Afghan refugees scrape for news
about loved ones in airstrike zones
By Scott Schonauer,
Stars and Stripes
Marni McEntee / Stars and Stripes
Afghan refugee Ruhullo Nematullo, 21, fled northern Afghanistan three years ago and now
lives in Termez, Uzbekistan. He worries about his family still living south of the border. |
TERMEZ, Uzbekistan — As U.S. jets continue to blast Taliban
targets in northern Afghanistan, Ruhullo Nematullo knows his family and friends back home
might not survive the winter.
While anti-Taliban forces push to seize control of his hometown of
Mazar-e-Sharif, he toils with the harsh reality that his parents could get killed in the
bombing, caught in a crossfire or starve.
Worst of all, he might not find out until weeks later.
Although he lives and works across the border in Uzbekistan, only
about 30 miles north, he has not talked to his family in more than a month. In an area
where telephones are scarce, he relies mostly on reports from other Afghan refugees living
in Uzbekistan for updates. Sometimes weeks go by and there is no information.
“That is why I worry about them all of the time,” he said,
peering at the ground.
Nematullo is among the more than 8,000 Afghan refugees in Uzbekistan
concerned about the friends and relatives they left behind. About 1,000 of the refugees
live in Termez, a dusty border town, but that number could grow if government officials
ever open up a bridge that connects Termez with Afghanistan.
The United Nations estimates there are 3 million Afghans living near
the borders of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
The Uzbek government agreed earlier this week to open ports along its
southern river border so humanitarian aid can be ferried to Afghanistan. There is no
agreement to allow trucks to pass a bridge across the Amu-Darya River. But if Uzbek
President Islam Karimov approves the opening, there is concern that refugees could stream
across the border much like they have in Pakistan.
It is a scenario that worries government officials, who do not
believe they or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees could handle the influx.
At least, not yet.
The U.N. has enough aid in its stockpile at the border to help only
5,000 people. However, workers are scrambling to ship mattresses, food, blankets and
medical supplies for 25,000 refugees, said Murad Kuchkinov, head of the UNHCR office in
Termez.
Additional refugees would overwhelm Termez, which has suffered
economically because of the instability in Afghanistan.
Most of the refugees left Afghanistan long before the first U.S. bomb
dropped. They arrived when the Taliban took control of the country in 1997.
Few, if any, Afghans have crossed into Uzbekistan since the Sept. 11
terror attacks against the United States.
Uzbekistan’s 84-mile border with Afghanistan is guarded by an
electric fence, military lookout towers and roving soldiers armed with automatic rifles.
The river also is a natural barrier.
The Uzbek government closed the border shortly after the
Taliban’s rise to power and many refugees have not been back since.
Uzbekistan has not exactly embraced the refugees, most of whom are
ethnic Uzbek.
Most Afghans live in enclaves in Uzbekistan and have quickly
assimilated into society. Although they do not have work visas, many earn money by driving
unmarked taxis or performing manual labor.
Each person is registered by the U.N. and allowed to live in the
country by an agreement with Uzbekistan. But that doesn’t prevent some people from
getting arrested for not having a visa or questioned incessantly on the street by police.
The U.N. offers free medical care, a monthly stipend and schooling
for Afghan refugees. But only a small percentage of the families meet the criteria for
monetary help and some refugees say they could not get medical attention.
While Afghans living in Uzbekistan say they are often discriminated
against by law enforcement, most say they live better than they would or did in
Afghanistan.
“The majority are living quite well in some level of middle
class of Uzbek society,” Kuchkinov said.
Abdusalom Abdulmannon, 30, his wife and their two children have lived
in Termez since 1997 but have yet to reach middle-class status. He used to move between
Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, buying and selling goods on both sides. His family left when
the Taliban moved in to Mazar-e-Sharif.
Now, he sells detergent, soap and shampoo on the street and barely
makes enough money for food.
He hopes that he and his family can some day return to Afghanistan,
but he would rather live in Europe, where he says there is more opportunity and less
uncertainty.
He supports the U.S.-led bombing campaign and wants the Taliban and
the terrorist cells that operate in Afghanistan removed. But he understands it could be
years before his country’s war wounds heal.
“When they get rid of the Taliban, what will they do?” he
said. “I want to go there when there is one flag and one government. If not like
this, I don’t ever want to go back.”
Nematullo, 21, can’t help but worry about the future of his
country and his family across the border. He fled his home in Mazar-e-Sharif to Uzbekistan
three years ago, escaping Taliban rule, drought and now a full assault by American fighter
jets.
Last he heard from his family, everything was fine. That, however,
could have changed yesterday, today or tomorrow. They could be dead or alive. He
doesn’t know.
That doesn’t mean he is against the U.S.-led air campaign. He
supports it even if it means his loved ones might die.
“Many times I think of that,” he said. “I really worry
for them. But peace is best. I want peace in my country.”
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