1. FORCED BACK: STORIES FROM AFGHANISTAN
Amnesty International researchers travelled to Afghanistan in May 2017 and met with women, men and children who had recently been deported from Europe. This chapter documents some of their experiences upon return. In each case names have been changed and details have been withheld to protect the individuals in Afghanistan who, without exception, were deeply frightened. Subsequent chapters look at the current security and human rights situation in Afghanistan, why people are being returned, and whether the returns are consistent with European countries’ legal obligations. Sadeqa and her family1 Sadeqa is a mother of three young children. Along with her husband and children she was deported from Norway to Afghanistan in 2016. Amnesty International researchers interviewed her in 2017 by phone and also spoke with a family member in the UK and the family’s lawyer in Norway. Sadeqa described to researchers how, in 2015 before the family fled to Norway, her husband Hadi had been kidnapped by a group opposed to the nature of his work. The family paid a ransom to secure his release. According to Sadeqa, the kidnappers had beaten him so badly he was unable to speak for days. She told researchers: “They had tied his legs and hands. He was injured from head to toe and was shivering so much.” The family was too frightened to bring Hadi to the hospital and had to ask a doctor to treat him at home. After he had recovered, Sadeqa and her husband and other family members – including an infant – fled the country in fear for their lives. It took them several months to make their way to Europe. It was an arduous journey, and she said that at one point, her youngest son lost consciousness from the cold. Once they reached Norway, they submitted an application for international protection. For reasons that are not clear, their asylum claim was rejected. Sadeqa told researchers that she never saw a written copy of the negative decision.2 After the asylum claim was rejected, the Norwegian authorities presented the family with two options: be forcibly returned to Afghanistan after being detained for a period of time, or “accept” a return and thereby receive the equivalent of approximately EUR 10,7003 and avoid detention. Sadeqa told Amnesty International: “So we agreed to a return and decided to start from scratch again – we had no choice.”
Unless otherwise indicated, information in this section comes from interviews with returnee by phone, Afghanistan (location known to Amnesty International), 23 July 2017 and 23 August 2017. 2 It was not clear if the Norwegian authorities failed to provide this document, or whether a legal representative was given a document that was not shared with the family. 3 Amnesty International researchers were shown a document given to the family by the Norwegian authorities which set out the sum provided for reintegration support: 20,000 NOK per person * 5 people = 100,000 NOK. Document on file with Amnesty International. 1
FORCED BACK TO DANGER ASYLUM-SEEKERS RETURNED FROM EUROPE TO AFGHANISTAN Amnesty International
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