Afghan asylum seekers and refugees in Liverpool reveal fears for fleeing families

Afghan asylum seekers and refugees in Liverpool have been sharing fears about their families safety following a Taliban takeover in Afghanistan.

Merseyside charity, Asylum Link, which offers a range of services to asylum seekers and refugees who are in need, said their Afghan clients are traumatised by a lack of “solid information” and absence of direction from the Home Office.

The Taliban has started to form a government in Afghanistan after taking control of the capital Kabul, 20 years after being overthrown by a US-led coalition.

There have been chaotic scenes at Kabul airport as thousands attempt to flee the country.

Fears for families

Asylum Link centre manager Ewan Roberts told LiverpoolWorld the centre has 127 clients from Afghanistan, adding: “This is a really difficult time for many Afghans here.

“The lack of solid information about what is happening leaves people fearing the worst and we know one person who’s already lost a family member.

‘“The life of a refugee is never fully settled until you manage to get your family and loved ones to safety as well.

“A couple of years ago, one man was granted reunion visas for most of his family, but because he had some kids who were over 18, they were not allowed to join the rest of the family.

‘Now the Taliban are back in power and he’s distraught not knowing what will happen to his children left behind.

“Trying to find out what to do is baffling. The Home Office is impenetrable.

“There is no one to speak to, no way to get inside the maze of officialdom, no information despite the knowledge this has been coming for months.”

He explained that another client arrived in the UK in 2017 and only completed a family reunion visa for his wife and five children on Friday. He has been in touch with the charity to seek reassurance and help.

“There will be a lot of Afghans in a similar situation,” Mr Roberts explained.

Border policy

The UK government said the numbers of Afghan refugees it ‘resettled’ would be kept under review. A new resettlement scheme is expected to be announced.

Home secretary Priti Patel revealed the government’s new overall plan for immigration in March this year. The Nationality and Boarders Bill is currently going through parliament and had its second reading in July.

The House of Commons Public Bill Committee is due to consider the bill and will report back to parliament in November.

But Mr Roberts warned: “The new immigration bill proposes that anyone turning up at our border independently, will be prevented from entering, or if they make it across, will never be given settlement in the UK.

“Instead, they’ll be put into detention camps, maybe ‘processed offshore’, whatever that means, and returned to any third country that will take them. It doesn’t matter if you have family or connections in the UK, or are coming here because you can speak the language, arriving here on your own initiative will get you nowhere.”

He added: “The helpers, translators and fixers Britain has relied on [in Afghanistan] for the past 20 years have been thrown to the wolves.

“Britain is attempting to absolve itself from dealing with asylum seekers in the face of international law and the UN Refugee Convention and it is both embarrassing and shameful to have any part of it.

“The Government has to change direction and do it fast.”

Criticism and reaction

On Twitter Labour MP for Sefton Central Bill Esterton agreed with comments that the government should repair its “disastrous refugee policy, which means that we are retreating from Afghanistan with one hand and closing the door to anyone who might want to do the same with the other”.

Liverpool City Council Liberal Democrats Councillor Richard Kemp tweeted his support for a petition signed by over 73,000 people calling on the UK government to resettle 20,000 Afghan refugees.

Parliament has been recalled from summer recess to discuss the crisis in Afghanistan on Wednesday.

Amnesty International has said the UK Government must immediately move to expand its ‘grossly flawed and utterly inadequate’ relocation scheme to ensure many more people in Afghanistan can get to safety.

Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s CEO, said: “The chaos unfolding in Kabul means there are a matter of hours, not days, in which the UK could potentially save lives.

“The current UK relocation scheme was ​revised with much fanfare in April this year to provide protection for more Afghans working for the UK Government but even that revision continues to exclude many of these employees and their family members.’

She added that the current scheme needed to be immediately expanded to address “inadequacies”.

​“There must also be action to ensure that people with family in the UK are able to be reunited in safety here. That means issuing visas and evacuations​ - from Afghanistan and neighbouring countries,” she warned.

Government response

A Government spokesperson said: “We have so far resettled over 3,300 Afghan interpreters, staff and their families who served alongside our brave military.

“Our officials are working as quickly as possible to bring more people to safety in the United Kingdom.

“No one should be in any doubt of our commitment to build upon our proud history of resettling refugees in need of protection.”

They added: “Through our New Plan for Immigration we will strengthen safe and legal routes to the UK for refugees from regions of conflict and instability, and discourage dangerous journeys.”