The issue of refugees is getting very serious for European countries and they do not seem in concurrence with each other regarding the issue. Germany that seemed ready to welcome refugees with open arms now seem undecided about them. In a recent step, which is considered as a policy shift by Angela Merkel’s government, Germany is to start deporting Afghan asylum seekers. The step is taken to discourage hundreds of thousands of Afghan asylum seekers who are on their way to Germany. In the ongoing year according to UN Refugee Agency about 124,000 Afghans requested asylum in Europe, which is twice as many as in the same period last year and they are second largest group as Syrians are the largest.  

The current German government believes that all of the asylum seekers who have reached to Germany are not genuine refugees, as many of them come for economic reasons. It says that Germany will continue to offer asylum to those fleeing areas held by the Taliban or affected by fighting. But it wants to repatriate those who come from areas considered “safe”, like the capital, Kabul.

So far, almost 50 per cent of asylum claims from Afghans are rejected in Germany. Those who are turned down are not deported because of the uncertain security situation, but are allowed to remain in Germany in a legal limbo.

Currently, German government wants the EU to negotiate a repatriation agreement with Afghanistan so they can be safely returned.

If it cannot secure EU backing, Germany will try to negotiate a bilateral agreement with the Kabul government.

The Afghan government on the other hand seems worried about the deportation of the Afghan refugees. The Afghan Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said on Sunday that Afghanistan will not accept the deported asylum seekers without a mutual agreement between the government of Afghanistan and the European Union. However the ministry urged that the government of Afghanistan is ready to hold dialogues with EU to find a solution to the alarming matter.

The Upper House of Afghan Parliament – Meshrano Jirga also warned of a possible tragedy if the forcible expulsion of Afghan refugees is not managed properly.

The sad story is that the Afghan refugees who return to Afghanistan do not have proper services and requirements available for them. The Afghan government is not in the position to completely absorb the returning refugees and would face immense pressure in order to provide compensations for them.

The issue of refugees is an international problem and needs proper attention from international community. The refugees who leave their homelands in search of better life, most of the times suffer different sorts of hardships before they reach somewhere safe. Most of them even do not reach to the destination they set for as happened in the incident mentioned above. On most of the occasions they fall prey to the ill intentions of human-smugglers, who discriminate them as much as they can. Furthermore, they have to go through severe kind of psychological depression and strain as they go through the worst sort of experiences.

The growing discontent in different parts of the world has made the number of refugees and asylum seekers rise considerably. Afghanistan is one of the most dominant countries in this regard. Decades of wars and terrorism along with droughts and shortages of basic requirements have compelled million of people to leave the country. Though there has been remarkable decrease in this regard, millions of Afghan refugees are still living their lives in neighboring countries (like Pakistan and Iran), European countries, Australia, Canada and America; while, there are thousand others who are still in different sorts of camps and detention centers around the world waiting for some sort of sympathy and attention. The circumstances faced by these refugees are not always welcoming and they have to bear the brunt of different sorts of reactions. Though in some countries they are welcomed warmly, in others they are treated in a very cruel manner.

The foreign lands have not always treated Afghan refugees with warm hugs; every now and then they have been the victims of discrimination and ill-treatment. Most of the Afghan refugees in the neighboring countries have suffered the consequences of fluctuations in the way they are treated. Definitely, it has been generous of host countries to compensate the Afghan refugees, who because of wars and instability left their dear homeland, but on certain occasions they have also displayed the attitude that have violated the rights of the refugees to a great extent.

Definitely, these countries have their own problems; they are developing countries and they have their own economic issues to face; however, they have been supported by international community and United Nations to assist the refugees and guarantee their rights under international law.

The European countries at this crucial juncture must make sure that they design a clear strategy regarding the fate of Afghan refugees. Definitely, there are political and diplomatic concerns for all the governments of the world to consider, but the issue of refugees is more important than such concerns, as it involves the precious human lives and the lives of human beings stand more sacred than any other concern, belief or ideology.