Heavily pregnant Afghan women eligible to come to UK stuck in Pakistan

Nicola Kelly

The Guardian

Sun 3 Dec 2023

People who worked for or were affiliated with the British Council may lose babies as government delays relocation to UK

Pregnant Afghan women who are eligible for resettlement in the UK have been told their babies may not survive unless they are urgently evacuated.

The women, who worked for or are affiliated with the British Council, should be entitled to relocation through the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme (ACRS). Despite Foreign Office and Home Office instructions to move to Pakistan and await relocation, they are stuck in hotels with limited access to medical care nearly two years after the scheme launched.

Meanwhile, on 1 November, Pakistan began deporting undocumented people back to Afghanistan, with 1.7 million thought to be at risk of removal. The former British Council teachers are among them, with many having spent up to £5,000 on passports and visas to reach Islamabad. While waiting for a response from the British government, their three-month visas have expired, meaning they could be arrested and deported back to Afghanistan.

One of those at risk is Mina, whose husband, Batoor, spoke to the Observer last year after their two-year-old daughter Najwa died of cardiac arrest, liver failure and acute septicaemia due to a lack of access to medical care. Mina, due to give birth in the next six weeks, has now discovered her unborn child has potentially fatal medical complications.

“The same experience is happening to us again,” Mina said. “If the British government had brought us to safety, our daughter would still be alive. Now I have doubts that this baby will be born safely here in Pakistan. I know that our baby would be cured of this condition if we were in the UK, but we are stuck here, our lives on hold. This situation is extremely distressing.”

Consultant obstetrician Dr Brenda Kelly, who has seen Mina’s scans and medical records, said that the mother and baby require the highest level of care. “This unborn baby has very worrying signs on prenatal scan and the mother’s care should be under a tertiary level foetal medicine team,” Kelly said. “I am very concerned that their daughter died – one does not know whether the conditions in the two children are linked. When we see signs like this on scan, we advise close monitoring of the mother’s wellbeing as she will be at high risk of developing pre-eclampsia and other serious complications. The baby’s chance of survival would be vastly improved if she received highly specialised treatment and had access to level 3 neonatal facilities.”

Mina and her husband are living in a windowless hotel room in Islamabad, with frequent police raids in surrounding areas in which Afghans are rounded up, arrested and deported. They have been advised not to leave the hotel, making attendance at medical appointments particularly difficult.

“The Pakistani authorities are checking documents on the way to medical appointments. What if, on the way to see my doctor, I get arrested?” Mina said. “This adds so much pressure on us. I believe all those with emergency cases should be prioritised and put on the first plane to the UK.”

Sadaf, a former teacher and trainer for the British Council who has a history of miscarriages, has recently been told that she has high blood sugar levels and high blood pressure, which could be harmful for her and her baby. Her doctor in Pakistan has advised that she follows a specific diet, which is unaffordable and unavailable to her. Like all other Afghans in hotels in Islamabad, she has been told not to leave the confines of the hotel to take the recommended daily exercise.

“I am so afraid of losing this baby, too, after two miscarriages already,” she told the Observer. “If I have no access to a doctor, my baby may not survive. We were hopeful when we came to Pakistan, but now there is no hope, no certainty.”

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Pakistan is responsible for managing the healthcare of those who are ACRS-eligible and awaiting relocation to the UK, but Afghans claim the communication has been poor, with urgent requests left unanswered for up to a month.

“IOM, they tell us to take care of issues ourselves, but how can we when we have money problems?” said Abdulaziz, a former British Council teacher whose wife is in her third trimester. “I have not worked for two years and have been living in hiding from the Taliban. I spent thousands of dollars on visas. We cannot go outside to get medicines, or even pay for them if we do.”

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Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said: “The prime minister has tried every trick in the book to wriggle his way out of his government’s longstanding commitment to all those Afghans who served British efforts in Afghanistan. It is only because the Pakistani government has threatened to send these vulnerable people back over the border into the hands of the Taliban that he has now been forced into this humiliating U-turn.

“It is deeply troubling that the so-called ‘Operation Warm Welcome for Afghans’ has become ‘Operation Cold Shoulder’ under this prime minister, and as more personal stories come to light, we are able to understand the human cost of his inaction.”

