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Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit Synthesis Paper Series Searching For My Homeland: Dilemmas Between Borders EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG AFGHANS RETURNING “HOME” FROM PAKISTAN AND IRAN Mamiko Saito July 2009 Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit Synthesis Paper Series Searching For My Homeland: Dilemmas Between Borders EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG AFGHANS RETURNING “HOME” FROM PAKISTAN AND IRAN Mamiko Saito Funding for this research was provided by the European Commission (EC) and the United Nations July 2009 High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Editorial Team: Meredith Lewis, Brandy Bauer and Toby Miller for AREU; Cynthia Lee and Jay Lamey Layout: Jay Lamey Cover Photograph: Mamiko Saito. Afghans in Pakistan preparing to return “home”. © 2009 Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the publisher, the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit. Permission can be obtained by emailing [email protected] or by calling +93 799 608 548. About the Author Mamiko Saito was the Senior Research Officer for migration at AREU. She began working in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2003 and has worked with Afghan refugees in Quetta and Peshawar. She holds a master’s degree in education and development studies from the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom. About the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit AREU is an independent research organisation based in Kabul. AREU’s mission is to conduct high-quality research that informs and influences policy and practice. AREU also actively promotes a culture of research and learning by strengthening analytical capacity in Afghanistan and facilitating reflection and debate. Fundamental to AREU’s vision is that its work should improve Afghan lives. AREU was established in 2002 by the assistance community working in Afghanistan and has a board of directors with representation from donors, the United Nations and other multilateral agencies, and non- governmental organisations. AREU currently receives core funds from the governments of Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Specific projects have been funded by the Foundation of the Open Society Institute Afghanistan (FOSIA), the Asia Foundation (TAF), the European Commission (EC), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the World Bank. Acknowledgements This paper is the result of the contributions, patience and collaboration of many people. Generous funding from the European Commission enabled this study to be undertaken. We owe so much to the countless organisations and governmental offices of the three countries. In particular, AREU expresses its sincere appreciation to the host organisations: in Pakistan, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Peshawar, Save the Children USA in Quetta, and FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance Pakistan in Karachi; in Iran, the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Tehran led by Dr M.J. Abbasi-Shavazi as a partner organisation in the implementation of the study; and the central and district offices of the various Afghan ministries for their guidance and introduction to relevant institutions in Afghanistan. Gratitude is also extended to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its sub-offices in three countries which, along with community elders and representatives, supported researchers’ access to the areas and communities selected as research sites. We wish to thank those Afghan youths and young adults—both male and female—who participated in this study and shared their experiences with the research team, as well as their families who gave permission for the research team to conduct interviews. Their profound emotional struggles as Afghans who grew up away from “home” touched the heartstrings of the research team, which became a key motivation to the researchers involved in completing this work. Drawing out the internal voices of these second-generation Afghan refugees and returnees was only possible because the skilled interviewers in Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan were also Afghan youth, who willingly shared their own stories of growing up over the past decades in Afghanistan as well as neighbouring countries. It encouraged respondents to express themselves to produce a piece of history for the future of Afghanistan through various testimonies. We would like to thank Ewen Macleod of UNHCR for his careful review and comments on the report and his thoughtful support throughout the project. Comments from several reviewers added significant shape to the final form of the paper. Kathrin Köller of Oxford University gave profound input on developing the theoretical background of the arguments. Interactions with Dr Pamela Hunte, with her extensive knowledge and experiences in Afghanistan over the last three decades, have simply been a simply continuous discovery. Anil Ahmad Shaheer played a key role in implementation of this project as an irreplaceable co-worker. Special thanks go to AREU’s support staff and editorial team. The editorial team took time to review this paper, providing creative suggestions and giving it a strong argument; without their contribution, this paper would not be what it is. Finally, the AREU migration project has been expertly overseen by Dr Paula Kantor. Her extensive technical and theoretical input, exceptionally professional management, and moral support to the research team enabled the project to be accomplished, even in an ever-changing environment. I would like to also express my personal gratitude and deepest respect to Paula for all the support she has offered me in developing my research and writing capabilities, enabling me to undertake and complete the research for and writing of this paper. March 2009 Mamiko Saito Table of Contents Executive Summary ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ xi Part 1: Introduction ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 1 Part 2: Context ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 3 2.1 Afghanistan �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 3 2.2 Pakistan and Iran ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 3 Part 3: Key Concepts ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 8 3.1 Struggling to find an identity and the role of “the other” �������������������������������������������������8 3.2 Acculturation ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 10 3.3 The concept of homeland and second-generation refugee return ���������������������������������������������11 Part 4: Methodology �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13 4.1 Field approach and sampling ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13 4.2 Selecting the research sites and communities ������������������������������������������������������������� 15 4.3 Seeking “the ideal respondent” in the field ��������������������������������������������������������������� 15 4.4 Research tools �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 16 Part 5: Growing Up Afghan in Pakistan and Iran: The Formation of Afghan Identity ������������������������ 17 5.1 Learning about Afghanistan ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 17 5.2 Opportunities to learn about Afghanistan ������������������������������������������������������������������ 18 5.3 Growing up Afghan in Pakistan and Iran: the dilemma of different values ��������������������������� 20 5.4 Being mohajerin in the context of “others” ��������������������������������������������������������������� 22 5.5 The formation of Afghan identity outside Afghanistan ��������������������������������������������������� 24 Part 6: To Return or To Remain? ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 31 6.1 Intentions to return or to remain ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� 31 6.2 Complex attitudes toward return to Afghanistan �������������������������������������������������������� 31 6.3 Household decision-making about return................................................................... 34 Part 7: From Mohajer to Hamwatan �������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 36 7.1 The complex reintegration process ������������������������������������������������������������������������� 37 7.2 Finding fulfilment in the watan or failing to resettle ���������������������������������������������������� 39 7.3 The external environment—social acceptance or rejection ��������������������������������������������� 41 7.4 Personal fulfilment ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 43 7.5 Reintegration prospects ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 45 Part 8: Conclusion �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
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