Kabul's displaced families trapped

The children of Mullah Ahmed* look at the flames that lick the interior of the small family stove.The heated atmosphere of their house in earth bricks is a welcome relief against the cold that reigns outside this winter in the Afghan capital.

But when it removes a blackened kettle from the pan, Mullah gives off a puff of harmful smoke.He burns strips of old carpets and other combustible waste that he found in the streets." What can I do ?»He launches."We can't afford wood.»»

This is a familiar story of adaptation to survive in Afghanistan.But for Mullah, the options are exhausted.He and his extended family of 14 people are among the 700,000 people that the conflict forced to leave their home during this year.If the fighting has now ceased, many people displaced inside the country are faced with a potentially more devastating crisis caused by the economic collapse that followed.

Le 3 décembre 2021, le HCR, l'agence des Nations Unies pour les réfugiés, a prévenu que 23 millions d'Afghans - soit 55 % de la population - sont désormais confrontés à des niveaux de famine extrêmes, près de 9 millions d'entre eux étant menacés de famine et la crise humanitaire « s'aggravant chaque jour»».

Some families took advantage of the end of the fighting and the return help available through the UNHCR to enter their original districts where they fight to obtain food and fuel and to repair the houses damaged by war.But those who, like Mohammad and his family, have no house where to return and no work, are confronted with situations among the most difficult.Humanitarian aid is their only hope to escape the hellish spiral of debt and hunger.

« Nous vivons de légumes et de pain bon marché»», confie Farishta, 28 ans, alors qu'elle fait la queue dans un bâtiment de la banlieue est de Kaboul où le HCR distribue des allocations en espèces aux familles déplacées les plus vulnérables."We haven't eaten meat since we arrived in Kabul four months ago.»»

After the visit of a United Nations evaluation team in the house of a room she shares with her daughter Rehana, 10 years old, her 11 -year -old son Aslam and her 20 -year -old brother Salim, shehas been appointed to receive two cash benefits in total amount of $ 490. Cet argent l'aidera à payer le loyer de sa maison et les « frais de préparation à l’hiver»», comme l'achat d'un poêle, de bois de chauffage, de couvertures et de vêtements supplémentaires.For Farishta, who is widowed, this aid fell timely.

She feared that her owner would expel them because she had not been able to pay the rent in the last three months.In addition to the money that Salim earns from time to time thanks to odd jobs, the family has survived by borrowing. « Nous achetons toute notre nourriture à crédit»», explique Farishta.

It intends to use cash grants to repay all its debts, but this represents half of the money and no other aid is planned in the immediate future. « J'aimerais pouvoir offrir un meilleur avenir à mes enfants, leur permettre de faire des études, mais nous sommes coincés»», déplore-t-elle.

Taking care of your children is not his only concern.Farishta is from the province of Takhar, in the north of the country, where Salim had worked with American forces as a translator.This summer, when the Taliban approached Takhar, Farishta, his parents, his brothers and sisters and his children - around twenty people in all - decided that their only option was to flee the country.

They then headed for the province of Nimroz, in the southwest of the country, in the hope of getting into contact with the smugglers who pass the undocumented Afghans in Iran via neighboring Pakistan. « Mais nous n'avions pas les moyens de payer le voyage pour toute la famille»», relate Farishta.His parents and young brothers therefore left for Iran, while Farishta and Salim went to Kabul.His family in Iran is in trouble.His brothers only manage to find poorly paid jobs of street sweepers.In order to help them and while trying to take care of her children, Farishta had to go into debt even more to send them money.

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UNHCR now provides cash assistance to more than 20,000 families in the center region, which includes Kabul and the surrounding provinces.It's ten times more than last year, according to Ahmad Sattar Faheem, principal partner in charge of repatriation at the HCR office in Kabul.For the most part, displaced people live in relatives or are dispersed in inexpensive accommodation.For a few weeks after the fall of Kabul, some have established temporary camps in the capital, but most of these people have now returned home.Although most of those who remain have a temporary shelter, their living conditions are generally disastrous.

In the house of Mullah Ahmed, her six -year -old son, Assadullah, coughs by fixing Brasier in the stove.Squatting behind the fireplace, her eldest daughter, Farzana, 20, hugs her 6 month old son, Umaid.The room is small and the smoke is thick, but there is no heating in the other room in the house, so the family piled up there.Her 3 -year -old daughter, Aseela, barefoot and dressed in fine and shred clothes, chews a piece of bread she found on the floor.

Very often, that's all the family has to eat, explains Mullah."I collect old bread from the bakery, then we dip it in the water to soften it.»» Il montre les restes d'une simple bouillie de riz dans un bol qu'ils ont gardé.When he has a little money, he buys a few vegetables.

It has been five months since the family arrived in Kabul after fled their home in the eastern province of Nangarhar.They owned a small farm there which made it possible to feed the extended family and to release a small surplus each year.But the fighting between the former Afghan government forces and the Taliban have extended to the region and made agriculture impossible.Mullah decided that the only option was to move to Kabul."We did not think that the Taliban also seizes the capital.»»

It was the latest upheaval in a life marked by the fight for survival during the decades of political agitation of Afghanistan.He and his family were refugees in neighboring Pakistan for almost 20 years, and only returned to Afghanistan in 2010.Two years ago, his brother was killed in a suicide attack after going to the city of Ghazni, in the south of the country, to seek work.Mullah now takes care of her widow and two children.

In Kabul, Mullah first found a bearer job at the neighboring bus station, but this livelihood quickly turned out to be less lucrative."Before, I earned 100 or 150 Afghanis ($ 1.50) per day by helping people with their luggage. Maintenant, j'ai de la chance si je peux gagner autant en une semaine»».At the same time, the cost of basic products such as flour and fuel increases, while the value of Afghan currency collapses.

Like Haditha, he obtained food on credit.Except that now local merchants have ceased to serve it.He estimates that he still owes them at least 35,000 Afghanis (around 350 dollars), an overwhelming charge for a family that has almost nothing.

« Je me cache des commerçants quand je les vois»», explique Mullah, l'air peiné.

For the moment, the family survives thanks to charity and the $ 265 for winter preparation received from the UNHCR.The owner of the house in which they live fled to the advance of the Taliban, asking his neighbor to take care of the small property.The neighbor was mercy on Mullah and his family and hosted them for free.Other neighbors sometimes give them bread, but many of them are also in difficulty.

« Je suis très inquiet pour le reste de l'hiver»», confie Mullah en regardant ses enfants pieds nus."If we do not receive more help, than Allah preserves us, we will have to start begging.»»

*All names have been changed for protection reasons.

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