Afghanistan 10 years after Soviet pull-out
This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
A decade after the last Soviet soldier left Afghan soil, and 20 years after the first groups of Afghan refugees fled the Soviet invasion, more than 2.6 million Afghans still remain in exile.
The Afghans have remained the single largest refugee group in the world for 19 years in succession, although their continuing plight has, in recent years, been overshadowed by newer conflicts and refugee movements elsewhere in the world.
By the end of 1979 - the year the Soviet army entered Afghanistan in support of the communist regime which had seized power the previous year - there were already 400,000 refugees in Pakistan and 200,000 in Iran. By 15 February 1989, the number had risen to a staggering 6.2 million, split almost equally between the two neighbouring countries, which showed extraordinary generosity in hosting such a vast number of refugees on their territory, despite the burden they represented to their own societies, environment and infrastructure. In both Iran and Pakistan, the refugees were allowed to work, and received considerable government support in the education and health sectors.
Since the Soviet withdrawal, almost two thirds of the refugees have returned to their devastated and poverty-stricken country, despite the outbreak of a new war between different Afghan groups competing for power. In all, more than 4 million Afghans have returned home voluntarily since 1989 - another refugee record - and a remarkable testimony to their courage.
While it was the Soviet invasion and occupation of Afghanistan that caused the majority of the refugees to flee, it is subsequent events - almost uninterrupted fighting between constantly shifting alliances of Afghan political groups and militias, continued human rights abuses, and a shattered economy and infrastructure - that is preventing the final settlement of the Soviet legacy.
The strength of the refugees' desire to rebuild their lives in their home country was amply demonstrated in 1992, after the communist government, shorn of its superpower support, finally fell from power. During the course of that year, a total of 1.6 million refugees went home. In 1993, another million followed suit, even though by then the capital city, Kabul, was being torn apart by infighting between different Afghan factions.
By the late 1990s, the numbers returning to relatively safe parts of the country - of which there are plenty - were still adding up to around 100,000 a year. However, many of the remaining refugees are understandably reluctant to return under current circumstances.
Related news and stories
Women-run businesses in Afghanistan dealt a blow by deepening restrictions
UNHCR launches new appeal for Afghan refugees and hosts, urging partners to stay the course
I had to flee for my education, but refused to leave other Afghan girls to their fate
Former refugee, now volunteer teacher, helps other Afghan girls get an education
Families struggle for survival during Afghanistan's coldest winter in a decade
Afghan women affected by Taliban bans on work and study fear for their futures
Your search for « soviet afghanistan » matched 595 results. Displaying page 16 of 67 pages.
-
Afghanistan: another record day of assisted returns
8 Mar 2002 ... Returnees included Afghans from Pakistan as well as people displaced within Afghanistan. In the last ... to the Shomali Plain after living for the last three years in Kabul's former Soviet compound. ...... -
DAFI Scholars: Afghan girl studies to become a lawyer in a break with tradition
10 Nov 2011 ... that her parents fled from after the 1979 Soviet invasion. More than 850,000 people have returned to Afghanistan from Iran with UNHCR help since early 2002, but parts of the country remain insecure. ...... -
Afghanistan Humanitarian Update No. 57
25 Mar 2002 ... ... Shomali Plain in central Afghanistan. Some 9,000 IDPs from the decaying former Soviet compound in Kabul have returned to their villages through the UNHCR-led initiative, which was launched on 6 March. ...... -
Refugees Magazine Issue 98 (After the Soviet Union) - Rebuilding Socialism
1 Dec 1994 ... during the civil war, which began in May 1992 nine months after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. ... in December 1992, 60,000 refugees fled across the icy waters of the Amu river to Afghanistan. ...... -
Refugees Magazine Issue 127: The Environment - A Critical Time
2 Jul 2002 ... ... DOING BETTER? The international community, fully aware that it had ‘abandoned’ Afghanistan once before following the Soviet with- drawal in 1989, vowed that this time it would do better and would ...... -
From durable solutions to transnational relations: home and exile among refugee diasporas, Nicholas Van Hear
18 Mar 2003 ... ... Initially this was in the shape of the various mujahideen groups, which took over in Afghanistan after the departure of the Soviet forces in 1989 and the fall of the Soviet- backed regime in 1992. ...... -
Millennium Development Indicators of employment and gender equality of Afghan refugees in Pakistan: Country report
21 Nov 2006 ... ... The Baluchi (or Baloch) mainly fled after the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet 14 Destination Sindh Origin Camp Urban Camp Urban Camp Urban Urban North Afghanistan 7 5 20 5 (4) 60 West ...... -
Defying nature to develop resilience and resourcefulness in Afghanistan
23 Aug 2006 ... TANGI CLUSTER, Afghanistan, August 23 (UNHCR) - Nine months ago the Tangi Cluster was desolate and ... 100,000 others ill-prepared to return to Afghanistan, but with little choice of doing anything else. ...... -
Afghan refugees arrive home from Kyrgyzstan
5 Jun 2002 ... in Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan. "Although there were only 33 persons, this operation took a lot of planning," said Lynch. "We are still dealing with the legacies of the former Soviet Union. ......