CANADA'SREFUGE PERIODICAL ON REFUGEES Vol. 9, No. 1 SPECIALISSUE October 1989 Afghan Refugees

When Duke University Professor and Afghan scholar Louis Dupree was asked a year ago to edit a.specia1issue of Refuge on Afghanistan, he immediately set to to work on this project with the help of his wife, Nancy Hatch Dupe. The issue was beginning to take shape when Louis Dupedied of lung cancer in March of this year. Now that the project has been completed, we are dedicating the mdtsto his memory. Louis Dupree: In Memoriam

by Anders Fange

There is a story about Louis Dupree. He said the same thing on numerous dare to hope any more; even then he never Once, in the early eighties, during a dis- lectures around the world, in articles and expressed a single doubt that the Afghan cussion about Afghanistan in the State intenriews, in every possible fora where people would reach victory in the end. Department, an expert on the Soviet he could make his voice heard. Even dur- Of course, there were a lot of people Union said that the Afghans will lose this ing the worst years, between 1984 and who said that Louis certainly knew a lot war because there has so far never been a 1986, when the Soviets tried to bomb about Afghanistan, but his analysis case in history where the Soviets have left Afghanistan back to the Stone Age, when emanated more from feelings than from a country once they have put their hands they attacked furiously in a last desperate facts. I was one of them, and I was wrong. on it. His argument was simple. The attempt to crush the Afghan spirit of resis- Louis was right, because he had, above all, Soviet Union was a superpower with all tance, when many of us who supported its resources and the biggest war machine and believed in the Afghan cause did not Continued on page 2 the world had ever seen; Afghanistan was a backward country, one of the poorest, IN THIS ISSUE: with no army, a divided resistance, little organization, and so on. Louis was there Louis Dupree: A lkibute by M. Nazif Shahrani Page a and he objected. He told the man: The Canadian Response to Afghanistan by Jane Thomas Page 4 "Perhaps you know the Soviet Union, but Aid in Afghanistan: Limitations and Possibilities by Andus Fdnge Page 8 it is obvious that you don't know the Problems and Prospects of Repatriation by Peter Rees page 11 Afghans. If you did, you would also know that they will not give up, that Prospects for Afgan Women After Repatriation by Nancy Hatch Dupree page 14 they'll go on fighting whatever the odds, Refigees and International Relations reviewed by Lisa Gilad page 17 they will continue to resist until the From the Jews to the Tamils reviewed by lndhu Rajagopal page 18 Soviets are forced out of their country." one thing in common with the Afghans, came a long way. He saw the Soviets a pig, to the satisfaction of many and to which was crucial in his vrofound and leaving, but he did not reach his own per- the dismay of those who deserved it. unique understanding of them; just like sonal victory, which would have been to The& are too few Louis Duprees in them he was not a quitter. Just like the see his beloved Kabul once again. The this world and now there is one less; the Afghans he was a fighter. Afghan people, and we who are working world is a poorer place. Now he has left us, attacked from to help them, have lost one of our best Anders ~an~estarted as a reporter in within by that dreadful disease. But I friends and staunchest supporters. We Afghanistan in 1981. He has been the refuse to believe that he gave up. I am will miss his deep knowledge and good Director of the Swedish Committee for convinced that he fought until that stage advice, his stories and pkes, the spirit he Afghanistan - one of the oldest and today where no fights are possible any more, created around him. But, above all, we the biggest crossbord& humanitarian agency where you are left alone with your aeator. will miss his straight-forwardness and working in Afghanistan - since 1983. He He died the same way he had lived. He honesty, his habit of calling things for was also one-if the founders of the Agency what they are; because Louis Dupree Co-ordinating Body for Afghan Relief never hesitated to call a cat a cat and a pig (ACBAR) and is now its Vice-chairman. CANADA'S PERIODICAL ON REFUGEES The Current Situation

REFUGE Most Members of the Citizens swept dusty plain. Many of the tents had Cemrefor Refugee Studies. York Univenily. Commission on Afghan Refugees who vis- been blown down by strong winds, and Suite 234. AdmlnbtrallveStudies BuHdlng. 4700 Keel8 Street. North York. Ontario. Canada M3J 1P3. ited Pakistan previously accepted the could not be reconstituted because of Telephone: (416) 736-5863. Fax: (416) 738-5687. widely held view of gov&menk and the defective poles. Safe water and food had Eledronic Mall Via Binet Address: REFUGE@YORKVMl. general population that: "the regime in to be brought in by truck. The provision Kabul will probably fall soon after the of basic health care was inadequate. I Guest Editor: Soviet withdrawal". was told that ten children had died the Nancy Hatch Dupree Obviously, the conventional wisdom previous day and was shown several fresh was wrong and it now appears that the graves. Throughout my visit the refugee Editor: fighting will continue on for an indetermi- elders pleaded with me for additional Howard Adelrnan nate time that some speculate will last for help. An obvious point to be made is that years unless there is-a negotiated settle- programmes for refugees in Pakistan must Executive Editor: ment between the government in Kabul not yet be de-escalated. To the contrary, Alex Zisman and the Interim Government based in additional support services are urgently Peshawar. Here it should be pointed out requited by the new arrivals. Illustrations: that one member of the Commission, The above comments have been excerpted Herminio Ord6iiez Robert Cranborne, did not concur with from James C. Strickler's "Report of Visit this assumption. In an article in the (5122-5128189) to Peshawar and Hangu Circulation Manager: Spectator (August 6, 19881, he points out Pakistan ",dated June 16, 1989. The author Helen Gross that the Geneva accords provided an is is a Member of the Citizens Commission on agreement for the Soviet withdrawal from Afghan ~efu~'. Assisfant to the Circulation Manager: Afghanistan, but did not contain provi- Ching Man (C.M.) Wong sions that would guarantee peace. He dis- cusses the "fiendishly complicated politi- Canadian Aid RqScgc is dedicated to the encouragement of assistance to refugees by providing a forum for cal situation" and opines that the existing According to Government of Canada sharing information and opinion on Canadian and parties are not likely to become more sources, about $300 million has been international issues pertaining to refugees. It is effective and that the West should encour- provided to Afghan refugees between published four times a year by the Centre for Refugee Studies. It is a non-pfit, independent age the commanders "to take power into 1980 and 1988 through the United Fodical supported by private donations and by their own hands". Nations and the Government of subscriptions. It is a forum for discussion, and the As a consequence of the continued Pakistan. It is mostly in the form of views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of fighting, substantial numbers of Afghan its fundem or staff. food commodities. While this may All materials in Refuge may be reproduced refugees, largely from the Jalalabad area, sound like a lot of money, given the without permission unless copyrighted or other- continue to flee to Pakistan. During my magnitude and duration of this refugee wise indicated. Credit should be given to the stay, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, crisis, it is not. It works out to far less author or source, if named. Subscription rates for one year are $20.00 in Benazir Bhutto, announced that 800-1,000 than one cent per day per refugee. Canada and US $25.00 overseas. Please enclose new refugees are now arriving daily in Government-to-government aid was payment with your order. Pakistan. Others have cited a figure of also withdrawn in 1980. That is still in 70,000-75,000 new refugees since effect. In 1988, however, Canada Logo design: Dreadnaught Co-operative Inc., Toronto November 15, 1988. I visited one of the restored aid through NGOs to refugee camps for new arrivals, the Afghanistan. Only about $2 million has Layout: PAGES Q\a5 Shindand Camp near Hangu. There were been provided (through NGOs) inside an estimated 8,000-10,000 refugees living Afghanistan during the whole war thus Second CkrMail Registntbn N. 5512 IS6N 0229-5113 in tents, under a glaring sun, on a wind- far. Louis Dupree: A Tribute

