Two Afghans who trekked to France have lessons for evacuees

3 years ago 336

PARIS – One slept connected the streets of Paris, the different successful a monolithic makeshift migrant campy successful bluish France.

Nassrullah Youssoufi and Abdul Wali were among much than 1 cardinal refugees and migrants who reached Europe successful 2015. The 2 Afghans don't cognize each other, but they stock a fear-driven past: escaping their homeland connected foot, bus, bid oregon ferry and landing successful a caller state wherever they had nary rights, not adjacent the close to stay.

Years later, the men unrecorded successful France legally, 1 moving arsenic an asylum tribunal interpreter successful the superior and the different astatine a edifice successful the country's northeast. They are affluent successful hard-won acquisition that offers a roadworthy representation for arriving Afghans, similar the thousands evacuated to the United States, Europe and elsewhere aft the Taliban regained power of Kabul past month.

Youssoufi and Wali's advice: Embrace the differences, emotion your caller beingness and larn the section language.

For the 124,000 radical airlifted retired of Afghanistan past period during the U.S.-led evacuation, the astir harrowing portion of their travel whitethorn good person been getting past checkpoints, gunfire and hopeless crowds to scope Kabul airport.

But a overmuch larger fig of Afghans recovered their ain ways retired earlier the Taliban takeover, and more are expected to flee successful the months ahead. The radical from the Middle East, Africa and South Asia who knocked connected Europe's doorway six years agone traveled furtively for months and sometimes years, often paying smugglers to sneak them crossed borders.

Youssoufi, 32, and Wali, 31, look to gully connected the interior resources that helped them survive.

BECOMING ‘NORMAL’

There was nary invited mat oregon exile services for Youssoufi oregon Wali erstwhile they arrived successful France successful 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Wali spent his archetypal 10 months successful a immense makeshift migrant campy successful the bluish larboard of Calais. The campy of thousands, nicknamed “The Jungle," was known for its size and filthy, sometimes convulsive conditions. The asylum-seekers who congregated determination had acceptable their hopes connected a caller beingness successful Britain, crossed the English Channel.

When the French authorities decided to adjacent the camp, Wali helped authorities load thousands of different migrants onto buses to assigned homes astir France. He took the past autobus retired of “The Jungle” connected Oct. 27, 2016 aft departing migrants had torched the remaining structures. His authorities autobus took him to Strasbourg, a metropolis of half-timbered houses connected the German borderline and spot of the European Parliament.

All helium had with him were the apparel connected his back, his authoritative papers and the yellowish vest helium wore to assistance evacuate. He aboriginal took the vest to his asylum exertion — precious impervious of his enactment connected behalf of the French government.

Wali recalls crying connected the agelong autobus thrust into a caller unknown. But gaining exile presumption successful Strasbourg changed his life, allowing him to get a occupation successful a tiny edifice and enactment a extortion implicit his head.

“Now, I’m truthful blessed to beryllium here,” helium said. “You’re not frightened astatine night” similar successful the Calais migrant camp. “You person your job. You person your work, you travel backmost home. You wage your rent. You are a mean person.”

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GETTING LUCKY

Youssoufi started beingness successful France connected the streets aft a harrowing 1½-year travel from Afghanistan that included 3 months of detention successful Hungary for amerciable entry.

Then, “I got lucky,” helium recalls. A French teacher who asked wherefore helium was precocious to greeting people took him successful erstwhile helium explained that helium was homeless. She became his good of accusation to navigate the analyzable asylum process, past the assemblage system.

“I see her similar my mother,” helium said.

There are fewer services for the tens of thousands of migrants who wide successful metropolis streets astir Europe. In France, the fig of stateless encampments has ballooned since 2015. European governments are stealing themselves for different question of asylum-seekers pursuing the Taliban takeover successful Afghanistan.

Wali was bitterly alert of his unwanted presumption portion surviving successful the Calais campy successful 2016. “It’s their country. Right now, everybody hates us,” helium said astatine the time.

Yet contempt President Emmanuel Macron calling past period for a European inaugural to “anticipate and support america against an important migratory flux,” neither Wali nor Youssoufi complains astir favoritism from the French.

“Everybody is bully to me,” Wali said. When helium goes to a barroom to ticker a shot lucifer and cheer for his favourite French team, Lille, "I bid my portion ... I wage them, sometimes I springiness a tip,” and each is well, helium said.

“If I’d been discriminated against, I wouldn’t beryllium wherever I americium now,” Youssoufi said.

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UNENDING JOURNEY

When not astatine his time occupation arsenic an asylum tribunal interpreter oregon studying for a instrumentality degree, Youssoufi holds tribunal himself astatine the Afghan Market, a market store successful bluish Paris, wherever helium helps Afghans successful exile seeking guidance oregon translations of authoritative documents.

At a adjacent restaurant, helium met precocious with representatives of Afghan associations that are trying to assistance activistic women seeking an exit to France.

“Since Afghanistan fell into the hands of the Taliban, I said, ‘I indispensable bash thing for my countrymen,’” Youssoufi, who has acquired French nationality, said.

In Afghanistan, his Hazara taste radical has agelong been targeted by different Afghans, including the Taliban. He was 5 erstwhile his father, a wide successful Afghanistan’s army, was killed.

“I lived this. I’m surviving it again,” Youssoufi said.

Meanwhile, Wali is heartsick arsenic helium tries to get support to bring his woman to his location successful Strasbourg. He hasn't seen her since their matrimony past twelvemonth successful Pakistan, not acold from Laghman, their eastbound location state successful Afghanistan.

With the Taliban present successful power of Afghanistan, Wali’s request to person his woman astatine his broadside has go much urgent: The girl of a erstwhile Afghan authorities official, she is hiding out.

But migration officials support telling Wali to wait, and helium says France’s situation halfway devoted to evacuating Afghans didn't respond to his inquiry. He’s hired a lawyer to effort to get officials to perceive his plea for help.

Wali feels arsenic if helium is failing his wife.

“She’s scared,” helium said. “She cries each the time.”

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IT'S A NEW WORLD

Both Wali and Youssoufi hold that learning French is simply a indispensable for recently arrived Afghans seeking a location here.

“When you find yourself successful different state and you cognize neither the connection nor the culture, evidently you’re a spot lost,” Youssoufi said.

Youssoufi besides stresses the value of embracing the values of secular France. He says helium is crestfallen erstwhile immoderate Afghans archer him that “for america the archetypal happening is religion” oregon erstwhile they don’t privation their wives to larn French, a mode to support them homebound.

“For me, the lone religion is humanity,” Youssoufi said. He tells the Afghans helium helps with administrative steps, “We’re successful France. You indispensable respect the values.…They are (now) our identity.”

Wali echoes Youssoufi’s content successful the value of learning to communicate.

“When you talk French, you tin assistance yourself and others arsenic well,” helium said, adding that Afghans without the connection telephone connected him to assistance benignant retired problems.

But his archetypal portion of proposal concerns maintaining a steadfast outlook contempt the hardships of being an outsider: “Always beryllium nice, ever enactment positive, ne'er deliberation astir the negative,” helium recommends.

It’s with that affirmative cognition that Wali envisions the time his woman volition yet articulation him successful Strasbourg.

“I’ll instrumentality her the adjacent time to larn French,” helium said. He besides won’t hesitate if she wants to larn to thrust — thing Afghan women don’t usually bash backmost home.

“Women present are free," Wali said.

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