KABUL (SW) – Ahmad (a pseudonym) is a young man who has worked as a journalist for 11 years with domestic and foreign media, and once had an English language center in Kabul.
The crippling economic, security and political glitches in the country forced him on a path that many of his unlucky country mates chose before him as well, but never returned. Ahmad said he made some money after tireless efforts in Kabul, and went to Iran after getting his Iranian visa. But, his final destination was a European country.
Narrating the ordeal of the difficult journey, he said human smugglers portray the thorny problems and rest of the associated dangers of the route as a simple matter. According to Ahmad, before going to Iran, the smugglers had told him that if he traveled to Iran with a passport and visa, he would then easily enter Turkish territory and from there to Europe. But, he said, embarking on irregular migration has plenty of risks of dying.
As he continued to talk about his unpleasant memories, Ahmed recalled that he and his companions had to walk a long way on tough rocks and barbed wires with bare legs.
When Ahmed recalled the events of his journey, he realized that his survival was no more than a miracle. The smugglers portrayed a kinder picture of the Turkish border guards to Ahmad and his companions. But, he said he never imagined the Turkish troops on the Iranian-Turkish border would beat him to death like they did.
Ahmad said that after he returned from the torture by the Turkish guards, the smuggler threw him into solitary confinement so that other passengers could not see his scars.
Sayed Shir Hossein Honaryar, coordinator at the Immigration Information Center, told SW that irregular migration has never been easy, and smugglers have always portrayed it as an easy choice for their personal gain.
The physical torture is not the only problem, those embarking on irregular migration are often deported back to their countries or return voluntarily after going through all the troubles in the journey.
Hadis Pardis, deputy director of communications at the International Organization for Migration (IOM), said many more Afghans have returned from European and Turkey in recent years compared to previous years. According to him, most returnees blame the poor condition of the refugees in the camps as a reason to return.
About 6,000 Afghan refugees have returned from Iran, Pakistan and European countries last year, according to the International Organization for Migration.
ENDS