by M. Nazif Shahrani

Afghanistan's natural and human on Afghanistan spanned some forty years, and outspoken advocates in the interna- resources have been devastated by the beginning in 1949, when he participated in tional arena. The fact that just a few weeks more than a decade-long direct and indi- an archaeological excavation in before Louis's death the defeated Red rect military aggression by the Soviet Southwestern Afghanistan as a Harvard Army was in the last phase of its final Union against her small, traditionally non- graduate student, until his death, due to departure from Afghanistan must have aligned, Muslim neighbouring state in lung cancer, on March 21, 1989. Louis given him some satisfaction. At this criti- Central Asia. The displacement of over Dupree, a trained archaeologist, directed cal phase in the struggle for regaining the five million Afghans as refugees in the American Archaeological Mission in right of self-determination by the peoples Pakistan and Iran, and another two and a Afghanistan (1959-1971), and was also a of Afghanistan, the loss of Louis Dupree's half million displaced from rural villages member of the American Universities active voice in support of the ~f~han and small provincial towns into the capi- Field Staff (1959-1983) covering cause is irreplaceable. However, the jihad tal, Kabul, and a few larger urban centres Afghanistan and Pakistan. In his capacity must go on without Louis, and the chal- inside the country, is but one consequence as an AUFS researcher and teacher he lenge of repatriating and rehabilitating the of the war of resistance by the peoples of spent many years living in Afghanistan, refugees, and reconstructing and develop Afghanistan. The Soviets have now with- travelling to the most remote parts of the ing Afghanistan must be faced. In this drawn their troops from Afghanistan, but country, studying and reporting on many process Louis's knowledge and insights, their aggression against the people of aspects of the contemporary heteroge- and his passion for Afghanistan, will be Afghanistan and their colonialist policy of neous Afghan society, culture, economy, sorely missed. domination continues unabated. Their and politics. His monumental and ency- war by proxy goes on with greater intensi- clopaedic book, Afghanistan (Princeton: ty, using new and more lethal weapons. Princeton University Press, 1973; updated M. Nazif Shahrani is an Associate Professor The Russians have unleashed a powerful 1980) presents a lasting legacy of his com- of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Studies international media campaign to present mitment and valuable service to students at UCLA, and a Co-Diredor of the Centre for their withdrawal from Afghanistan as evi- and researchers for generations to come. Asian Studies in Islamabad, i is tan. dence of a change of policy and proof of Louis Dupree published tirelessly their peaceful intentions in Afghanistan. both in academic journals and the public In reality, however, the Soviets have intro- media, writing on a wide variety of duced new and more sophisticated means themes, peoples, regions, issues and of pursuing the goals they could not events of consequence in Afghanistan. As Canadian Foreign accomplish by direct intervention. such, all scholars of Afghanistan owe him During the entire struggle, Afghans a significant intellectual debt. Louis's con- Policy have fought bravely and recorded many tribution to Afghanistan studies was by no important military victories against their means limited to his published works. His In 1980, Canada de-recognized the powerful enemies. However, they have direct personal support, and enthusiastic Kabul government. In 1988, External failed to achieve the same level of success encouragement of all researchers interest- ~ffairs~ina letter to Human Concern in effectively presenting their case to the ed in Afghanistan studies, especially International stated: "Canada does not world community through the media so Afghan students and scholars, was unpar- recognize the present government [of as to properly expose the moral bankrupt- alleled. He was a jovial, genial, energetic Afghanistan] as it has no legitimacy". cy of the Soviet policies in Afghanistan. and provocative scholar with an uncom- In 1986 and 1987, at annual United With the premature demise of Louis mon sense of dedication to "his friends, the Nations debates on Afghanistan, then Dupree, a strong and very effective voice Afghans" and to Afghan affairs. He Canadian ambassador Stephen Lewis of the Afghan cause in the scholarly as shared the grief of the Afghan nation dur- gave extremely strong speeches, using well as journalistic community, the diffi- ing the last decade of Soviet intervention, numerous human rights reports. He culties of maintaining strong and power- and he never faltered in the belief that the quoted from the UN's own Special ful media campaigns may be further Afghans would not submit to brute force. Rapporteur on Human Rights in aggravated. He continued to study Afghanistan, Afghanistan about the "evidence that Professor Dupree, often referred to in together with his wife and research com- genocide has been committed against academic circles as the Dean of panion Nancy Hatch Dupree; they were the Afghan people by the combined Afghanistan Studies, was a pioneer in the intimate observers of the plight of the forces of the Democratic Republic of field. His research and publishing career Afghan refugees in neighbouring Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Soviet Union." The Canadian Response to Afghanistan by Jane Thomas Afghanistan has produced half the with a number of Third World agencies But in all areas of the public and the world's refugees and the largest refugee back home, learning about different world NGO community, there is an anti-Muslim population in the world: about 5.5 million. situations, development issues and social bias. Information from the Soviet perspec- A refugee population is, of course, prob- justice, no one had ever mentioned the tive is very common. Except for Afghans lematic in itself; however, it is only a fact that there were so many When I went in exile in Canada and a handful of others, symptom of other problems. 'The world's to Pakistan, I wondered why I had never I have not encountered a single Canadian largest refugee population" is indicative of heard of the Afghan refugees. connected with any NGO who appears to the country-wide nature and severity of Seeing the refugee camps spread out have made an attempt to understand the the problems inside Afghanistan. as far as the eye could see and for hun- popular resistance movement - its ideas This paper draws attention to the non- dreds of kilometres, I began seeking or ideology. Many apparently have never government response to the Afghan crisis. Canadian relief workers to educate me even grasped that it is a popular resistance Given the international humanitarian and answer my questions. I could not movement, and, because the ideas of the image which Canadians have, and our find any! All officials said, "There are no resistance are not known, they are track-record demonstrating our capability Canadian relief agencies or Canadians assumed to have none. and willingness to help in crises as well as here." I found no evidence of any Only two Canadian organizations, the in longer term development, the non-gov- Canadian help. Then, as now, Canada and Afghan Association of Ontario and ernment organization (NGO) response to Canadians are considered absent. Human Concern International, have taken Afghanistan is severely abnormal - less Back home in Canada, I thought, this a pro-active stance in favour of the resis- than half of one per cent of all financial cannot be true. I still had certain expecta- tance and condemned the Soviets and the assistance! Only one Canadian mlief agen- tions of Canadian humanitarians. We go Kabul +me. cy has been present on the scene! Less out and help everywhere, don't we? Thus By far, most Canadian NGOs have than two per cent of Canada's intake of began the research now summarized in remained completely silent. Although refugees is Afghan! Only one Canadian the boxes. It proves that the officials were numerous case examples could be present- has been employed to work in Canada on not exactly correct. Canadians have ed, the following four are representative of the crises! Maybe twenty Canadians have helped a little, but very little. attitudes revealed in internal or private seen the crisis first hand! None of the At about the same time I began discussions. It must be emphasized, agencies which exist solely to educate speaking nationally, with a concentration while remaining unnamed, these cases Canadians about the developing world in Ontario and Alberta. I gave slide/talk involve "top of the line", widely known have programmes on educational material presentations at universities and held dis- and respected Canadian organizahons. on Afghanistan on a regular basis and cussions with numerous Third World most have never includeh any material. social justice and development organiza- How can this happen when most tions, church groups, general audiences, Canadian NGOs Canadians know there is a major war and the media and so on. As I have continued In 1986, the Canadian Council for a superpower had invaded? The Afghans to study the Afghanistan situation, I made International Co-operation, the are the largest refugee population in the thousands of contacts in Canada attempt- umbrella group of Canadian non-gov- world! How can such an obvious need go ing to elicit understanding and help. For ernmental organizations, published a unaddressed? five years I have also listened to the directory of Canadian NGOs, Before attempting to explain why the Canadian perception of what is happening "engaged in international develop- Canadian response has been so limited, it in Afghanistan. ment". Three hundred and sixteen is relevant to describe my own involve- All of my experience made me ques- agencies are listed. This number rep- ment. In 1984, completely by chance, I was tion whether I should adjust my expecta- resents one of the highest per capita assigned to Pakistan as a leader in the tions of Canadian humanitarians down- number of Third World oriented Canada World Youth exchange pro- ward to be realistic. But I also wanted to NGOs in the world. gramme. There, with Pakistani counter- change things, inspied every time I saw Agency functions cover a wide parts, we began looking at Pakistan's "global justice" or "social justice" on a range of activities; providing financial, development history, concepts, problems letterhead or in a pamphlet. material, technical and personnel and successes. Although Afghanistan was Generally speaking, I have found that assistance in developing countries as not on the CWY agenda, its relevance the only place empathy for the Afghans is well as carrying out social justice, rapidly became apparent. Further, many expressed is in the general public. The development and public education Afghans were asking, "Why is it so hard to least interest and empathy seems to be programming on the various coun- emigrate to Canada?" I was also "discover- with the NGOs, and that is odd because tries in Canada. Solidarity and ing" the whole refugee situation and was only they exist officially to care about such refugee settlement agencies were not shocked. Despite having been involved things. included. Case 1 removed. At social events, there were ver- agency's rationale for not touching the bal attacks, almost always, by people from subject. "We are just convincing the public other Third World development agencies there isn't a communist under every rock A few months after my return from who attempted to down play the Afghan in Central America. If we start talking Pakistan I was hired as the co+rdinator of situation. "There are no death squads in about Afghanistan, we'll just confuse the a Centre which exists to educate Afghanistan like there are in El Salvador. public." Later, apparently recognizing a Canadians about Third World problems. No chemical weapons are being used. responsibility, they included Afghanistan, The hiring committee told me I was being What about the way they treat their amongst other countries, in a new educa- hired for my administrative skills and to women? The number of refugees is just an tional kit on the root causes of refugees. be a spokesperson on Afghanistan. The While most of the information was fair, a committee expressed concern that the concluding statement included misleading Centre had developed a quite "far left" and outrightly false information, and rein- image and my speaking on Afghanistan NGO Afghan forced the negative stereotype of the "would lend political balance to the place". Afghans and their cause. When word leaked out amongst a core of Involvement the Centre's membership and community that I was being considered for the open Between 1980 and 1986 a total of Case 3 position, the protests started. The protests seven Canadian NGOs had contribut- were based solely on one article I had ed to Afghan refugees a total of about I met with the representative of a written for the local daily newspaper. It $10 million, but by 1986 only three church-based organization concerned with had simply summarized the observations were still contributing (salvation human rights in Asia. I was told, "No, I had made on the Afghan refugees in Army, the Canadian Red Cross Society we've never published anything on Pakistan only a few months before. The and Human Concern International). Afghanistan." They "would not likely do The Afghanistan Medical Relief protesters now blamed the Centre for so either." His rationale was that Amnesty encouraging "anti-Soviet propaganda", Organization (AMRO) of Kingston International already was reporting on that I was lying and exaggerating about continued to bring wounded Afghans Afghanistan so he saw no need to. "But", I what was happening in Afghanistan. The to Canada for treatment. All other protested, "you are the specialists in Asia. Board of Directors of the Centre decided contributors had ceased their support I know your reputation. A big and impor- to ignore the protests and hid me in 1984 or before. Only one of the tant sector of Canadians relies on you to anyway. seven, Human Concern International, tell