LONDON: The UK government is expanding the Home Office’s Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme so that refugees from Afghanistan who were evacuated to Britain can finally be reunited with close family members who were left behind.
It means Afghans separated from their relatives in the chaos during the withdrawal of Western forces from Kabul in 2021 can now apply to join them in Britain, The Independent newspaper reported on Tuesday.
“It is our moral duty to ensure that families who were tragically separated are reunited and are not left at the mercy of the Taliban, which is why I have expanded ACRS so that those who were left behind can be resettled in the UK,” said the immigration minister, Seema Malhotra.
“Afghans did right by us and we will do right by them, ensuring our system is fair and supports those most at risk and vulnerable.”
Close relatives of refugees who were relocated to the UK under the scheme, which was introduced to help vulnerable and at-risk people, will be eligible to apply. Nearly 6,500 people have come to the UK under the scheme so far, including women’s rights activists, journalists and prosecutors.
Relatives who qualify include spouses and partners, and children who were under the age of 18 at the time of the evacuation. The parents and siblings of children who traveled to the UK without them are also eligible.
The previous, Conservative government had faced calls from MPs to expand ACRS before the general election in July in which the Labour Party swept to power in a landslide victory. The Conservatives initially pledged to accept 20,000 refugees over five years as part of the Home Office scheme to help vulnerable Afghans after the Taliban takeover. But several MPs complained that the relocation process had been slow following the initial evacuation.
“It’s been almost three years since the evacuation of Kabul and yet there remains an urgent need to ensure that those who assisted our efforts in Afghanistan by upholding democracy, freedom and human rights, often at huge personal risk to themselves and their families, can be reunited,” Malhotra said.
Charities and rights groups welcomed Tuesday’s announcement. Refugee Council CEO Enver Solomon said it was “hugely welcome” and added: “Over the last three years we’ve worked with many families who were torn apart in the chaos of evacuating Kabul. They will now have a way to be safely together again thanks to the swift action that has been taken by the government.
“For the children who have been apart from their parents for far too long, we know this will be life-changing.”
Gunes Kalkan, head of campaigns for Safe Passage International, said: “Families have been waiting nearly three years for a long-promised way to reunite. This will be life-changing for the parents and children who have been separated all this time.”