Former ambassador to Afghanistan Sir Nicholas Kay said: “I can’t understand why the government is not showing more compassion to those who have been allies and to whom we made promises. It’s important to accelerate the departure to the UK of those we have already agreed to resettle. We should be a nation that stands by our friends and keeps our promises.”

A British Council spokesperson said that the ACRS scheme is run by the UK government and it is not involved in decision-making. “We are incredibly concerned by the length of time it is taking for our former contractors’ applications to be progressed. They have told us that they are living in increasingly desperate circumstances. We are deeply concerned for them and for their families’ welfare and wellbeing. We are pushing for urgent progress with senior contacts within the UK government.”

A government spokesperson said: “All those ARAP [Afghan relocations and assistance policy] and ACRS-eligible individuals being supported by HMG in third countries have access to medical care, paid for by HMG.

“The measures taken by HMG in Pakistan to try to ensure that ARAP- and ACRS-eligible individuals are protected against arrest and deportation also cover access to that medical care.”

Heavily pregnant Afghan women eligible to come to UK stuck in Pakistan
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US Officials Will Visit Pakistan to Discuss Afghan Issues: Pakistani Media

Zabihullah Mujahid added that Pakistan has expelled Afghans against international norms and their position is also clear in this regard.

Pakistani media reported that in the next week, three US officials will enter the country to talk with Pakistani officials about Afghan immigrants.

Pakistani media reported that the main focus of these meetings will be the issue of Afghanistan and especially the problems of Afghan immigrants in Pakistan.

“The four-day trip starts today and will continue until December 7th. We will see what topics will be discussed, apparently Pakistan’s decision to expel Afghan refugees will be discussed between US and Pakistani officials,” said Taher Khan, a freelance journalist.

Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s foreign ministry, also told the Pakistani media that Thomas West, US Special Envoy for Afghanistan, and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Elizabeth Horst, are among those who will stay in Pakistan until December 12.

“It will have an impact on Pakistan, but still, we cannot expect too much from Pakistan, but we will not lose optimism,” said Abdul Sadeq Hamidzoi, a political analyst.

The Islamic Emirate said the visit of US officials to Pakistan is related to the situation of the two countries [America and Pakistan] and said that the position of the Islamic Emirate regarding Afghan immigrants is clear.

Zabihullah Mujahid added that Pakistan has expelled Afghans against international norms and their position is also clear in this regard, and he emphasized that the Islamic Emirate is ready to provide better facilities to newly returned immigrants.

“The coming of the Americans to Pakistan or the dialogue between these two countries should not be more than this issue and they will have their own issues, but the issue of immigrants is related to us and we do not want to raise the issue of immigrants with Pakistan in the words of any other country,” Zabihullah Mujahid said.

While the recent decision of the caretaker government of Pakistan to deport 1.7 million Afghan immigrants from this country caused a reaction, the United Nations, migrant support organizations and human rights organizations asked the Pakistani government not to deport Afghan immigrants with such intensity and scope.

US Officials Will Visit Pakistan to Discuss Afghan Issues: Pakistani Media
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Ministry of Higher Education: Curriculum Review 70% Completed

The Ministry of Higher Education said the curriculum review is 70 percent complete. 

The head of the curriculum department of the MoHE, Abdul Rauf Farahi, stated that the purpose of the review of the curriculum is to make the curriculum compatible with international standards.

“There are fields of medicine, computer science, agriculture, engineering, and science such as chemistry, physics, biology, social sciences, and journalism, the revision work of several fields has been finalized, and work is ongoing…,” said Abdul Rauf Farahi.

According to Farahi, more than a hundred academic staff are working in various fields, and the review of 73 fields has been finalized and the review of 35 fields still remains.

“The purpose of reviewing and developing the academic curriculum is renewal, and considering religious and national values and international standards in the academic curriculum,” said Abdul Rauf Farahi.

Some students said that the curriculum should be reviewed based on global standards.

“In public and private universities, the curriculum is very old, and we ask the Ministry of Higher Education to review the curriculum carefully,” said Mohammad Anwar Bahir, a student.