them what is happening. They would- But the outside harassment continued had ever been physically present and n't necessarily hear from Amnesty. If you over the following year. Attempts were operating in the refugee camps in don't mention Afghanistan, they could made each time I gave public presenta- Pakistan or inside Afghanistan. The think there are no problems there." Was it tions to discredit what I said, even though others contributed through partner religion? This organization reports to all that I talked about was what I had wit- organizations who were present. Christians,but the Afghans are Muslim. nessed. Soviet literature and audio cas- He said no, that was not at all the matter, settes began appearing on my desk with and pointed out reporting done on other messages that I "should get to know the non-Christian situations. The more we truth." Articles or notices I had written for exaggeration by Pakistan to get more CIA discussed the Afghanistan situation, the educational purposes would sometimes help." These were typical remarks. After a more it showed why this organization had disappear. Materials on the refugees I year of this discrediting and pressure not not provided leadership. His information placed in the Centre library were quietly to speak, I asked the Board to clarify my was an almost word-for-word repeat of the mandate. Was I to speak on Afghanistan or not? After a long meeting together with Board and staff, the conclusion was no. "The community around the Centre does Spokespeople for not, after all, really understand what the Canadian-Produced Afghanistan Centre is trying to do". I resigned. Educational Spokespeople on Afghanistan are Resources exceedingly rare. There are basically Case 2 only three functioning as such in Only two Canadian produced Canada, the presidents of the Afghan I met with the director of a highly resources, which could be considered Association of Ontario and the respected NGO known for its public edu- educational, exist. One is a documen- Afghan Medical Relief Organization cation work on justice and the subject of tary film produced by Stornoway (AMRO) of Kingston and the author refugees. Its literature suggests a wide- Productions of Toronto, called of this paper. Outside of Ontario, open mandate for any refugees, but they "Witnesses: Afghanistan the Untold there are none, except for a few had done no research or public education Story'', the second is a small incluion Afghans in Montreal and Edmonton work on the Afghans. The subject had in an NGO kit on the root causes of who have on special occasions spoken never been touched. Although this man refugees, which explians why the out. had a fair amount of knowledge and sym- latter is unsuitable. pathy for the Afghans, he explained his Soviet or pro-Soviet literature which I, too, doned the Afghan people to the regime pressed or avoided it or have chosen to had read by then; news releases from the already committing genocide. At most, I know the story from the oppressor's side, Soviet embassy in Ottawa, publications hoped this organization would not be mis- then there is no wonder that there is con- from Izvestia, Progress Books and the lead by the media again, condemn the fusion and a lack of public response. newspaper of the Communist Party of Accords and the Kabul regime and Other parts of the vicious circle are: Canada, the Tribune. understand why. Canadian news editors and producers The president's response was to give handle the news completely unethical- me a newspaper article about an abuse ly. In 1984 the Kabul regime declared a Case 4 camed out by some Muslim men against a news black*ut, threatening journalists Muslim woman in India. She said, "If this caught reporting independently with When the Geneva Accords on imprisonment, execution or both. Afghanistan were signed the media raved Since this news black-out everything about them as a major UN accomplish- reported from Kabul is, by law, under ment. As Canadians had not followed the NGO Afghan Aid government control. But the Canadian talks from the resistance side, the massive To put the contribution into con- news providers fail to mention this injustices, unworkability and devastating restriction and help create the totally effects which the Accords would have, text, according to a study conducted by the North/South Institute (Bridges distorted picture (that Kabul is the vic- were not widely known or understood. I tim instead of the victimizer). Those approached a national umbrella group of of Hope?), Canadian NGOs raised approximately $280 million in 1984- who oppose the regime have virtually some one hundred organizations con- no access to the media. Without an cerned with refugees world-wide and in 1985 and that was matched by the government of Canada for a total of informed and active segment of Canada. An important function of this "watchdogs" in Canada, the media goes group is to watch and analyze political sit- $525 million. This went to NGO efforts in many countries. In the same uncorrected and the completely dis- uations as they affect refugees, and mobi- torted picture continues. lize Canadian opinion and responses. A year, which co-incidentally is consid- ered to be the most severe year of the Exceedingly few Canadians have been national conference of this group was com- to Pakistan or Afghanistan to see and ing up and it was urgent and timely that war in Afghanistan, the Canadian NGO contribution to the Afghans was hear the resistance's side of the story. the Canadian leaders in refugee causes be Only very few Afghans have been informed on the creation of yet more prob- a maximum of $2 million (part of the above $10 million), or less than half of allowed to come to Canada. They are lems for the world's largest refugee popu- located mainly in one city (Toronto). lation, so that at the very least, blame one percent of the total Canadian NGO financial activity. Only one organization specializes in would not be misplaced. sponsoring Afghans, the Afghan Anticipating being put on the agenda Association of Ontario, and they spon- to speak about the Accords, I approached sor family members only. Major spon- the president of the organization explain- sorship problems continue. Not a sin- ing that the faults of the Accord were is anything like what will happen in gle organization lobbies on their behalf. caused by the resistance being excluded Afghanistan by 'fundamentalists', I will Since the number of Afghans is kept from the talks and their demands ignored. have nothing to do with them." It appar- low, they have barely an effective For years they had demanded that the ently had never occurred to her how prej- negotiation process be changed as well to udiced and irrelevant this occurrence was provide a negotiated political (non-mili- to Afghanistan, two countries away. This tary) settlement. The Accords had aban- president, known to be a humanitarian of Canadian the highest order, would never dream of associating events in different Christian- Immigration Policy: dominated countries, say events in El Afghan Materials in Salvador with those in Peru. And would 22 Afghans per Year never judge a whole country by the Resource Centres actions of a few, let alone a few in an United Nations estimates there entirely different country. Nothing was are about 55 million Afghan refugees At least 32 Canadian NGO "learn- ever mentioned to the membership. There in Iran and Pakistan. They are rough- er centres" exist specifically and solely was, of course, no learning and no ly 50% of the world's refugees and the to educate Canadians about the devel- condemnation. largest population of refugees in the oping world and to collect audio-visu- world. From this number Canada has al and print resources. In these audio- selected about 2% of it's own refugee visual collections, there are none on These cases are not at all unique. intake. Between 19804and 1988, statis- Afghanistan. In eight of these centres Many others could be cited. They repre- tics issued in "Refugee Perspectives" almost all print resources on file were sent part of the vicious circle that has by Employment and Immigration, from the Soviet perspective. None interfered with an appropriate Canadian show that a total of 90,800 refugees have included Afghanistan in regular response. If Canadian humanitarians at have been selected by Canada. one programming and most have never the highest level are silent, have a preju- thousand nine hundred and ninety six included it once. dice themselves, make no effort to know of those are Afghans. the story from the victim's side, have sup- voice, which in part answers the origi- "left", in its varying degrees, is in the ties there has been a considerable amount nal Afghan question: "Why is it so middle. But "left" in Canada, as far as of volunteer effort and donations, con- hard to emigrate to Canada?" Afghanistan is concerned, has lost its tributed through the Council of Muslim Canadians reject cold war politics, and stated meaning and gone under the Communities in Canada and Human are unwilling to offend the USSR. Soviet wing. How else can all the Concern International. Canadians see Afghanistan as a super- materials with a Soviet perspective be Afghanistan is a skeleton in the closet. power conflict and do not appreciate explained in the collections of "social To a certain extent I sympathize with those the fact that, to the Afghans, the con- justice" organizations? Or why is it leaders who have remained silent. Even flict is instead a personal and national that opinions expressed are so often saying the word "Afghanistan", in some struggle. anti-resistance? If, as Canadians prefer circles, is met with hostility, suspicion or In Canada there is the perception that to believe, socialism is supposed to disparagement. Afghanistan is only yet- another mean putting people, their quality of The Canadian response to American-backed war. Thus, associa- life and justice ahead of everything else Afghanistan is an opportunity to raise tions are made between the Central (and not blinding and silencing pro- questions about ourselves as humanitari- American Contras and the mujahidin, Sovietism), then why has the "left" not ans, our influences, conscience and ethics. when there is no resemblance followed even one of their leaders or If we will not acknowledge the faults of a whatsoever. their counterparts in other countries? superpower, or both superpowers, can we The sole, truly commendable thing that Canada has done for the Afghans has been done by the best known socialist and surely one of the most widely respected Recent Overseas Canadians, former UN Ambassador, Stephen Lewis. At United Nations annual Developments The Canadian Council fo debates, Lewis dropped all concern for International Co-operation directory bureaucratic, diplomatic, polite language In 1986, the International shows Canadian NGOs with a total of and scathingly criticized the USSR and Development and Refugee at least 7,688 personnel and volun- Kabul referring to "the evidence that geno- Foundation (Council of Muslim teers overseas. With only one cide has been committed against the Communities in Canada), through Canadian agency present on the scene Afghan people by the combined forces of partner organizations stationed in - Human Concern International -, the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan Pakistan, began assisting the Afghans. exceedingly few Canadians have ever and the Soviet Union". Lewis's speeches In 1988 a new organization was worked in or visited Afghanistan. As made headlines in Canada, but even from formed in Montreal and set up an HCI employs mainly Afghans, the within his own fold there was no follow- office in Pakistan to provide assis- highest number of Canadians at any up. This is especially enigmatic because tance: Comite Afghan de SolidaritB. given time, working for a Canadian European socialists have responded more In 1988 Care Canada announced plans NGO on location, is three. Including like Lewis, but have gone even further: to begin working with the Afghans, Canadian journalists, probably not taking pro-active stances for the but withdrew the plan in 1989. more than twenty Canadians in total mujahidin. have worked or visited Afghanistan. There is only one clearly identifiable and national sector of Canadians which has demonstrated financial and moral sup- port for the Afghans from the beginning of acknowledge our own shortcomings? Still, there is a way to put the Canadian A limited world-view is held by some the war to date: Muslim communities in all pmvinces. Within their own communi- humanitarian dedication to justice, law Canadians, believing that everybody abiding nature, apparent neutrality on and everything in the world is either Afghanistan and glasnost to work in possi- pro-Soviet or pro-American, left-wing bly the finest act of humanitarianism and or right-wing. With this limited view, justice: begin the process to bring the Afghanistan has been written-off as a Staff in Canada USSR to trial for crimes against humanity right-wing cause. No one seems to One hundred and thirty NGOs in Afghanistan. imagine or accept other possibilities employ 6,489 personnel in Canada. when the Afghans see their cause as a When the Canadian Council fo third way: a state based on Islamic International Co-operation directory Jane Thomas is the former Director of ideals. Add to this the lack of under- was published in 1986 none of the 316 Public Education for Human Concern standing of Islamic movements and agencies had any staff working on International and the author of the booklet Afghanistan is doubly written off. Afghanistan. Not until 1987 was the "Afghanistan: War and Development" Who are we to think the choice of a first Canadian staff member hired to Ottawa: Human Concern International, nation is unacceptable? work specifically on Afghanistan in 1989). Free copies are available from Human Public reluctance to do anything which relief, development and public educa- Concern International, Box 3984, Station C, might offend the USSR, blurs functions tion areas (the author of this paper, by Ottawa, Canada K1Y 4P2, tel. (613) 234- and influences of humanitarianism, Human Concern). 4585. She also compiled the information socialism and pro-Sovietism. The upparing in the boxes throughout this issue. Aid in Afghanistan: Limitations and Possibilities

