The Boston Globe
Unsafe in Afghanistan - August 18, 2002 

THE PLIGHT of Afghan refugees has been obscured by a focus on conflicts within Afghanistan. Now that military forces have effectively dismantled Taliban rule, Washington ought to cast its gaze toward the safety of the millions of Afghan refugees who fled the violence and work to secure repatriation for those who wish to return. More than two decades of violence in Afghanistan - from the Soviet invasion of 1979 through civil war to the recent US military action - have resulted in the flight of millions to neighboring countries. The United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR, estimates that as of February 2002, 3.5 million Afghans had fled to Iran and Pakistan. Now refugees are returning to Afghanistan at record rates - more than 1.5 million in the last five months, according to the UN. The end of Taliban rule and poor living conditions in refugee camps have propelled the returns. Last week Iran set a deadline of Aug. 27 for the expulsion of some 250,000 additional refugees who did not officially register as immigrants with Iran. But the refugees, often poor and jobless, return to a bleak picture. Many find rubble where their homes once stood. Beyond the physical devastation, returnees confront real security threats. The Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation deems Afghanistan ''one of the most heavily mined countries in the world.'' Returnees who enter through regions full of land mines and unexploded ordnance are at particular risk. Continued violence also threatens civilian lives, demonstrated so tragically on July 1 when an American gunship fired upon a wedding party in Kakrak, killing more than 50. Fatana Gailani, an Afghan human rights advocate residing in Pakistan, visited the Globe recently and described the dilemma: ''Everyone wants to go home,'' she said. ''Myself, I want to go home.'' But before returning, she said, ''we need security, jobs.'' The UNHCR describes its mission as ensuring ''the basic human rights of vulnerable persons.'' Yet Amnesty International has expressed concern that the UN organization may not be placing enough emphasis on the rights of Afghan refugees. Amnesty may be right to criticize the UNHCR for pushing refugees to return to a still unstable Afghanistan. Yet the UNHCR is strained financially; it spent $158 million on Afghan repatriation efforts in the first half of 2002. Without more financial support, it will be unable to carry out its mission. Given the toll US military action has had on Afghanistan's physical landscape, the US government must devote further resources to Afghan refugees by assisting the UNHCR. The task at hand is to ensure safe refugee camps in Pakistan and Iran while helping in the transition home of voluntary returnees. US responsibility in Afghanistan does not end with government rebuilding. The safety and well-being of all Afghans is essential to the political stability of Afghanistan.

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