Activists fleeing Afghanistan After the pandemic slowed the slow process of refugee reunification in Canada, leaving them in trouble and at risk, asylum seekers in Canada were eager to let their families leave Taliban Refugees and advocates say their work has been retaliated against.
Immigration experts said that these families, mainly young children and spouses, will almost certainly be approved to come to Canada, but according to the Canadian Refugee Council (CCR), a unified bureaucratic process takes an average of three years and two months.
As the U.S.-led army withdrew from Afghanistan 20 years later, and as government forces trained and equipped by the U.S. and other countries gradually disappeared, the Taliban seized control within a few days. Canada was part of the US-led Afghan invasion in 2001, but ended its combat role in 2011 and withdrew all troops in 2014.
The Taliban expressed a gentle tone on Tuesday, promising to respect women’s rights and protect the people. But many Afghans fear that Islamic radicals will return to the harsh practices of their reign from 1996 to 2001, when women were not allowed to work, and punishments such as public stoning were imposed.
A woman working in women’s rights and reproductive health fled to Canada two years ago because of threats. Her husband and four children remain in Kabul, and she fears that they will be targeted by militants because of her work.
On Monday, when she talked to her eldest daughter, “She asked me,’Mom, will the Taliban make me live enough to kiss you again and hug you again?’ For a mother, this is very, very painful,” this Said a lady who asked not to be named.
“‘When the Taliban found me, before they arrived at my house, I wanted to commit suicide.’ For the Afghan people, for my daughter, she is considering suicide rather than forced marriage,” the woman said in tears. “If I lose a family member, I can’t imagine how I will live. They need rescue.”
Flight cancellation
According to one representative, approximately 90 families with family members in Canada are in a similar situation. At least one family has obtained visas and booked air tickets in August until all commercial flights have been cancelled.
Janet Dench, executive director of CCR, stated that this situation is “absolutely intolerable and unacceptable.” She said the organization has been pushing the Canadian government to make family reunification a priority for decades.
The Canadian Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship did not receive an immediate response to a request for comment.
Canada’s refugee claim process allows people to apply as refugees after arriving in the country. Once they are approved, they can apply to become permanent residents of Canada and their family members can begin the process of applying to join them.
The emotional loss of Afghan family members in Canada is unbearable.
Maureen Silkov, the former president of the Canadian Refugee Lawyers Association, said that during the coronavirus pandemic, “the process is slow and slower.”
She said: “As the urgency of the situation in Afghanistan increases, so does the urgency for families to travel to Canada.” “The fact that family members are in Canada itself puts family members back home in danger.”
A woman working in an international organization was pregnant when she fled Afghanistan two years ago, leaving behind three children and her husband.
Now, her two-year-old child born in Canada wakes up in the middle of the night to check if her mother has been crying.
“At 2 in the morning, she put her hand on my eyes to see if they were dry or wet. She is less than three years old, but she can feel how I feel,” said the woman who asked not to be named.
“Our dear family, what will happen to them? What will happen to our girls? Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen years old, what will happen? No one knows,” she said, while also worrying that her family will be affected by her work. And suffered revenge. “We are here to create a future for our children. We did not expect this to happen.”