by Anders Fange

When Louis Dupree last Christmas the border. The TV crews and the purnal- aid operations in Afghanistan. That is not Eve asked me if I would like to contribute ists disappeared, but the aid workers are the case. However, this is not the same an article about Afghanistan to a forth- still here. They continue their work; at a thing as to say that it is impossible to orga- coming issue of Refuge, I was honoured slightly slower pace, with a little less nize humanitarian aid efforts at all. Aid and accepted the offer willingly. Louis enthusiasm and, perhaps, a more sober operations are carried out right at this suggested the title "ACBAR and view towards the future. Nevertheless, it moment and it has been done by NGOs SWABAC: a Unique Experiment in NGO was a period of learning. The UN and its since the beginning of the war. The crucial co-ordination". agencies learned a little about the peculiar- point is to understand both the limitations Last Christmas was a time of hopes ities of Afghanistan and the NGOs learned and the possibilities of aid in the extremely and expectations. The Soviets were just how to do the paper work in order to get politicized environment of Afghanistan. about to complete their withdrawal from funds from the UN. We also learned that Afghanistan, and most of us believed that it is very difficult to co-ordinate 70-odd the war would soon be over. TV crews NGOs and that ACBAR and SWABAC The War and journalists thronged all over were not quite as unique as we had Peshawar, preparing themselves for the believed them to be, that other efforts of To start with the most obvious, the big scoop, wh'en the last Soviets would co-ordination between NGOs had been war not only created the need for a large leave Kabul hanging from the last heli- carried out elsewhere. international aid effort through the copter. The international aid apparatus So, when the time finally came to immense destruction it has brought upon was gearing up its heavy machinery, write this article, I felt that the title which the land and its people., but it represents, although "Operation Salaam", the UN Louis had suggested was somewhat out of at the same time, one of the most funda- body which had been established seven date. Besides, the only thing which is real- mental obstacles to any such large-scale months earlier with the purpose of co- ly unique in this specific context of aid is operation. War is an anathema to human- ordinating aid to Afghanistan, had diffi- Afghanistan itself, and that any effort ism . In any armed conflict, especially culties in-getting its-feet planted in the aimed to understand the problems of the when it has been as uncompromising and field. The Agency Coordinating Body for NGOs and the rest of the aid community as long as in Afghanistan, there is a strong Afghan Relief (ACBAR), an umbrella in Afghanistan has to begin with Afghan tendency among the contending parties to organization in Peshawar encompassing society itself and, especially, the profound give priority to their own political interests over 50 non-governmental organizations change in the political conditions which at the expense of the interests of the (NGOs), and the Southwestern started with the Communist coup &&at in common man. Afghanistan and Baluchistan Agency for April 1978. That is why the title was Consequently, since the war has Coordination (SWABAC), a sister organi- changed, and I am quite certain that Louis divided Afghanistan into two antagonistic zation with a membership of 15 NGOs would have agreed with the change. parts, there are two ways to get aid into based in Quetta, had been created ivith the the country, and both of them are limited. purpose of coordinating the work of the One is to work through Kabul, from where NGOs. They had also problems in getting The Limitations it is possible to reach those living in the their practical act together. Nevertheless, cities and in the immediate vicinities of the the air was filled with enthusiasm and a cities. The other is to organize aid from kind of pioneering spirit: meetings suc- We always tend to look upon the Pakistan in co-operation with the resis- ceeded meetings and everyone in the aid world through glasses coloured by our tance, which dominates the main part of community was discussing problems own political and cultural experiences. To the rural areas. related to the anticipated repatriation of an extent it is unavoidable, but the prob- the refugees and the rehabilitation of the lem increases undoubtedly the higher up country. We were all in for a very big pb in the bureaucracies we get. The closer to A Mosaic of Powers and the eyes of the world were upon us. heaven, the less understanding of what However, since last Christmas a lot of actually is going on, of the problems and The second essential obstacle arises things have happened, others not. To men- the specific conditions in a certain environ- from the far-reaching changes in the socio- tion a few; the Red Army did leave ments. In this regard, Afghanistan is no political conditions which has taken place Afghanistan, but the war did not cease. unique case. The misconceptions are during the war. Its main characteristic is Instead of peace came the battle for many. One, which concerns aid, is the the destruction of state authority and the Jelalabad, and instead of repatriation a belief that it is somehow possible to exe- subsequent fragmentation of political multitude of new refugees poured over cute conventional, large-scale and massive power. Historically, Afghanistan was charac- a few leap back and forth between the had decreased to 52% compared to 1978, terized by a balance between the state and mujahidin and the "government". not counting abandoned farms, give more or less broad power groups based on Finally, there are "Peshawar comman- strong evidence of a total war effort large- traditional concepts. The popular upris- ders", an honorary title given to former ly directed against the civilian population. ing which followed the Communist coup commanders who have not trampled There are no statistics available on infras- d'&at in 1978, which accelerated after the Afghan soil for the last five years and who tructure, but reports, as well as the above- Soviet invasion, signified the total collapse often make a living from cheating aid mentioned figures, indicate widespread of state control and its replacement by a agencies in Peshawar. and serious devastation. multitude of local units which later coa- Undoubtedly, the commanders are The brain drain has reached critical lesced into a few loosely united regional the strongest and at the same time the proportions. Huge numbers of Afghan power groups comprised of mujahidin most unpredictable political force in intellectuals have been imprisoned, tor- (resistance fighters). Afghanistan today. They exemplify the tured, killed or just simply vanished. The political parties of the resistance fact that the Afghan resistance is both Thousands have sought refuge in Saudi have never, in spite of several efforts, been united under the banner of Islam, but also Arabia, the Gulf States and in the West, able to fill the gap and act as a central fragmented between ethnic, tribal, reli- and still others have been preoccupied authority for the areas which are under gious and political allegiances. They are with military or political tasks. Refugee their control. They have been too preoccu- the product of the war and their power students trained in the educational system pied with factional quarrels and too increased throughout the war. On the of the Kabul regime do not meet elemen- dependent on foreign powers, especially other hand, they will not cease to exist tary standards. Aid agencies, therefore, Pakistan. With one exception, they are too when peace comes. For some of them, the have great difficultiy in finding trained badly organized to provide an alternative, future might bring influential positions in Afghans for positions in administration or and this is also true of the "interim the establishment which will arise out of any kind of project work, even in the cur- government" which was established in the war. A few will revert to banditism, rent situation of relatively low levels of the beginning of 1989. but, hopefully, the great majority will con- aid. Newly-arrived observers mistakenly tinue to be responsible Afghan citizens, The third conclusion is, consequently, equate the political parties based in working with traditional local groups in that the destroyed infrastructure and the Pakistan with the resistance inside the villages. Gradually, local groups will lack of human resources severely restrict Afghanistan. They forget that the political have to cope with an emerging central the handling of big amounts of relief party is an almost totally new concept in authority, provided that such an authority goods as well as the now much needed Afghan political life, at the most not more can obtain the formal approval of the local build up of administrative and project than 25 years old. There are certainly vari- groups. This, however, will not necessari- implementation capacity. ations between the parties; some are rela- ly mean that the commanders will hand tively more efficient, some less, but in gen- over their weapons, dissolve their groups eral they do not function like centralized and happily return to the life they enjoyed The Possibilities political parties in the West. They exercise before the war. They have been used to a limited control of the resistance inside running their own affairs for ten years, the country. The local or regional com- and they will not voluntarily give up these Limitations and difficulties do not exclude possibilities. International aid in manders are, in the end, their own mas- prerogatives. ters, who independently take care of their Thus, the second conclusion is that wartime Afghanistan has been carried out own matters and play their own political the fragmentation of political power sig- mainly through NGO crossborder opera- tions from Pakistan. Kabul was not con- games. As a result, most party leaders do nificantly limits the possibility of carrying not even try to direct them. out conventional large-scale aid opera- sidered as an alternative because of politi- There are all sorts of commanders tions. In concrete terms this means that cal as well as practical considerations. inside Afghanistan: traditional and mod- the aid community does not have one NGO work has gone through several stages, but for the purpose of this article it ern; fanatics and open-minded; educated counterpart but, rather, hundds of them. can be divided into two periods; from the and illiterates; corrupt and honest; smart Moreover, this situation will probably con- beginning of the eighties until the summer and stupid. Some organize their people to tinue for the foreseeable future, even if of 1988, and from that time onwards. carry out reconstruction work, establish there is a government established which clinics and schools, clean imgation chan- has even a nominal acceptance of the nels, provide seed and fertilizer. There are Afghan people. groups loosely linked together through ethnic group, clan or tribal loyalties, while others function, quite simply, within their Destruction and the Crossborder assistance started just own extended family. Then, there are com- Lack of Human Resources after the Soviet invasion with the French manders who, in co-operation with other Doctors being the first on the scene. They commanders and traditional power were closely followed by Austrians, other groups, rule over large areas in which they After ten years of war, Afghanistan French organizations, Swedes, have established functioning administra- and the Afghan people have suffered Norwegians, the British and Dutch. NGOs tive systems with thousands of disciplined, enormously. Figures like five million from different Islamic countries were also well-organized mujahidin. Most com- refugees, more than a million dead, and involved early, and when the US manders are against the Kabul regime, but an agricultural production which in 1987 Government in 1985 established a humani- tarian aid programme in Afghanistan, of trial and error which, among other pacified. The terror of war falls now upon American NGOs followed. things, has resulted in an accumulated and the population in the cities, while in the With a few exceptions, the organiza- profound knowledge about conditions in countryside life goes increasingly back to tions were new and politically-oriented in wartime Afghanistan. normal. From the Peshawar horizon the the sense that they took an open stand Despite weaknesses, NGOs proved most noticeable change, perhaps, has to do against the Soviet invasion. Many had no during 1980-1988 that it is possible to man- with the conditions in communications. former experience in relief, not to mention age relief in the rural areas of Afghanistan. One does not travel or transport goods development, which meant that pro- Their primary motivating force was a com- with horses or other pack animals any grammes during the first years were mitment to the Afghan people. more. One goes with trucks or pick-ups, rather unsophisticated. On the other and places, which it took weeks to reach, hand, thanks to their freshness there was are now reached in a day or two. never any shortage of ideas. Successful The Arrival of the UN The result is that Afghan rural areas, solutions were often unconventional and to an extent no one could dream of only a year ago, have opened up for travel, trade not hampered by routine opinions, nor by Since the Kabul regime occupied the and aid operations. The NGOs, with sup an excessive load of administrative work. chair of Afghanistan in the UN General port from the UN, can now offer more Their strength was engagement, uncon- Assembly, the UN initially considered assistance in the rehabilitation of agricul- ventional methods and a pragmatic down- itself unable to support aid operations in ture, repair of irrigation systems, roads, to-earth approach. Their weakness lay areas controlled by the resistance. This buildings and so on. New and certified generally in poor administration, a lack of changed when the Geneva Accords stipu- wheat seed are brought, veterinary as well technical capacity and an exaggerated lated the withdrawal of Soviet troops. as plant protection services are offered. feeling of their own importance, resulting Shortly after the Accords were signed in Efforts to establish health care systems in co-ordination difficulties. However, it April 1988 the UN Secretary-General have become easier. A successful expan- would be unfair to attribute the appointed Prince Sadruddin Agha Khan sion of the aid work has taken place, last-mentioned trait only to NGOs. as the Co-ordinator of all UN assistance to which makes it most alarming to hear sig- To organize programmes for humani- Afghanistan, and in June Prince nals from some Western governments tarian assistance in a crossborder situation Sadruddin launched an appeal for about holding back on funding. It is diffi- involves a whole range of problems usual- Afghanistan in which the figure $1,116 bil- cult to predict the future, but we know one ly not found in more normal situations. lion was mentioned as needed for aid thing for certain: the Afghan people will The fact of being stationed in one country during an initial period of 18 months. be in great need of help for the foreseeable while carrying out aid in another, particu- The NGOs in Peshawar were skeptical future. The fact that the war continues is larly another ravaged by war, means that concerning the size of the amount; voicing not an argument against, but rather in most processes related to project imple- resewations about the lack of an imple- favour of, that presumption. mentation are much more complex and mentation capacity. Nonetheless, they cumbersome. Communication is not a were also influenced by the possibility of a question of haurs, but of days and even Soviet withdrawal and in August 1988 weeks. You just do not jump into your car, ACBAR was formed in Peshawar by A Model for the Future drive out to the project, knock at the door roughly 40 NGOs working either in and spend a few hours with the field per- Afghanistan or among the refugees in So far, the main channel for the UN- sonnel. The situation is further complicat- Pakistan. Soon thereafter SWABAC, a sis- agencies into Afghanistan has been sup- ed by the fact that the Pakistani govern- ter organization with about 15 NGOs, port for projects run by NGOs. There is a ment has never officially acknowledged came into being in Quetta. The main pur- need for refining the process and clearly the existence of crossborder aid pose of both organizations was to co-ordi- defining roles. As long as there is no effec- operations. nate NGOs for the purposes of preparing tive central authority in Afghanistan, it is A specific difficulty is the absence of for an eventual repatriation of the refugees consistent that the NGOs, with their more a centralized counterpart. NGOs have and a reconstruction of Afghanistan. pragmatic approach, relatively larger flexi- tried to solve this problem by establishing, For the NGOs working crossborder, bility and greater experience of field con- whenever possible, direct links with local the co-operation with the UN and its dif- ditions, take the main burden of actual and regional authorities inside ferent agencies was a new experience, but project implementation. It is also consis- Afghanistan, i.e., in most cases the com- in general, cooperation has been above tent that the UN takes a more forceful part, manders. Most often it has been done expectations, although more or less well- not only in issues like supplies, technical with the co-operation of the political par- founded tensions temporarily occur. and financial support, but in co-ordina- ties in the resistance, though sometimes tion, monitoring and evaluation. This will dissatisfaction rises over the fact that the not only push NGOs to correct their mis- aid is not controlled by them. A Changed Situation in takes and upgrade their performances, it A decentralized approach has been wil 1 also teach UN personnel about the most successful. Because conventional Afghanistan conditions in the field. planning has not been conducted except The conclusion is simple; the UN in a very flexible way, it has been possible Radical changes have occurred in needs the NGOs and vice versa. But, most to take fast decisions in the rapidly chang- Afghan rural areas. Huge areas, which importantly, the people of Afghanistan ing environment so as to seize every during the nine years of Soviet occupation need them both. opportunity as it shows up. It goes with- had been subject to armed conflict, are out saying that it has been a long process Problems and Prospects of Repatriation

