Kathmandu: The Nepalese working in Afghanistan are at risk due to the civil conflict in Afghanistan. Nepal has not yet taken such an initiative even though all the countries of the world including neighboring India have started returning their citizens. Afghanistan is Nepal's legal employment destination.
Insurgent Taliban have stepped up attacks on government security forces to seize power after US-led NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) troops withdrew from Afghanistan. The Taliban have captured the capitals of 18 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces in the past week, and the group has been advancing on the capital, Kabul. Nepalis are also in crisis as the conflict has spread humanitarian tragedy in Afghanistan.
According to Surya Prasad Gautam, secretary at the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security, there are 14,565 Nepalis working in Afghanistan. "We have already taken the data of which company has how many. Discussions are underway on how to rescue, 'he said. According to him, most of the Nepalis are working as security guards and they are safely in the 'green zone'. The Government of Nepal does not have clear information about the number of Nepalis who have arrived in Afghanistan without labor permits. The Nepali Embassy in New Delhi had a 'virtual' discussion with the companies sending workers to Afghanistan on Friday about how many Nepalis there are.
Nepalis work in the US Embassy in Afghanistan, the European Union, the United Nations, the Canadian Embassy, the European Police, the World Bank, the British Embassy, the Baron Hotel, and the Green Village. They have been sent there by companies including AEGIS LLC, Page Protection Service, International Department of Gorkha, Saver International, Hart, GeForce, and Shield Security.
According to the Ministry of Labor, 565 people have gone to Afghanistan from April to July this year. According to a Nepali security guard working at the US Embassy in Kabul, there is currently 300 Nepali security personnel in the mission alone. "We are all veterans, we work as security guards. There could be some problem only if the embassy is attacked, ”he told Kantipur by telephone.
Retired senior and geopolitical expert Binoj Basnyat said that the government should immediately be active in protecting or rescuing Nepalis who have been brought to Afghanistan legally or illegally by giving high priority to the security situation. "The government of Nepal should take the initiative now. Otherwise, it may be too late, 'he says. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Seva Lamsal also said that contacts were being made with the Nepali embassy in New Delhi to look into Afghanistan. Lamsal also said that when Nepalis in Afghanistan contacted the workers from Delhi, they informed them that they were safe. "Nepalis have also said they are safe.
Also, no one in Nepal who has family members in Afghanistan has said that their people are insecure, 'she said. He said the ministry and the embassy in Delhi would work as needed. Ram Prasad Subedi, Deputy Chief of Mission of the Nepali Embassy in Delhi, said, “Necessary dialogue is underway to make arrangements for the security and repatriation of Nepali citizens. "We are in coordination with the Afghan embassy in Delhi. We are discussing security and repatriation arrangements for Nepalis," he said. Similarly, a Nepali security official near the Kabul airport said that about 150 Nepalis at the British embassy and about a thousand others would return home next week.
Afghanistan, which is also a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), has been looking at the issue of co-certification of Afghanistan until 2017, while India has been looking after it. During this period, the then Ambassador Seva Lamsal from Islamabad, then Deep Kumar Upadhyay from Delhi, and now Nilambar Acharya have not been able to submit their credentials to Kabul. Earlier, only the then ambassador and now foreign secretary Bharat Poudyal had gone to Kabul and handed over his credentials. The then Ambassador Poudyal had assisted in repatriating Nepalis who were in distress and in distress in Afghanistan.
Haider Ali, a local journalist based in Kabul, says that even though the Nepali government calls it a 'green zone', the area is not safe. "Even though the area where the embassy in Kabul is located is called the Green Zone, the situation is not comfortable, so some embassies have started moving near the airport," he said. "The people of Kabul want the tragedy to end as soon as possible, they want no war," he told Kantipur.
In 2073 BS, 13 Nepali security guards working in the 'Green Zone' were killed in a suicide attack. Immediately after that, the government of Nepal stopped sending security personnel to Afghanistan. However, the Nepalese government withdrew the decision immediately after pressure from the embassies of the United States, the United Kingdom, and European countries in Kathmandu.
The government had formed a high-level team to formulate a policy on employment and security in Afghanistan. As the Nepali security guards have always been a target of extremists, the government of Nepal has not yet implemented the high-level study team's suggestion that work should be sanctioned only after clarifying the responsibilities between the employer's office, the supplying company, and the manpower company. The Government of Nepal should be informed of the agreement between the company supplying the security guards and the employer. It has been suggested that there should be a tripartite agreement between the workers, the supply company, and the manpower, ”a member who played a role in drafting the report told Kantipur.
It is mentioned in the report that even in the international missions in Afghanistan, Nepali security guards are being employed illegally without getting a work permit. The report called for in-depth discussions between Labor, Defense, Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs, Nepal Rastra Bank and ex-military organizations on whether to send security guards to Afghanistan. However, there has been no discussion among the concerned bodies.
What has happened so far?
The capitals of 18 out of 34 provinces were captured in a week, while six cities were captured on Friday
Millions displaced from Taliban-occupied settlements, UN says '80% women and children
Request for the Afghan government to convene UN Security Council meeting immediately, request for military and diplomatic assistance
Embassies of Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, and Finland announce the repatriation of all their employees.
The Czech Republic has announced it will not suspend the deportation of Afghan nationals, while other European Union nations have postponed
France believes Afghan citizens and human rights activists need help, visa system continues in Kabul
