FEROZ KOH (SW) – Mohammad Nader, a resident of Ferozkoh, the capital of Ghor province, has bitter memories of his short stay in Turkey after migrating irregularly via Pakistan and Iran.
In conversation with Salam Watandar, Nader said he left Afghanistan three years ago in hope for a better and secure life, but knew nothing of the harsh treatment and abuse directed at him by the security forces in Iran and Turkey.
This young Ghor resident said he has bitter and unforgettable memories of traveling to Iran and Turkey irregularly where he faced abuse, torture and humiliation. Nader said there was also a harsh period of anxiety in Turkey when the country’s police arrested and imprisoned him.
Recalling those horrific accounts, Nader said he spent three nights in one of Turkey’s prisons, during which he was tortured and mistreated by police and even deprived of food and water. “There was no water or food. They (Turkish prison guards) were threatening us (Afghan migrants), asking us why we came to Turkey? We said we have more problems (in Afghanistan). We don’t have bread, we face economic poverty and we travel to escape from that. But, still, they brought us in a plane and deported us back to Kabul.”
Further recalling the journey, Nader said it was full of miseries and threats, and even claimed the lives of a number of migrants.
This young Ghor resident upon return to Ferozkoh hopes to find a job to resume his life in his own country.
Gul Rahman Faraz, a local civil society activist, called the fleeing of Afghan youth as worrisome, and added that poor security and poverty have led to a number of young people being smuggled abroad or attracted to join the ranks of the terrorists.
Meanwhile, Abdul Rauf Ghafoori, director of the Department of Refugees and Returnees, said that since the beginning of the year 2021, more than 200 refugees, including women and children, have returned to the province.
Ghafoori said the department, in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has distributed food and cash in the province to all those who have been deported.
At the same time, local government officials say many of the young people who migrated from the country did not reach their destinations, and some even died during the journey.
Zalmai Karimi, the spokesman for the provincial governor, noted that the Afghan government was taking measures to prevent migration. “There are so many hardships in this journey of irregular migration, some reach their destinations and many lose their lives during the journey”, he said.
To address this issue, he said awareness has been spread through various media outlets as well efforts are underway to create employment opportunities.
Local officials in Ghor have been monitoring the migration of young people to the province, saying they have repeatedly tried to prevent migration, but to no avail.
We sought to have views of the officials of Afghan embassies in Iran and Turkey in this report, but to no avail.
According to local officials in Ghor, lack of awareness among young people about the dangers of irregular migration has led to an increase in this trend over the last few years.
ENDS