by Peter Rees

The Great Return

The largest number of refugees in recent history is waiting on the borders of Pakistan and Iran to return home. Over five million people wish to return to a country devastated by ten years of war. Think, if you can, of being a displaced person; living outside your own country, under conditions that are far below those meagre conditions in which you lived before; bringing up your family in a situa- tion of need and dependence. And the prospects of returning to your village? Your house and all its contents are destroyed, your fields have not been culti- vated for ten years, your oxen to plough the land have vanished, the school in which your children studied is destroyed, your neighbours upon whom you depended face similar problems or are dead, all your savings in terms of cattle, livestock, jewelry, or cash are expended. And you now need to rebuild all these things, but you are destitute. What would you do? lem that has never been faced before. All If it is understood that people cannot The agency I work for has spent the the experience gained in other relief opera- be assisted in their own country after last five years trying to help those who tions cannot apply to Afghanistan. We are return, the primary objective must be self- wish to stay in Afghanistan. We see suf- all beginners facing the largest return of sufficiency upon return. fering and human degradation through- refugees ever witnessed in this century. In With such a large refugee community, out the country: people surviving well addition, we face land mines, the destruc- it is important to look at the problems past the stage of apparent impossibility. tion of a whole country, destitution from a national or macro level. Food pro- Often they must choose the unwanted beyond comprehension -and five million duction in the country represents close option of becoming refugees. refugees. equivalency to population. There have Other countries have faced similar What can be done? been some food imports into the country problems, though never in my experience over the past ten years, most significantly on the scale of Afghanistan. In most other from the Soviet Union, but generally food countries it has been possible to provide Conceptual Policy production supports the present popula- assistance packages for human survival, to tion. The resident population cannot make up the food deficit for probably assist people in their own villages. In While there can never be a single three years at best, needing a fifty percent Afghanistan this is not possible in most solution to the problems of Afghanistan, it increase in present production to feed areas. Neither Afghan society nor Afghan is important to develop an overall strategy. those presently outside the country. geography facilitate the introduction of Over the past year, especially since the Therefore, if refugee return has to be internal relief. signing of the Geneva Accords (April 14, self-reliant, and present food production is In many, probably most, parts of 1988), a gradual evolution of a policy fifty percent below requirement, a satisfac- Afghanistan it is geographically, political- affecting refugee return has been devel- tory return must be based on an increase ly, ethnically, and logistically impossible to oped between relief agencies, bilaterals, in national food production. provide internal relief. Relief agencies, and the United Nations. bilateral donors, and the UN face a prob- Areas of Increased And above and beyond all this, the war began planting their first crops. As the continues across the country. Indeed, this is irrigation system was extended, it became Food Production the most essential point. While the resi- possible to cultivate more and more land, dent population is still very much at war, and a steady trickle of refugees started to Options exist: and the increased food production for return. These new arrivals needed no returnees has to come from them before a assistance, no rations, no cash, nothing. Traditional areas of cultivation can be refugee return is possible, there can be lit- Now that they had their land back, and brought back into use. tle hope for a quick return of this vast food production was possible, they could New areas of cultivation can be refugee community. survive. They will, however, receive some developed. Despite this gloomy picture, much is assistance during this year with seed, Disease control can increase yields. already being done to prepare oxen, and fertilizer, to ensure that the max- Pest control can increase yields. Afghanistan for at least a limited return of imum benefit is made of this land. Increased traction on farms can refugees. In 1988 approximately US $25 In other areas plans or actions are improve production levels. million went into Afghanistan for relief under way to repair irrigation, roads, Fertilizers can improve yields. projects through viluntary agencies. bridges, houses, school, and mosques. Improved seeds can improve yields. More and more of this assistance is used Often just the smallest input from the for irrigation repair and food production agency is needed to start a whole series of But what do these options mean? programmes. In late 1988 UNHCR, under reconstruction activities. The relief agen- There are a host of problems that the auspices of the UN Coordinator's cies are taking the position of catalysts; it affect choices. Without facing these prob- Office (Prince Sadruddin Agha Khan), is up to the Afghans themselves to orga- lems, some opportunities will not be so some US $3.5 million were provided to nize the work. The Afghan problem needs easy. To list an important few: experienced relief agencies fo; projects to Afghan solutions; relief agencies must fol- increase food production. low this principal. Indeed, if they do not, It requires a stable government to intro- Feelings and attitudes throughout it is unlikely the Afghans would tolerate duce a development strategy that Afghanistan have become more and more them for very long. would have the resources and skill to positive towards rehabilitation, especially These examples may paint too sim- bring barren land under cultivation. since the withdrawal of Soviet troops, due plistic and rosy a picture of the solutions Pest and disease control are not tradi- to the realization that the war might end. for Afghanistan. Relief agencies will tional aspects of Afghan farming, at There have been new allegiances formed expand greatly this year, with an increase least not to the level required to dra- to create new village or district councils to in interest and, therefore, funding. matically affect yields. The use of fer- coordinate relief operations. When all However, even if all the agencies are put tilizer is a comparatively recent form of seemed so difficult, the Afghan approach together and it would be assumed that all yield increase in many parts of to problems has begunto overcome their programmes would be successful Afghanistan. apparently insurmountable problems once (which is virtually impossible), assistance Mechanized traction is also historically again. would still reach less than fifteen percent limited to a few areas of Afghanistan. To date there has been very little of the population. Irrigation systems have been reduced return of the refugee population; indeed What is to be done for the remainder? by approximately fifty percent over the those who have returned have often been There has been much debate over the past last ten years due to war damage and forced to leave again because of Afghan months, and as yet no positive consensus lack of maintenance, and, at the same government shelling or aerial bombings. has been reached. The most likely solution time, antipersonnel mines have been There have been some signs, however, may be to provide assistance through the sluiced into these irrigation canals by that this food production strategy will private sector. Such a scheme has been rain, hampering rehabilitation work. prove realistic and effective. called "project marketplace". Many of the traditional mirabs, those In one area near Kandahar, southeast- responsible for the distribution of water ern Afghanistan, for instance, a small supplies, are refugees. pupapproached our agency asking for Project Marketplace The planting seed used at present by assistance to repair the irrigation system farmers has suffered by genetic degen- leading to their villages. A group of six This war has damaged almost every eration over the past ten years, and villages from their area had been aban- aspect of the country, but not the private most new seed has had insufficient test- doned for many years, the whole popula- trading sector. Apart from paying local ing time to be distributed in a whole- tion having been forced to leave for exile taxes at mujahidin check posts, the traders sale manner until in-country tests have in Pakistan mainly because 35 kilometres have been allowed by both sides to cany provided longer term results. of irrigation channels providing water to on business pretty much as usual. This Many roads essential for the distribu- their areas had been destroyed. provides important contacts with parts of tion of the required agricultural inputs A group of fifteen families were pro- the country where traditional relief efforts either have never existed, or have been vided tents, as nearly all the houses in the would not have access. damaged and require essential repairs. area had also been destroyed. A daily In a situation such as Afghanistan's, Returning refugees, despite proving wage was set (less than th& dollars per this presents an unusual opportunity, both highly resilient, may need assistance day) so that this group could start repairs. to relief agencies and especially to UN between planting and harvesting of With the assistance of some of our engi- agencies, many of which have mandates crops. neers, they fully repaired the irrigation making such an approach difficult to come system in a surprisingly short time and to terms with. Nevertheless, the UN Co- and improved seed, as are threshers, trac- tors, and agricultural machinery, all vital to food production. Also crucial over the next few years will be food supplies of all sorts; cement, rebar, and building materi- als; oxen, livestock, poultry supplies, ani- mal feed, horses, mules - the list is end- less. These items not only need to reach pre-war requirements, but they are going to have to far exceed any previous imports to meet present and future reconstruction needs. The entrepreneurial skills of the Afghans may resolve some of the short- falls, but the warning, on a national level, is all too apparent.