“We welcome the initiative of the Ministry of Higher Education to review and develop the academic curriculum and serious efforts should be made in the field,” said Obaid Sarwari, a student.

Meanwhile, the current government’s cabinet has assigned the task of reviewing the academic curriculum to the appointed committee.

Ministry of Higher Education: Curriculum Review 70% Completed
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Afghan Opposition Leaders Meet for 2nd Day in Vienna

But the Islamic Emirate urged the host countries to prevent such meetings on their territory.

The second day of a meeting of opposition leaders and foreign diplomats was held in Vienna, where participants discussed the extension of cooperation, diplomatic movements and a political roadmap for the future of Afghanistan.

The diplomats were from the US, UK, Austria, Germany, Spain and Norway.

“Today, there was a free discussion and suggestions were made for a roadmap to solve the crisis of Afghanistan,” said Sayed Baqir Mohseni, a participant.

The meeting is the third being held by the Islamic Emirate’s opposition recently.

Some political analysts said that negotiations between the interim Afghan government and its opposition are the only way for improvement of the situation in the country.

“The path to solution is the intra-Afghan dialogue to codify a constitution and form an inclusive and national government,” said Sayed Jawad Sijadi, a political analyst.

“The world has many expectations from us to reach an engagement with the international community,” said Zakiullah Mohammadi, a political analyst.

But the Islamic Emirate urged the host countries to prevent such meetings on their territory.

“Anyone who is disturbing the current peace and security and betraying our people — we want the countries to not allow such meetings to take place because it is hostility with the people of Afghanistan,” said Suhail Shaheen, head of the Islamic Emirate’s political office in Qatar.

Earlier, a similar meeting of Herat Security Dialogue was held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, where the participants discussed the ongoing situation of Afghanistan.

Afghan Opposition Leaders Meet for 2nd Day in Vienna
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Lack of Women Noted at Herat University Graduation

Nadim indicated to the meeting of the opposition of the Islamic Emirate abroad, urging them to return to the country.

The graduation ceremony at Herat university was held without the presence of any female students.

The graduates meanwhile expressed concerns about lack of job opportunities in the country and called on the interim Afghan government to provide the youth with job opportunities.

“I hope the job opportunities will be provided to all of the students who graduated today,” said Mohammad Farakhi, a graduate.

“I call on the Islamic Emirate to resume female education,” said Mohammad Esa Momand, a graduate.

The ceremony was attended by the acting Minister of Higher Education, Nida Mohammad Nadim.

Speaking at the ceremony, Nadim stressed the improvement of universities’ standards.

Nadim indicated to the meeting of the opposition of the Islamic Emirate abroad, urging them to return to the country.

“They held a meeting in one or another country. Why? What do they want? What is the agenda of your meeting when you hold it in another country?” he said.

Meanwhile, the female students called on the Islamic Emirate to reopen their universities.

The students said that they are facing an uncertain situation.

“Just because I was a girl, I have been pushed back from everywhere but the boys were able to receive the reward of their years of struggle,” said Wahida Durrani, a student.

However, the interim government said that it has been making efforts to provide job opportunities for the graduates.

“Our officials are working day and night to create jobs for the youth who are graduating,” said Hayatullah Mahajar Farahi, deputy Minister of Information and Culture.

Nadim emphasized that all universities need to be provided with libraries and laboratories.

Lack of Women Noted at Herat University Graduation
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Education Minister Criticizes Poor Quality of Religious Schools

A number of graduates asked the Islamic Emirate to provide them with employment opportunities in the country.

The Acting Minister of Education, Habibullah Agha, criticized the poor quality of education in religious schools in the country.

By expressing his concerns about this issue, Habibullah Agha asked the Islamic Emirate and religious scholars to pay serious attention to raising the quality of education in religious schools.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony of about 120 students from Darul-Ulom Imam Abu Hanifa’s 12th and 14th grades, the Acting Minister of Education said that the number of religious schools has increased in comparison to the past and that students are given good facilities in this area.

“In my point of view, the quality of education is becoming weaker day by day, although seeking education has become easier. There was a time that students could not find a book,” Habibullah Agha noted.

