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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Returns to Afghanistan this year top 400,000
23 Sep 2005 ... The order to close the camps was given on security grounds. Most of the returns have been to Afghanistan's eastern provinces of Paktya, Khost and Nangarhar. The return of the former FATA camp ...... -
Record refugee returns to Afghanistan show hopes and challenges
31 Jan 2006 ... KABUL, Jan 31 (UNHCR) - The numbers are impressive, but it is the individual hopes and fears of the refugees who have chosen to return that lie at the heart of Afghanistan's story. Since the UN ...... -
Voluntary returns to Afghanistan - over 60,000 this year
28 Oct 2011 ... countries under UNHCR's voluntary return operation has exceeded 60,000 to date in 2011. 43,000 of these are from ... originate from insecure areas of Afghanistan which have seen limited development. ...... -
Return figures to Afghanistan down to 60,000 in first 10 months
28 Oct 2011 ... To date, the main provinces of return in Afghanistan were Kabul (26 per cent), Nangarhar in the east (14 per cent), the western province of Herat (8 per cent) and Kunduz in the north (8 per cent). ...... -
Voluntary returns to Afghanistan exceed 100,000 this year
27 Aug 2010 ... The number of people returning voluntarily to Afghanistan from Pakistan and Iran so far this year has ... of the past few years show, the number of returns can vary significantly from year-to-year. ...... -
Afghanistan: returns begin to tail off
6 Aug 2002 ... Total returns from the surrounding countries during the month of July numbered more than ... This is three-quarters of the number of returnees in May, when 412,738 persons returned to Afghanistan. ...... -
Refugees return to Afghanistan
24 Sep 2002 ... A total of 1,708,578 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan under an assistance programme launched on 1 March by UNHCR and governments in the region. The rate of returns has dropped to around ...... -
Afghanistan: returns from Pakistan to Kandahar
3 Jul 2001 ... to return home from Pakistan this year with UNHCR assistance left Pishin District of Pakistan's Baluchistan Province earlier today bound for the Kandahar region of south-western Afghanistan. ...... -
Broken futures: young Afghan asylum seekers in the UK and on return to their country of origin. Catherine Gladwell and Hannah Elwyn.
31 Oct 2012 ... young Afghan asylum seekers in the UK and on return to their country of origin Catherine Gladwell ... asylum in the UK, 388 of whom came from Afghanistan, the country of origin for the largest ......