Summary

The scale of the refugee problem in Afghanistan is unprecedented. With in- country, direct primary assistance impossi- ble in many parts of the country, food pm- duction is the major objective for the pre- sent. Food production, or a return of refugees in large numbers, is unlikely until there is a political or military solution to the continuing war. While much is being done already, especially by private volun- ordinator's Commission requires them to In many ways it may seem extraordi- tary agencies, the scope of the problem look for flexible solutions to difficult prob- nary that the Soviet Union invaded will require effective solutions from the lems, thus permitting them to consider the Afghanistan in the first place, as what little private sector. evolution of the "project marketplace" Afghanistan had to offer was already com- The potential for a worsening situa- concept. mitted to the Soviet Union under very tion inside Afghanistan cannot be ruled Basically, the idea is to encourage the favourable trade terms. There is no appar- out, especially if city sieges become mili- private sector, at subsidized rates, to deliv- ent way that Pakistan, or Iran after its tary policy and fuel supplies become er required commodities to those in need, recent war, can facilitate in any way the limited. financed through either the sale of ration national fuel requirements for To balance this we can rely on the cards or cash for work projects. Afghanistan. There is unlikely to be any extraordinary resilience and adaptability One might ask why the profit motive logistical or political capacity in either of the Afghan people. is not working effectively anyway, but country to even ship the fuel, should the Interest in Afghanistan is sure to alternative opportunities and the risks of UN or another donor wish to provide fuel. decline, especially with the withdrawal of war have excluded some essential parts of The potential economic and social chaos the Soviet troops. With the decline in the market from commodity supply. this could cause in Afghanistan cannot be interest will come a decline in funding, Thus, agricultural wheat threshers are underestimated. unfortunately just at the time funding will being sold for high profits in northern Another serious problem is the be imperative. With so much to accom- Afghanistan, but no food supplies are timetable of a military victory. Kabul is plish after so much has already been reaching rural amas around Kabul due to the hub of Afghan commerce. Nearly all khieved, let us hope the opportunity for a military and political problems. goods at some stage pass through Kabul, peaceful and satisfactory resettlement will In some form or another, the private and from there usually through Jalalabad not be abandoned or restricted while so sector will certainly play an essential role to the south, Kunduz to the north, or many wait for help. in the future economy of Afghanistan and Herat to the west. Today all these cities thereby assist refugee return. are involved in military conflict. If these Peter Rees, the Field Director of Afghanaid, There are potential problems, essential economic centres are put under has resided in Pakistan since July 1987. This nonetheless. Although the importance of seige, or are simply inaccessible due to is his tenth year of work with refugees, having the private sector is well understood, military activity, the flow of goods previously worked for Laos and Khmer almost all present fuel to feed the delivery throughout Afghanistan will be disrupted, refugees in Thailand for The international system comes into Afghanistan from the except some supplies coming through Rescue Committee, Save The Children Fund Soviet Union. Without fuel Afghanistan alternative access points fmm Pakistan. (US),and The Ockenden Venture. He worked cannot survive, but this fuel comes from Some of the important goods urgently for The Ockenden Venture in the UK for four their present-day enemy, a difficult needed in the future that could well be years, being responsible for Vietnamese dilemma on both sides. affected by such a situation are fertilizers resettlement and reception programmes. Prospects for Afghan Women After Repatriation

by Nancy Hatch Dupree

Introduction and enjoyed considerable freedom of move- women engaging in them and their male ment within their kin-oriented villages family providers. Many refugee women Background where the support of their women's net- from these groups, however, have taken works, together with the mutual respect advantage of employment opportunities generated by closely interrelated economic either because of economic necessity or in Since the April 1988 signing of the roles with men, fostered self-esteem. response to the belief that helping the less Geneva Accords calling for the withdraw- Among the refugee populations, these net- fortunate, especially widows and orphans, al of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, there works have largely broken down, contributes to the overall efforts of the has been a flurry of planning for repatria- male/female roles have been set apart, jihad. Working women, therefore, have tion and reconstruction. Hastily convened and dense overcrowding of peoples of gained respect in the refugee situation teams of "Afghan experts" vie with one diverse origins has confined women to through involvement in valued activities. another for the anticipated cascades of their homes. These women from mainly educated, monies these plans will generate. Few Rural women, therefore, feel frustrat- mid-income, urban families are candidly adequately address the special needs of ed and marginalized; some even express a pragmatic when they speak of the future. women. diminishing sense of self. It would be a Here their work is respected because it is This stems in part from the fact that grave disservice, however, to suggest that an important part of the jihad. But many planners feel intimidated by the heavier these women feel defeated. Their courage members of their families remain in than normal restrictions Afghans have is inspirational. They accept their respon- Afghanistan and have no concept of the imposed on women among the refugee slxlities in maintaining the solidity of the refugee mentality. Will these members be populations in Pakistan, a predictable family which in Islam represents the basic reconciled to the idea of women producing reaction taken by most beleaguered cul- foundation of the society's well-being. The items for sale or attending workplaces out- tures. In Afghanistan, women traditional- remarkably few incidents of delinquency side the home? Or will they still consider ly symbolized the honour of family, tribe, or drug abuse among refugee youth attest it shameful for women to extend the tradi- and nation; they were also esteemed as to the success of women's efforts. tional boundaries of the women's domain? perpetuators of Afghan cultural values. On the whole, these rural women Social pressures will figure prominently in Following the installation of a leftist gov- anticipate repatriation with admirable determining what these women may or ernment in 1978 and the subsequent occu- composure. It may be that, after all they may not do on their return. pation by foreign troops in December have experienced, the future cannot be Women also worry about the attitudes 1979, women came to symbolize the imagined as any worse than what they of younger men, whose lives have been honour of the jihad (struggle) as well. have already endured. It may also be that totally consumed by emotions rising from While it is true that the jihad is being many cannot conceive of what a monu- ten years of war. When the enemy has fought in the name of Islam, it is also most mental task lies before them. Regardless, gone, these women ask, who will be the importantly regarded as a struggle to they fret over the delay in returning and object of their aggressions? May it not maintain national ideals, including the fully intend to be part of the rebuilding take the form of restricting, or even safekeeping of those values entrusted to process. Also, despite restrictions on suppressing, women? women. The foreign invaders have been movement, rural and small-town women While acknowledging that difficul- expelled, but resistance efforts continue to have been exposed to many new services, ties will arise, most women concede that depreciate the Kabul regime through the including health, sanitation, potable water their former, purely domestic life-styles medium of Islam, summarily rejecting all schemes, and education for children, will probably seem too confining when the reforms advocated by the enemy as which have heightened and broadened they return. They must be offered being un-Islamic. This resurgence of their expectations. They will call for these opportunities which are culturally social conservatism is most clearly demon- on their return. Their voices should be acceptable. strated by the tightening of practices relat- heard. The second segment within the urban ing to participatory roles for women in the There are two segments of urban milieu consists of women from progres- public sector. women to be considered. Middle-class sive technocrat, professional, and dlite Greater insistence on the application women did not have a tradition of work- families who, before 1978, took higher of purdah (seclusion) and wearing of the ing outside the home. In fact, extra- education and public careers for women veil have placed a heavy burden on both domestic pursuits for women were for granted. These women have been rural and urban women. Rural women thought to bring shame on both the most severely curtailed by the pervasive- Current Imperatives

