A group of Afghans living in South Korea holds a news conference in front of the foreign ministry in Seoul on Aug. 23, 2021, calling for the government to evacuate their families from the war-torn country. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 23 (Korea Bizwire) — A group of Afghans living in South Korea appealed to the government Monday to evacuate their families from the war-torn country, where they are facing possible reprisals by the Taliban.
About 30 people — those who worked for South Korean companies, nongovernmental organizations and churches in Afghanistan and their families — gathered in front of the foreign ministry in Seoul to stage a news conference and one-person demonstration.
“We are here to appeal to the Korean government and people to save our families, who are in danger of being killed by the Taliban because of their cooperation with Korea,” they said.
“We sincerely ask the Korean government to take prompt action to get out all Afghans who assisted Korea and whose families are living in Korea.”
Most of them are members of the Hazara minority, one of the ethnic groups most oppressed by the Taliban, said Lee Ho-taeg, executive director of the Refuge pNan, a Christian NGO assisting refugees.
“The most worrisome is military-related cooperators, including those who assisted in building U.S. bases, converts, church cooperators, and women. Assistance from the Korean government is needed,” he said.
The participants also expressed hopes that South Korea will grant refugee status to them as they cannot return home any longer.
“I came to Korea in 2008. My parents and friends are in Afghanistan, and they said they are so scared of the Taliban that they can’t work and just stay at home,” Azim, a 37-year-old automobile worker, said.
A missionary named Nasim also left his family in the Middle Eastern country.
“Worried about my family in Afghanistan, I visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs alone last week to ask for help from the Korean government,” he said.
“We gathered from all over the country, because we thought it would be better to speak together than alone.”
(Yonhap)