Meanwhile, the officials of Darul-Ulom Imam Abu Hanifa stressed improving the quality of education in religious schools, saying that not only religious sciences are taught in this Darul-Ulom, but also contemporary sciences.

“In our Darul Ulom, not only religious sciences but also contemporary sciences are taught, so these graduates, in addition to religious sciences, also include students from contemporary sciences, and today about 120 people graduated from this Darul Ulom,” said Abdulhai, head of the Imam Abu Hanifa Darul-Ulom.

A number of Imam Abu Hanifa Darul-Ulom graduates from the 12th and 14th grades asked the Islamic Emirate to provide them with employment opportunities in the country.

“There is no equivalency between knowledge and ignorance. So, we must study and be educated. Those young people who are educated and talented, the Islamic Emirate must provide them with work,” a graduate said.

About four thousand students are now have enrolled to study religious and modern sciences at Darul-Ulom Imam Abu Hanifa, which was established in the Bagrami district of Kabul province in 1323 solar year, according to official records.

Education Minister Criticizes Poor Quality of Religious Schools
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UN to Hold Meeting on Afghanistan This Month

This comes as the Islamic Emirate said that the meetings without the presence of its envoys will be meaningless.

The UN Security Council said in a statement that it will convene for its quarterly open briefing on Afghanistan in December.

According to the statement, the special representative of the UN Secretary-General and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) Roza Otunbayeva; Ambassador José de la Gasca (Ecuador), the Chair of the 1988 Afghanistan Sanctions Committee; and a representative of civil society are expected to brief.

Sayed Ishaq Gailani, head of the National Solidarity Movement of Afghanistan said: “They should take fundamental action to benefit Afghanistan in the future, not to addict them [Islamic Emirate] with food assistance.”

“The meeting could be beneficial in case it brings a mechanism for stability in Afghanistan and recognition of Afghanistan and specifying the status of Afghanistan,” said Sayed Muqdam Amin, a political analyst.

This comes as the Islamic Emirate said that the meetings without the presence of its envoys will be meaningless.

Islamic Emirate’s spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that the international community is trying to put political pressure on the Islamic Emirate. “Unfortunately, the world has politicized all humanitarian, climate change and economic issues and they want to use all of the issues as a political tool, which is not right,” he said.

In an earlier document accessed by TOLOnews, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres recommended a roadmap for reintegration of Afghanistan into the international community.

UN to Hold Meeting on Afghanistan This Month
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HRW Raises Concerns About Arrests of Women in Afghanistan

Some women’s rights activists are calling for the release of the protesting women.

Human Rights Watch has expressed concern about the current situation of activist women in Afghanistan and said that the arrests, threats, and suppression of women are still ongoing.

A report published by Human Rights Watch expressed concern about the continued detention of female protesters, including Julia Parsi, Manijeh Sediqi, Neda Parwani, and Parisa Azada.

“These are four women’s rights activists arbitrarily detained by the Taliban right now. Remember their names. But please also remember that there are many more in custody who have not been named.

You haven’t heard of most of the detained women. Families are terrified into concealing their arrests, hoping silence might buy their release or reduce abuses in custody,” said Human Rights Watch.

However, the Islamic Emirate said that some women have been arrested to prevent the implementation of foreign programs and to maintain public security. “Seizure does not mean that we silence someone’s voice or that someone is oppressed; It is for the sake of maintaining public security and preventing external conspiracies from happening in Afghanistan,” said Mujahid.

Some women’s rights activists are calling for the release of the protesting women.

“The goal of women’s rights activists and those who took to the streets was to be able to hear the voices of Afghan women for the world,” said Hwaida Hadis, a women’s rights activist.

“The women who were arrested did not have any anti-government and security activities, they only wanted Afghan women and girls to study,” said Sonam Latif, a women’s rights activist.

After the re-establishment of the Islamic Emirate in the country, some women took to the streets in the capital and other provinces and started protests demanding women’s right to education and work in the country.

HRW Raises Concerns About Arrests of Women in Afghanistan
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Power in Afghanistan in the Hands of Religious Scholars

The acting Interior Minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani, in a meeting with a delegation of scholars from Islamic countries, discussed a range of topics including security, economic stability and construction in the country.

