Entries tagged with 'embassy'

Letter to the Afghanistan embassy

  • March 26, 2013 04:55

Letter to: His Excellency, Mr. H.E. Enayatullah Nabiel,

Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the Netherlands,

P. O. Box 10630, 2501 HP Den Haag

Dear Ambassador,

Over the last week reports from different sources indicated that there is a severe increase of the forced return of Afghan families with children of young age. I would like to express my deepest concern about their situation to Your Excellency.

 

On the 19th of March this year, the Waseh Hejazi family has been returned by force to Afghanistan. The family has two children, Rajat (nine years old) and Zoha (three years old) and used to be located at the VBL in Burgum, Netherlands. Their lawyer was only informed a couple of days before the actual return, therefore not being able to start up the right procedures.

We managed to obtain contact by telephone with the parents of the Hejazi family. The parents were handcuffed during the flight and the children were taken away from them at the departure of the flight, which actually caused panic on both the parents side as on the childrens side. At this moment, they are hidden somewhere in Kandahar and are not able to leave the house, due to the violent threats outside. In the house, there is no food left. The children are starving.

 

Approximately two weeks ago, the Massum Nouri family was arrested at 6:00 a.m. at the VBL Den Helder, Netherlands. The Nouri family has four children, the oldest child being thirteen years old, the younger children all less then ten years old. They were held at detention centre Rotterdam. Friday the 22nd of March, they were given flight tickets. Ever since, no contact could be established with the Nouri family.

 

On the 19th of March, the Mohammad Azimi family was also arrested at the VBL Den Helder. They have four children, all less than ten years old. Unconfirmed reports tell that the Azimi family was also brought to the detention centre Rotterdam, but all efforts to get in touch with the Azimi family have failed.

 

On the 25th of March, the Dawood Jafari family has been arrested at the VBL Emmen-Zuid, Netherlands. They have two children, the youngest is a baby of the age of three months only. We did not manage to get in contact with the family and their lawyer has not been officially informed about their detention.

 

I am fully aware of the fact that Your Excellency will not provide documents to Afghan refugees who declared that they are not willing to return to Afghanistan voluntarily. I am grateful as well, as it corresponds with the statement of the UNHCR that the situation in Afghanistan is particularly dangerous for returning refugees coming from European countries (Algemeen Ambtsbericht, July 2012).

These four families (and others of whom we did not manage to have information yet) have been or will soon be presented at the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in order to check their nationalities. Even if they express not to be willing to return to Afghanistan, the fact that they have been identified as Afghans is enough to proceed to the so-called ‘Kabul-check’ (MoU, 18th of March 2003), which will almost inevitably lead to their forced expulsion. Yet, both the authorities of the Netherlands as well as of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan do not provide documents proving that the Kabul-checks are processed in a proper and formal way.

 

For the sake of the protection of those who fled from violence and threats, for the sake of Human Rights in general and Childrens Rights in particular, I therefore urgently ask you to consider:

 

  • to speak up against deportations of Afghan people, especially when young children are involved;
  • to speak up against the Kabul-check agreement of 2003, towards both the authorities of the Netherlands as the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan;
  • to stop cooperating to the confirmation of nationality of refugees not willing to return voluntarily to Afghanistan;
  • to try by all your means to provide protection to the Waseh Hejazi family as they are in life danger as we speak.

 

I thank you for your time and your attention. If Your Excellence wants to be provided with more information about these families, the current arrests at the VBL’s, the conditions in migrant detention centers in the Netherlands or any other topic related to the position of Afghan refugees in the Netherlands, I will be honoured to do so within my means.

 

Yours sincerely,

[Dhjana],

Activist and highly engaged with the Afghan refugees in the Netherlands, whom I consider as my brothers and sisters

***************************************************

Als je de ambassadeur van Afghanistan ook een dergelijke brief wilt schrijven, dan kan dat naar het postadres in de brief of naar dit mailadres: contact@afghanistanembassy.nl