth with refugees is just as harsh. You can't help everyone. The refugee centers are full, there are no houses and work is always difficult when you have fled fresh from another country. In addition, we do check whether all the people who have worked with Dutch people are clean on the degree? One of the reasons the Taliban was able to advance so quickly is that a large part of the army switched. We don't want those people here at all."
"What I really wonder is how many Afghans have actually helped our country and the west? And how far are we going to bring here relatives of these people. Reading the stories, there are suddenly hundreds of thousands of Afghans who would have helped the west. And that corruption was rampant in Afghanistan, it will not surprise me that some of these so-called interpreters and nothing else have done for the west. It also turned out that members of some terrorist organizations were among these so-called helpers to the west: how many of these terrorists have we discovered and how many have slipped through the cracks? I also read that a high-ranking Afghan soldier also wants to come to us: like the army of 300,000 soldiers, this soldier has thrown away his weapon and uniform like a hare and now wants to flee to us. How weird can it get."
Afghans who worked for years for Dutch aid organizations or Defense have been unable to contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since last Friday. On that day, the government decided to stop registration via [email protected] . In Afghanistan, this led to confusion among Afghans who want to be evacuated to the Netherlands, according to lawyer Barbara Wegelin, who represents about ten Afghan families.
"It is completely unclear where they stand," says Wegelin. "They have to make do with rumors and fragments of information. The Dutch government must announce who is on evacuation lists, whether it is possible to provide emergency papers, which family members can and cannot come. We are now dealing with an unreachable government that has nothing of its own." You can't do that to people in hiding who fear for their lives."
Ministries no longer respond'
A tour of asylum lawyers - who all work for abandoned Afghans without financial compensation - yields the same picture. According to them, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense and also the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) have stopped responding to phone calls and emails since the evacuations stopped.
Lawyer Vivian Oliana has a senior officer from the former Afghan army as a client, who worked closely with Dutch military personnel in Uruzgan and Kunduz. Now he and his family have to change hiding places repeatedly to avoid the Taliban.
Vivian Oliana, lawyer
Oliana sent three requests to get the family on an evacuation list, but there was no response. "It seems as if the government is trying to look away, debate and evaluate for as long as possible in the hope that the problem will resolve itself," said Oliana.
According to the lawyer, her client runs the risk of falling into the hands of the Taliban due to the lax behavior of the Netherlands. Oliana: "History repeats itself. It reminds me of the drama in Srebrenica, when the Netherlands did not take its responsibility in time. We have learned nothing from those dramatic events."
Why does Germany manage to evacuate people?
Lawyer Claudia van den Berg has similar experiences. She assists an Afghan employee of a Dutch aid organization who is in mortal danger. "This man falls under the motion of D66 MP Belhaj, on the basis of which aid workers are entitled to evacuation. I reported him, but never heard back," said the lawyer.
Van den Berg also pleads for clarity from the Dutch government. "In addition to the immediate family, the local staff of the Dutch embassy could also bring live-in grandparents or others who were financially dependent on them to the Netherlands. Understandable, but why is that not possible for someone who works for an aid organization?"
Barbara Wegelin, lawyer
And then: how is it possible that the Netherlands has postponed evacuations, while, according to Wegelin, Germany has transferred Afghans overland to Pakistan in recent days? And, she says, how come there are American charter flights carrying out evacuations? And what about Afghans without a Dutch passport who, according to Wegelin, have arrived at Schiphol in recent days? It was previously said that the Taliban only allowed citizens with foreign passports through the checkpoints.
Wegelin: "Be transparent, be clear, communicate! If there are secret talks going on to get people out of Afghanistan, fine. But then say so. Then we know where we stand."
'Government sends people off'
During last Wednesday's parliamentary debate, it emerged that the outgoing cabinet, together with other European governments, is in talks with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). It is being examined whether a program for "vulnerable Afghans" can be set up.
Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that the Belhaj motion is only feasible if this international aid is called in. The lawyers see it mainly as a way to put people off and avoid personal responsibility.
