UK Afghan youths struggle amid family reunification delays

Young Afghans in the UK navigate life’s challenges in the shadow of the Afghan conflict’s aftermath after being torn from their families and caught in bureaucratic delays

The withdrawal of the U.K. and U.S. forces from Afghanistan in August 2021 and the subsequent return of the Taliban led to a mass exodus. Among the thousands at Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport were Zulikha Zazai, 20, and her family.

Zazai now lives in Leeds with her siblings, aged 18 and 10, but still vividly remembers the pain of being separated from her parents in the chaos. The past two years have been a struggle for Zazai, who has had to overcome life’s challenges in a new country without her parents.

This story is not unique among young Afghans in the U.K. under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS). The Guardian reports many facing similar challenges, adjusting to new lives far from their families. Despite the U.K.’s pledge to resettle 20,000 Afghan refugees under ACRS, progress has been slow. By the end of 2023, fewer than 300 individuals had been resettled under this scheme, while many more have arrived through dangerous and irregular routes.

The slow pace of family reunification under ACRS has drawn criticism from advocates. Caterina Franchi, a lawyer for Safe Passage, expressed frustration with the government’s approach. “I don’t have any idea as to why they would want to keep traumatized young children separated from their parents,” she stated.

Psychotherapist Philippa Kempe has witnessed the severe impact of this separation firsthand. “We cannot fail children, wherever they’ve come from. We pride ourselves in the UK as being good at safeguarding children’s needs and keeping them safe, and we’ve failed them,” Kempe said, referring to the cases of eating disorders and self-harm among the youths she supports.

Source: The Guardian