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.
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UNHCR publication for CIS Conference (Displacement in the CIS) - Central Asia on the move
1 May 1996 ... they had fled as refugees from the war in Afghanistan) and Turkey; and 560,000 ethnic Germans (out ... from western areas of the former Soviet Union in the 1930s and 1940s (see Punished Peoples). ...... -
Refugees Magazine Issue 129: 2002 - The Year In Review
2 Dec 2002 ... ... I I S S S S N N 0 0 2 2 5 5 2 2 - - 7 7 9 9 1 1 X X C C o o v v e e r r :: Return to Afghanistan. ... which drew in the Unit- ed States, the Soviet Union, Europe, South Africa and even Cuba. ...... -
Of refugees, IDPs and returnees: the trickle up experience, by Marinke van Riet
1 Nov 2003 ... ... years in an Egyptian refugee camp when they finally received clearance from the U.S. government to move to the U.S. The Ali’s fled Afghanistan after the Soviet Invasion and were not able to return. ...... -
World Refugee Day 2005 Leaflet
25 May 2005 ... But the courage they typify most definitely is. Ibrahim. Afghanistan It seems that Ibrahim’s family has always been suffering the fallout of war – the Soviet occupation, the Taliban excesses, the ...... -
DAFI Annual Report 2010
5 Jan 2016 ... ... from 38 countries): Afghanistan, Angola, Armenia, Burundi, ... highly relevant for rebuilding Afghanistan, where some 118,000 Afghan ...... -
UNHCR Statistical Yearbook 2008 - Chapter II: Population Levels and Trends
31 Dec 2009 ... ... largest continuous refugee movement recorded by UNHCR. The level of displacement was particu- larly high during the first two years following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (3.7 million refugees). ...... -
Refugees Magazine Issue 104 (UNHCR's World) - Afghanistan: Life among the ruins
1 Jun 1996 ... In most places, you wake to a dawn chorus of birds or traffic. In Afghanistan, during certain ... during the 10-year Soviet occupation and the ensuing struggle to oust the communist government. ...... -
The State of The World's Refugees 2000: Fifty Years of Humanitarian Action - Introduction
1 Jan 2000 ... ... The country to produce the largest number of refugees during this period was Afghanistan. Following the Soviet invasion of the country in 1979, war eventually caused over six million Afghans to seek ...... -
UNHCR leads initiative to help displaced Afghans home
3 May 2002 ... week, UNHCR and IOM organised the first major movement from Kabul to Bamiyan in central Afghanistan. ... to the Shomali Plain from the ex-Soviet embassy compound in Kabul under a joint UNHCR-IOM operation. ......