KUNAR (SW) – Evidently puzzled and shaken, Qiyas Qazi Khel of Kunar province still shivers when he remembers the difficult days of his irregular migration to Europe.
As a young jobless man tired and scared of raging war in Afghanistan, he had recently decided to go to Europe through irregular means in search of a better life. Unaware of his fate, Qiyas found himself in prison and faced torture before being deported back to Afghanistan.
Recalling his ordeal, Qiyas said the smugglers had forcefully accommodated up to 10 people in a single car during the journey. He added that it was difficult to breathe. He recalled a moment when their car was stopped at a police checkpoint on the Turkish border with Iran and they were severely beaten by the guards.
“They beat us with sticks, shovels, and guns without any mercy. I was hit on the head, my head broke and blood started flowing from it. The border guards broke people’s heads, arms and legs. It still scars me in my sleep making me scream. My mother does not leave me alone and takes care of me in her own room”, said the dejected former migrant.
Since 2019, when the coronavirus spread around the world and many countries closed their borders, some Afghan citizens were still traveling to Europe or other countries without legal documents. Traveling on these route can be deadly besides the high chances of contracting COVID-19 and other harms.
Qiyas recalled that smugglers on their way to Europe do not provide any means to stay safe from the COVID-19. He urged his fellow Afghan citizens, especially the youth, not to migrate without legal proof.
“I saw for myself that there was 100 percent danger of death,” he said, adding all those who want to go abroad, but have means for even modest daily income in Afghanistan, they should not go abroad. “Because, by moving away from the family, they would endure hardships and difficulties that are unimaginable. It does not matter to the police of those countries whether their heads or limbs are broken or are they killed by their torture”, he said.
Qiyas’ family did not approve of him going to Europe irregularly, and now that he is suffering from mental disorders, his family is worried about him.
“We are suffering a lot, he has been beaten a lot,” said one of his family memebrs. “We asked him many times not to go on this trip, but he did not listen to us. His condition is not good now.”
Commenting on this, Abdul Rashid Safi, head of Kunar’s migrants and returnees department, said that despite the COVBID-19 pandemic, a large number of Afghan migrants have been deported from various countries, especially Pakistan, Iran and Turkey.
According to the head of Kunar refugees and returnees, in addition to the hundreds of families who have returned to Kunar from Iran and Pakistan, 400 young people from the province have also been deported from Turkey and have returned to their homes over the past year. “Almost 400 of our young people have been deported from Turkey. They have been registered at the airports and we have again registered them. Those we have registered with have been helped.”
Although many Afghans have returned to the country in the last 20 years, a number of young people and families have recently left the country in search of a better life due to the deteriorating situation and lack of jobs.
The uncertain fate of peace process, the withdrawal of foreign troops from the country, the deteriorating security situation and poverty and unemployment are some of the factors that have forced people to leave the country.
ENDS