During the meeting, Haqqani said that the power in Afghanistan is now in the hands of religious scholars and they understand the interests and priorities of the country.

The acting Interior Minister also mentioned the fight of the Islamic Emirate against the production, cultivation and smuggling of drugs and the treatment of drug addicts.

“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has had good achievements in the past two years in the area of fighting against narcotics, the treatment of addicts, the fight against corruption, ensuring security all over the country, and also stability and economic growth,” said Abdul Mateen Qani, the spokesman of the ministry.

According to some political analysts, the visit of the delegation of Islamic countries with the officials of the Islamic Emirate can be effective in solving some the challenges of the country.

“It is the responsibility of the Islamic countries, and the international community, to pay attention to Afghanistan and persuade the current government to pay attention to these remarks. I think the visit of these scholars is effective,” Khalil Ahmad Nadim, a political analyst, told TOLOnews.

“Their visit [scholars] with the Taliban officials, I think will not have a tangible change in the behavior of the Taliban,” Sayed Javad Sajadi, a political analyst, told TOLOnews.

Earlier, the delegation of scholars from Islamic countries, in a meeting with the acting foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, requested the support of Islamic countries for Afghanistan.

Power in Afghanistan in the Hands of Religious Scholars
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Pakistan’s Top Court Begins Hearing Challenge to Expulsion of Afghans

The petitioners have said that the deportation of Afghan immigrants is outside the jurisdiction of the caretaker government of Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court began hearings on Friday on a petition by rights activists seeking to halt forced deportation of Afghan refugees, who were born in Pakistan and those who are at risk if they return to Afghanistan.

Umar Ijaz Gilani, the lawyer representing the rights activists, told Reuters that children born to Afghan families in Pakistan could not be sent back due to their birthright.

“Due to the urgency, as thousands of people are suffering on a daily basis, I’ve requested the court to take up the case as early as next week,” Gilani said.

The petitioners have said that the deportation of Afghan immigrants is outside the jurisdiction of the caretaker government of Pakistan.

Pakistan Supreme Court’s Justice Ayesha A. Malik on Friday observed that Pakistan was bound by the United Nations conventions that protected the rights of refugees.

She passed these remarks as a three-member bench of the apex court took up a petition seeking restraining orders against the caretaker government’s decision to deport illegal Afghan nationals, Dawn newspaper reported.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate said that putting pressure or arresting Afghan immigrants and taking their property is not legal and should be prevented.

“We also ask them to return to their country, but putting pressure or arresting them and taking their property is not legal and should be prevented in any country,” said the Islamic Emirate’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid.

Dawn reported that regarding 109 petitions of Pakistani women seeking Pakistan Origin Cards (POCs) for their Afghan spouses, the Peshawar High Court on Friday ordered the federal government to proceed with their cases in accordance with prescribed rules.

Dawn said that lawyers informed the court that the petitioners had been seeking POCs for their Afghan spouses, who either possessed POR (Proof of Registration) cards or ACC (Afghan Citizenship Cards).

Meanwhile, some Afghan immigrants who have been forcibly deported from Pakistan said that they are facing many challenges as winter approaches.

“Many atrocities were committed against us, all our property was confiscated in Pakistan,” said an Afghan immigrant forcibly deported from Pakistan.

The EU Delegation to Afghanistan approved a new financial aid package worth €142.8 million ($ 155,544,900.00) to strengthen basic services and maintain livelihoods for vulnerable Afghans and migrants.

“The EU’s commitment to stand by the Afghan people remains unwavering. To address their growing basic needs, the EU has mobilised a new support measure. This €142.8 million package will focus on health, nutrition, education, clean water and sanitation, in particular for women, girls, displaced populations and those affected by displacement,” said Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen.

This comes as in the past month, many immigrants from Pakistan have been forced to return to the country, and this action of Pakistan has faced strong internal and external reactions.

Based on the latest figures of the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation (MoRR), so far, more than four hundred thousand Afghan immigrants have returned to the country from Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Top Court Begins Hearing Challenge to Expulsion of Afghans
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