More than four months after the Taliban conquered Kabul, hundreds of Afghans are still waiting for the Netherlands to evacuate them. On Monday, the judge in The Hague will rule in the case of four families.
There are Afghan families who have barely been outside for four months. The fear that they will be arrested by the Taliban is too great. “These people are in danger. They are maintained as best they can by family and neighbors,” says lawyer Barbara Wegelin. “These are families that are on the Dutch evacuation list, but they hear almost nothing from The Hague. .”
Last summer, the Taliban invaded Afghanistan. In a panic, Western countries evacuated their embassy staff and tens of thousands of Afghans with whom they had worked for the past 20 years. The Netherlands removed more than three thousand people, but there are probably still 1500 names on the evacuation list. There is no clarity about when and how they can leave.
summary proceedings
At the end of last year, Wegelin initiated two lawsuits on behalf of four families (relatives of interpreters who worked for the Netherlands in Afghanistan) to clarify the Dutch plans. The administrative court ruled that it was not for him to pass judgment. The second case, a preliminary injunction against the state, will be decided on Monday. The demand of the four families: The Netherlands must remove them from Afghanistan as soon as possible.
We’ve been at it for months now and it’s still about ‘preparations’, why don’t we just do it?
During the hearing of the summary proceedings on January 5, the state lawyer said ‘hopefully he can arrange an evacuation within a month’. “But we cannot make firm commitments, it is a very complicated situation,” said the lawyer on behalf of the state. Wegelin: “I was very happy with the ruling on the one-month period. It’s been about ‘preparations’ for months, why don’t we just do it?”
The complicated situation referred to by the government: most evacuations require consultation with the Taliban. If you want to board a (commercial) flight to Doha in Qatar in Kabul, you need a passport. Some of the Afghans do not have one and applying for it is risky: it is a signal to the Taliban that you want to leave the country. Another evacuation route (overland to Pakistan) is dangerous. It is a long journey through Afghanistan, passing many Taliban checkpoints. In addition, Pakistan is very reluctant to admit Afghan refugees. Wegelin: ,,We have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to write letters in which they report that the person carrying that letter is only coming to Pakistan for the purpose of traveling directly. The ministry does not want to cooperate with that.”
‘The Netherlands remains committed’
In a response, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that ‘the Netherlands will continue to make efforts to transfer all people who qualify for this according to the criteria to the Netherlands’. “We are constantly looking at all possibilities. The Netherlands is in contact with countries in the region. There is also cooperation with other countries that are committed to the safe travel of their citizens and of Afghans who have worked for them.”
A spokesperson cannot say how many people are still eligible for evacuation. There are probably about 1500. In a letter to the House of Representatives in October, a number of 2100 people was mentioned. Since then, 573 more evacuees have come to the Netherlands.
Wegelin: ,,In the most favorable case, the judge will decide on Monday that the Netherlands must come up with a concrete evacuation plan within a month. But even if that is not the case: because of the lawsuit we at least keep the pressure on. Because sometimes it seems that the Netherlands itself is not in a hurry to evacuate.”
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