Afghans working with European troops face uncertain fate

Since the announcement of the scheduled retreat of most international troops from Afghanistan by 2014, the fate of the Afghan staff and interpreters who have worked with NATO forces has been in question. These staffers, labelled as ‘traitors’ or ‘infidels’ by the Taliban are now calling for assistance from the various European countries depending on the armed services with which they have worked.

In the UK, the EU country that has sent the most troops to Afghanistan, a spokesperson from the Foreign Office stated this week that the government is carefully assessing appropriate provisions for these Afghan nationals, after much debate over “targeted assistance schemes”, as previously offered to 900 Iraqis after the Iraq war.

Alex Ford, Former Royal Air Force Airman who served in Afghanistan, has argued that the British government is turning its back on the local civilians that have helped British forces in Afghanistan. “They wear our uniform. (…) The take the same risks as our troops. They are injured and die and risk injury and death in just the same way as a British soldier. But once we are gone, they are going to be left to fend for themselves. (…) They will return to their homes where they will face fear, intimidation and the prospect of death for helping us to do our work”, Ford said.

Germany, which deployed the second largest amount of troops, are opting for admittance on a case by case basis.

In contrast, the United States has already put in place a specialised visa scheme for those Afghan nationals that have been put at risk through assisting in operations, as well as their families. Up to 1,500 Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) have been made available in 2013.

Military commanders, MPs, campaigners, and NGOs in the UK, Sweden, Germany and Denmark have called for Europe to recognise the severity of leaving these workers behind. The Swedish press has quoted Sweden’s top military commander Sverker Göranson this week calling for local interpreters working with Swedish forces in Afghanistan to be granted asylum in Sweden. “If we going to be able to work and recruit in the future, in whichever country, interpreters must feel that we take care of them,” said Göranson.