To meet these needs Afghan women must not be left invisible. Processes allow- ing their voices to be heard need to be institutionalized. This does not mean isolating women's programmes and relegating them to sepa- rate bureaucratic agencies. Focusing spe- cial attention on purely women's issues would be disastrous in the present volatile situation, for this would certainly attract determined, even violent, opposition from neotraditionalists. Rather, each reconstruction pro- gramme should have its integrated wom- en's component within each sector/phase of repatriation, development, and imple- mentation, so as to maximize women's input - from active planning roles through career enhancement. Over a million war casualties, a high proportion young males in the prime of life, have robbed the workforce and altered the demography. Women, many single unmarrieds and widows, will pre- dominate and should be prepared to con- ness of neoconservative attitudes which career opportunities available in tribute substantially to the national econo- constrain refugee women through innuen- Afghanistan prior to 1978, a discernible my. Therefore, in addition to the tradition- do and outright threats. This has per- momentum carries them forward. They ally acceptable fields of health, education, suaded many professional families to are raring to go, and the energy generat- and child care, skills will be needed in leave for Western countries. The talents of ed by their anticipation is palpable. administration, management, business these professional women will be sorely Their progress is still only measurable administration, communications, radio missed, and expanded training of replace- in terms of individuals rather than the col- programming, computer sciences, con- ments will consequently be of high priori- lective female population, and it is not struction, engineering, industry, com- merce, and agriculture. It is reported that ty. without obstacles. Disputes over the During the decade since 1978 there appropriateness of activities for women in English-language programmes are making has been some slight modification in atti- the context of Islam continue to erupt, a big comeback in Kabul today; they have tudes toward women's roles. Initially, even in classrooms where girls engage in been enormously popular in Pakistan for even primary education for girls was tense debates reflecting feelings of uneasi- some time. anathema. Enrollment gradually ness caused by current attempts to inject For rural women, programmes should increased over the years, but the majority conservative ideals into the moderate seg- focus on reestablishing the close interrela- continue to drop out on reaching puberty, ments of Afghan society which have tionships women and men formerly for education is regarded as central to encouraged women to participate in the enjoyed through the promotion of such change - a tool of infidels - and most totality of the society for over half a centu- agriculturally-oriented projects as milch traditionalists are hostile to any changes ry. These tensions will be exacerbated on cows, sheep, goats, and poultry; fruit and in male/female relationships which they repatriation when the women who vegetable cultivation and processing; seri- assert will result if women are educated. remained in Afghanistan and continue to culture; etc. A wide variety of cottage In the past, even some intellectuals who occupy professional positions will industries and handicrafts might also be promoted the principle of women's rights necessarily affect policy. developed to generate income beyond as a tenet of Islam would not tolerate lib- No matter what stance future govern- purely domestic spheres. erated women in their own households. ments take, there will be an undeniable It will not be enough, however, mere- Still, within the last three to four need for women to take part in the devel- ly to provide women with animals and years a veritable explosion in educational oping economy and polity of a renewed supplies. They too should be included in and career activities has taken place Afghanistan. Ideology will surely remain extension training schemes, particularly in among young women from educated pro- a factor in reconstruction development, veterinary practices, to reduce the inci- fessional and mid-range bureaucratic fam- yet the pressing economic and social dence of diseases that currently threatens ilies. Although the numbers are small needs will demand women be given pro- to take an even greater toll than was cus- considering the total refugee population ductive roles. To deny them can only vic- tomary in the past. Small credit schemes and participants by no means enpy any- timize the entire nation. may be necessary. This horrifies unimagi- thing remotely akin to educational and native planners who forget, perhaps, that time and again women of the Third World political alignments, despite the fact that have proved to be better credit risks, less proponents of centralized planning may likely to default, than men. view this tactic as hopelessly ineffi- implementing such projects will not be cient. easy, but the situation calls for innovative Working with smaller groups initially thinking and courage. will also serve to contend with a natural For urban women, it must be realized passivity which tends to characterize edu- that, initially, separate-but-equal policies cated and trained women, even during may well prevail. Typically, such separate normal times. Afghan women have never institutions are far from equal, but this been militant activists; public activists does not need to be so if equitable plan- among women in Pakistan can be counted ning, financing, equipping, and monitor- on the fingers of half a hand. ing are assiduously promoted. "Separate" Nevertheless, Afghan women are a strong need not imply "inferior" - if vigilance is decision-making force in the family, and institutionalized. Indeed, given the Afghan society emphasizes the collective opportunity, it can be predicted with rea- identity of the family. Absence of an overt &ned optimism that women will excel status does not therefore mean that scholastically over their male peers. women lack ideas, talent, or influence While preparing women for develop- within their own spheres. By encouraging ment-oriented roles one should not women to project themselves more fully neglect to note that, for both rural and development in general can better be pro- urban women, motherhood will remain a moted while simultaneously preserving primary option. Programming should as the traditional nature of Afghan society. a result target the physical and social needs of children and motherchild devel- Nancy Hatch Dupree has undertaken opment. This will require training and research in Afghanistan - and among programming in all aspects of health, but Afghan refugees in Pakistan - since 1962. physiotherapy training for women from Together with Louis Dupree she was involved all social strata is particularly crucial. with Islamic and Arabian Development Women carry most of the burden of caring Involving women in planning is of Studies at Duke University. for the war-related handicapped men, utmost urgency at this particular moment women, and children who number in the because many Afghans, moderate and unknown tens of thousands. conservative, are sincerely apprehensive This further raises the need for com- about what they call "cultural imperial- Reports on munity services, much neglected in the ism": now that the foreign military past, to make up for the lack of a central- invaders have been repulsed, other out- ized health infrastructure which will be a siders, no matter how well-meaning they Afghan long time in materializing. may be, sit poised, ready to engulf the This discussion serves only to high- nation with new sets of foreign values. At Refugees light the infinite variety of opportunities a seminar on Afghanistan hhd in Tehran which could be opened to women. (January 1989) numbers of speakers insist- Whatever the programme, however, ed that all Westerners be totally excluded designs would best be family/communi- from Afghanistan when a new Islamic The Citizens Commission on Afghan ty-oriented, based on traditional women's government- is installed. Refugees has issued the following reports: network models, and implemented locally, Recent events in other parts of the "The Challenge of the Coming Afghan avoiding overcentralization. Such Muslim world provide ample examples of Refugee Repatriation: Fulfilling Our approaches offer the greatest, if not the similar reactions to perceptions claiming Commitments in the Final Chapter of the only, chance of successfully providing Westerners denigrate traditional Islamic Afghanistan War: A Report on a Fact- women a respected place in society while values while seeking to impose their own. Finding Visit of the Citizens Commission strengthening community cohesiveness. The best way to allay these fears is to on Afghan Refugees - May 28-June 8, The positive promotion of individual self- make sure the Afghans formulate 1988", "The Challenge of the Coming esteem in this manner will have a consid- their own programmes. Humanitar- Afghan Refugee Repatriation: Fulfilling erable impact on the society as a whole. In ian agencies can then facilitate Our Commitments in the Final Chapter of order to realize these goals it should be implementation. the Afghanistan War: Second Report on reemphasized that Afghan women must This approach is all the more impor- Afghan Refugees - Visit of October 10-19, be afforded a fully participatory role in tant in designing programmes for women, 1988", and James C. Stickler, "Report of planning. There are many talented who personify the essence of Afghan cul- Visit (5/22-5/28/89) to Peshawar and women living in Pakistan, but they have ture. Because of divergent outlooks within Hangu Pakistan". Copies available from no forum. Who are they? Where are different segments of Afghan society, plan- the International Rescue Committee, Inc., they? It is time to seek them out and pro- ning may have to be organized in a variety 386 Park Avenue South, New York, NY vide them with an arena in which to of small groups utilizing women's net- 10016, USA; tel.: (212) 679-0010, fax: 212 articulate goals and exchange ideas. works associated with various social and 689-3459. Book Reviews

