Human Rights First Voices Deep Concern About the Plight
of Afghan Refugees

Human Rights First is deeply concerned about the desperate plight of Afghan refugees. The Afghan refugee crisis, already critical prior to September 11, has become even more acute, as an estimated 1 million Afghans have fled their homes out of fear of attack. The United States and the international community must take steps to ensure that Afghan refugees are protected, that their humanitarian needs are met, and that the security of the refugees and the people of neighboring states is maintained in accord with human rights protections. Human Rights First’s specific recommendations are detailed below.

The Desperate Plight of the Refugees

An estimated 1 million people are newly displaced in Afghanistan. They are fleeing threatened war, starvation caused by the continuing drought, and forced conscription by the Taliban. Even before September 11, nearly a million Afghans already were internally displaced in Afghanistan, while 2 million Afghan refugees were living in Pakistan and another 1.5 million in Iran.

By November the UN High Commissioner for Refugees expects that drought and war will have rendered millions of people entirely dependent on outside humanitarian aid for basic survival. Yet this growing need comes at a time when the majority of UN and other humanitarian personnel who have been providing this essential support have been forced to evacuate. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has launched an appeal for $268 million, to enable it to respond to the emergency.

Most of the countries bordering Afghanistan have closed their borders fearing that the influx of a large number of refugees will create security and resource problems. This action is trapping thousands of Afghan civilians –mostly women and children – in a dangerous situation.

Human Rights, Refugees and Security

The international community’s humanitarian response to this mass displacement inevitably will be challenged by complex and conflicting security, military, and political objectives. Yet it is essential that the protection of the Afghan people not be sacrificed. Effective security measures must include strong and appropriate human rights protections.

Keeping Borders Open for Protection: Screening and Separation

Support must be provided to neighboring countries to open their borders, to allow those Afghans genuinely seeking protection to cross. An organized separation and screening operation, carried out with full adherence to fair procedures, can go some way to assure both the host population and the authorities that arriving refugees are not dangerous individuals. There may be some fear, for example, that militants and armed elements are among the large numbers of Afghan people arriving at the borders of Pakistan and other neighboring states. Those who are armed must be separated out from the refugee population and dealt with appropriately. Similarly, individuals who may have committed serious international crimes (including most acts termed “terrorism”) must also be identified. Any individual who threatens the security of host states must be dealt with within the framework of national and international criminal law.

Not only is this process of screening and separation a matter of law, it is also a matter of practical protection. Experiences in Rwanda and West Africa have shown that suspicions about the perceived dangerous nature of a refugee population can lead to attacks on innocent refugees.

Camp Location and Management

It is important that refugee camps be in safe locations where humanitarian aid is accessible. A great number of new camps are being planned for remote border regions in Pakistan where, for example, water resources may be meager. Responsibility for camp security and management also must be clearly and appropriately assigned so that refugees are safe and their human rights are effectively protected. Finally, every effort must be made to ensure that refugee assistance at the camps retains its civilian and humanitarian nature and is not appropriated or perceived to have been appropriated, for political or military ends.

Human Rights First welcomes the Bush Administration’s Commitment of $320 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

Human Rights First further urges that the United States and the international community:

• Provide all needed financial and other assistance to the United Nations, in particular to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and humanitarian non-governmental organizations working in the region, to assist them in coping with the current and anticipated outflow of two million people.
  
• Ensure that states bordering Afghanistan permit those genuinely seeking protection to enter. Where requested, financial and technical support should be provided to these states, to ensure that such efforts are effective and sustainable.
  
• Offer financial support and appropriate expertise, where requested, to UNHCR and States in the region in order to assist them in securing the safety of the arriving refugees and their own populations’ security. Ensure that such measures be carried out in accordance with international refugee, human rights and humanitarian law; ensure that armed elements and individuals who may have committed serious international crimes are separated out from the refugee population and dealt with appropriately.***
  
• Consider ways in which the responsibility of states to protect those who are displaced can be shared equitably: whether through the provision of financial and material assistance to states in the region, action to resettle significant numbers of Afghan refugees, or other mechanisms that share responsibility for refugee protection.
  
• Ensure that access to asylum in other regions is not restricted, particularly in light of security concerns and the contemplation of more restrictive immigration laws.

***Human Rights First has conducted a comprehensive academic and field-based study examining how to enhance refugee protection in situations where there are fears about the nature of the refugee flow. That research, which focused on refugee protection in Africa, is detailed in a special issue of the International Journal of Refugee Law published in January 2001. A summary of Human Rights First’s findings can be read by clicking here.