Barbara Wegelin, lawyer
Wegelin: "It is clear who is on the lists of the aid organizations and that is not thousands of people. Does the government want to send those people to refugee camps in Pakistan where they have to wait endlessly? That is not how you treat family members of Dutch passport holders and people who were our allies for years."
Oliana agrees with that view. "The outgoing cabinet has a moral obligation to lend a helping hand to the Afghans who have supported us there. Now, before it is too late."
Advocaten: Nederlandse overheid laat Afghaanse vluchtelingen in de steek
De Nederlandse overheid laat Afghanen die nog geëvacueerd willen worden in grote onzekerheid, zeggen asieladvocaten. In gesprek met NU.nl luiden ze de noodklok: de Afghanen kunnen op geen enkele manier meer contact opnemen en weten niet waar ze aan toe zijn.
www.nu.nl
Below just a handful of tasty comments from the news site. By all means translate thousands of other comments.
"Where does it stop? This story contains a piece about an Afghan soldier who worked with the Netherlands and expects that he and his family will be on the evacuation list. Does this mean that all Afghan soldiers should be added to this list? And the cooks who did sell something to Dutch soldiers? And the cleaners? The plumbers? I think it's terrible what happened there, but we can't take everyone in. For years we helped build and train an army there, vastly larger than the Taliban but too incapable of fighting for their own country. We cannot solve everything and take care of everyone."
"At my office, the coffee machine is not good. So, I and a number of colleagues have made a small fund that each buys coffee and tea for a few euros per person every month. Whoever contributes to the fund can then use it. Those who do not contribute can simply drink ditch water from the machine. The same should be the case with social provisions in the Netherlands. Anyone who has been integrated and has a Dutch passport and who has already contributed can, in an emergency, call on our social services. I'll bet it won't be that attractive to flee thousands of miles here unless you don't have a problem with that filthy coffee from the vending machine."
"I feel terrible for these people, but we can't help the whole world. In addition, I wonder, who pays these lawyers? And what is their right to assist a non-Dutch citizen if it is pro bono? There is so much misery, injustice and poverty in the Netherlands, let's start there."
"There are more than enough Dutch people who are abandoned by their own government in the Netherlands
Dire cases even with no prospect of normal life."
"Dutch government is abandoning Afghans, the Afghans may be abandoning the world. Soldiers who do not fight for their country, residents do not revolt."
"The example of Srebrenica is misplaced and hurtful. The Netherlands took its responsibility by being there, much too lightly armed, with promised support from the UN. It is the UN that has not fulfilled its obligations and so everyone was allowed to come to the Netherlands? Quack! The same goes for Afghanistan. Asylum lawyers are apparently waiting for work and are certainly not an objective source. The fallacy that Afghans worked for us must also end. We were there for them, so you can at least expect some. support, for example by interpreters."
"This is something new again. Most lawyers really don't care. Barring one exception. They mainly care about their own name and wallet. If those smooth counselors start interfering with this non-problem, it will only become more expensive for the Netherlands. Those refugees really don't pay those lawyers themselves. Let the lawyers deal with Dutch cases and leave the refugees in the region. We don't want them here."
"Dogs and cats that roam the streets weakened are very fragile. Of course you want to help them all and take them home. However, if you clutter your whole house with dogs and cats, you can no longer live there. Unfortunately, the truth with refugees is just as harsh. You can't help everyone. The refugee centers are full, there are no houses and work is always difficult when you have fled fresh from another country. In addition, we do check whether all the people who have worked with Dutch people are clean on the degree? One of the reasons the Taliban was able to advance so quickly is that a large part of the army switched. We don't want those people here at all."
"What I really wonder is how many Afghans have actually helped our country and the west? And how far are we going to bring here relatives of these people. Reading the stories, there are suddenly hundreds of thousands of Afghans who would have helped the west. And that corruption was rampant in Afghanistan, it will not surprise me that some of these so-called interpreters and nothing else have done for the west. It also turned out that members of some terrorist organizations were among these so-called helpers to the west: how many of these terrorists have we discovered and how many have slipped through the cracks? I also read that a high-ranking Afghan soldier also wants to come to us: like the army of 300,000 soldiers, this soldier has thrown away his weapon and uniform like a hare and now wants to flee to us. How weird can it get."
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