Gil Loescher and Laila McNamara, Helton, McDowall, and Cels). grips with this fad, as Ferris's discussion This happens particularly in Southeast about the politicization of the Churches's Monahan, editors Asia, Western Europe and North America. refugee aid roles clearly shows, as does In the West, these measures reflect the reference to Sanctuary movements in the Refugees and endeavour to contain the Third World United States, Britain and Switzerland in International Relations refugee problem outside of the borders of other chapters. In regard to the rationale developed states. Chapters such as those of non-interference in "internal matters", New York: Oxford University on disaster relief by Kent and on the diffi- Camus-Jacques implies that it is necessary Press, 1989 culties of turning refugee assistance into to stop saying that it is inappropriate to development aid by Cuenod bring into intervene in the dilemmas experienced by by Lisa Gilad stark relief the problems inherent in the refugee women because gender inequali- predominant Western focus of physically ties and subordination belong to the realm Refugees and International Relations is a sustaining refugees in camps or settle- of culture -which is suddenly sacrosanct. goldmine of information and analysis ments without providing them with the Refugee women face inordinate protection about the global context of forced means to create their own support. problems as women; if "interference", migration. Particularly refreshing is the Refugees suffer from the short-sightedness hopefully with the support of the women inter-disciplinary character of the book, of donor states. themselves, is required to redress prob- with contributions by internationally rec- Even when long-range planning is lems, then it is time to get off the fence and ognized protection experts working with- utilized in the case of voluntary repatria- do so. There is recent evidence that the in the UNHCR and outside of it, and aca- tion, such as the return movement from UNHCR and its NGO partners are demon- demics ranging from history to sociology Djibouti to Ethiopia in 1983, anything can strating movement in this regard. to political science to international rela- go wrong - like a drought (Goodwin-Gill, There are some weaknesses relating tions. This is an excellent source book in p. 270). In fact, it appears that unplanned directly to the foreign policy implications the growing arena of Refugee Studies, but voluntary repatriation by refugees fre- so well conceived in most chapters. In it is not a book for the beginner who quently is less problematic than when it is particular, lack of critical discussion of the would have benefitted from a glossary of extensively planned by the UNHCR in co- relatively new terms "irregular move- terms and more detailed descriptions of ordination with the country of refuge and ments" or "irregular refugees" is apparent the root causes of refugee flows. the country of origin. Cuny and Stein's in several chapters; an important excep- Space does not permit me to describe well-crafted chapter shows that refugees tion is found in the chapter on temporary each chapter, so I will highlight several of will march back home even when it is not safe haven where Gallagher, Forbes Martin the themes running throughout. safe, without permission of the authorities, and Weiss-Fagen refer to Gilbert Jaeger's Loescher's opening remarks prod the without the promise of amnesty and so on comprehensive analysis of the underlying reader to think about the foreign policy (p. 296). Faced with the prospect of years premiss of the term "irregularW.l More implications of the international refugee in camps, with dependent approaches to striking is the introduction of new terms regime, the emptiness of humanitarian their upkeep, it is not surprising that which obfuscate reality. Bach claims that rhetoric when it is not matched by appro- refugees take such risks, however "Salvadoreans are engaged in spontaneous priate action, and the necessity for creative dangerous. third country resettlement" because, he responses to the expansion of the refugee Several chapters deal with strengthen- says the argument goes, they should have problem (see especially chapters by ing legal protection for refugees and the sought protection in Mexico (according to Mtango, Gordenker and Coles). One is obstacles confronted when trying to do so. the INS) but instead are seeking asylum in left with the impression that it is high time For example, Mtango details the legal doc- the United States (pp. 320-323). to depart from the namw confines of the uments which should prevent military and Resettlement is associated with refugees Convention definition of refugee to deal armed attacks on refugee camps, and who already have refugee status of one with the protection concerns and basic makes excellent suggestions for develop- form or another; this solution is regulated human rights, including socio-economic ing an instrument which would categri- by Western states which select refugees rights, of what the UN High cally prevent this inhumane occurrence. who meet their immigration criteria, as Commissioner for Refugees, Hocke, calls Yet his own analysis portrays the probable well as their political and/or humanitarian "extra-Convention refugees", more com- futility of producing such an instrument objectives. Salvadoreans in the United monly referred to as de facto refugees. without specific sanctions imposed upon States are asylum seekers or remain Many chapters specify the gamut of states permitting such attacks. "undocumented aliens" because they have restrictive measures used to deter arrivals Coles argues that it is time to stop of de facto refugees who are deserving thinking about refugees in a humanitarian claimants: notably "humane deterrence", mode: "the refugee problem is entirely 1 On this point, see James C. first asylum rules, visa requirements, political, since it concerns an individual's Hathaway's article "Burden Sharing or detention practices, and fines against air- relationship to a polity and the relation- Burden Shifting? 'Irregular' Asylum line carriers for transporting undocument- ship of polities to one another" (p. 394). It Seekers: What's All The Fuss?" in Refuge, ed migrants or asylum seekers (Widgren, appears that the Churches have come to Vol8, No. 2 (December 1988), pp. 1-2. good reason not to claim refugee status; Steven Cohen gains power and pathos as it depicts the they are not "resettled refugees". The plight of individual cases culled from refugee lobbies of both the United States Fvom the Jews to the newspapers and reports. and Canada have repeatedly argued that Tamils: Britain 's Of all the intense issues raised in this since adequate protection cannot be found slim volume, the one most interesting and in Mexico (which is not a party to the UN Mistreatment of Refugees most likely to ease the readers's tensions, Convention Relating to the Status of Manchester: Manchester Law is the account of the Sanctuary Movement. Refugees and where the UNHCR has some It could very well supply an answer to difficulty in fulfilling its protection func- Centre, 1988 those who question why different cultural tions), then the two countries to the north groups have their own places of worship are countries of first asylum. The chapter by Indhu Rajagopal and other "psychic shelters" (Porter:1972)* following Bach's claims as much in its first in their new countries, or who attribute to sentence (Gallagher et all p. 313). The Today's refugees are less the detritus "immigrant paranoia" the resistance of abysmal record of the United States in of large-scale organized warfare among newcomers to homogenization by the respect to the low acceptance rate (23%)of nations than they are the victims of majority culture. The churches or the tem- Salvadoreans and Guatemalans is closely oppression or persecution which has, in ples have proven to be last-ditch sanctuar- connected with American foreign policy in various countries, during different periods ies from the long arm of what the refugees the region these refugees are fleeing. It is feel to be the arbitrary and "unjust" this point that should have been made and regimes, denied them social identity and individual Mom. Their life stories measures of the state. strongly in Bach's chapter, particularly in Presenting the details of the sanctuary view of the themes of this volume. write a dramatic history of a world rife with bigotted expressions, ethnic, reli- cases provides a balance to the book's This book makes quite clear that when gious, parochial or nationalist. Steven relentless criticism of Britain's anti-human the crux of the problem of ameliorating the Cohen's From the Jews to the Tamils: rights orientation in its refugee policies: root causes of refugee movements is not Brbin's Mistreatment of Refugees cuts pow- ironically, the fact that such ethnic and cul- related to the timidity of states in "interfer- erfully through politicians's rhetoric to tural institutions can serve as fortresses ing" with the internal affairs of other states, present directly the experiences of indi- from within which otherwise helpless it may be, by contrast, interference itself refugees could resist the dominant state, (i.e. American military and foreign policy vidual refugees. From the beginning of the twentieth serves as powerful testimony to the involvement in Central America): hence century, Britain's official justifications for resilience of the British democratic the apparent intractability of the problem. its refugee policies show a long-standing essence. Both the ruthlessness and the Refugees and International Relations and historically continuous adherence to contradictions of the British refugee poli- deserves a wide audience: the social and the principle of expediency. cies spring from the dominant state's political sciences, immigration and refugee Parliamentary politicians's paradoxical power and legitimacy which are rooted in lawyers, refugee aid groups, and the edu- statements extol British "generosity" while both historical traditions and dominant cated public. Yet it is unlikely to reach tightening restrictions and exclusionary social interests; however, somewhere in many readers at $120 (Canadian). I hope provisions against the Tamil refugees. between there are interstices of "sanctuar- that Oxford University Press will consider This is reminiscent of the British strictures ies", a refuge for the resisters against the reducing the price substantially knowing against European and Russian Jews who state. A more theoretical analysis of these that specialized and important knowledge sought asylum in Britain to escape themes by Cohen would have been should be accessible outside of libraries. persecution in their own countries. welcomed. Cohen has struck upon a creative way Evidentiary sources for this mono- Lisa Gilad is the author of Ginger and Salt: of proving the burden of his argument. graph also demonstrate the openness of Yemeni Jewish Women in an Israeli Town The book unpretentiously examines one of information in Britain - media, Hansard, (Bolder, CO: Westview Press, 1989) and The the most important international crises of legislative process, and institutional infras- Northern Route: An Ethnography of our times - the refugee problem - from tructure. However, this book reveals a Refugee Experiences (St. John's: ISER a national policy perspective, but tells the striking disregard within the system for Books, forthcoming, spring 1990). She is a story by reference to the real sufferings of the need to reconcile individual human part-time Member of the Immigration and refugees themselves. Comparing Jewish rights with authority. The contradictions Refugee Board. The views expressed in this asylum seekers's experiences and the expose pungently the limitations of British review are entirely her own and do not neces- British treatment of them with the plight government refugee policies through the sart7y reflect the views or position of the IRB. of Tamil Sri Lankan refugees, the narrative twentieth century. Cohen's book is a wel- come addition to the sparce publication in the field of refugee studies and adds a pol- New Publication icy dimension to the literature on Tamil refugees. Marcel0 M. SuBrez-Orozco, Central frolm El Salvador, Guatemala and Indhu Rajagopal is a Professor of Social American Refugees and U.S.High Schools: A Nicaragua in the high school system of a Science at York Unimity. Psychosocial Study of Motivation and major US urban centre. Sdr&+Orozco, an Achievement (Stanford: Stanford Assistant Professor of Anthropology at 1 John Porter, "Canada: Dilemmas and University Press, 1989). This study exam- the University of California, San Diego, Contradictions of a Multi-ethnic Society", ines the experiences and psychosocial discusses in this work the high achieve- in Transactions of the Royal Society of motivational patterns of young people mmt rate displayed by Hispanic refugees. Cada,Series IV, Volume 10,1972. Donors to the Centre for Refugee Studies

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Postage Paid in Tmto Second Clam Mail Registration No. 5511 Return Postage Guaranteed Refugee Policy: A Comparison of Canada and the USA

International Conference Sunday May 27th - Wednesday May 30,1990 Glendon Campus, York University

The Centre for Refugee Studies at York University and the Refugee Policy Group in Washington, D.C. are convening an international conference to com- pare Canada and US refugee policies. The participants in the conference will include both researchers and those involved in policy formation in the United States and Canada. An attempt will be made to pair American and Canadian researchers in the preparation of papers. The purpose is to focus on a select list of problems which are central to the pol- icy concerns of both Canada and the United States and where they may have been different policies and programmes and/or different research results. The conference will be organized around general sessions at which prepared papers will be discussed, a parallel series of workshops and meal-time round tables. It is hoped that scholars and policy makers can learn a great deal from a greater understanding of the refugee policies of the two countries. For further information about this conference please contact Ann Watson at the Centre for Refugee Studies, 234 Administrative Studies Building York University, 4700 Keele Street, North York, Ontario, Canada M3J 1P3.