“If you leave Afghan allys under the Taliban, you will definitely be executed. These are people who know and love Korea. If you leave them alone, they will be killed by the Taliban. Rescue is humanitarian. By not giving up on your Korean friends. We are now able to recognize the trust and will of the Korean people in the international community.”
391 Afghans will arrive in Korea on the 26th. It is the first time in the history of Korean diplomacy that a large-scale transfer of foreigners from conflict zones to Korea has occurred.
The operation name is 'Miracle'. The goal is to give a message of hope and miracles to those who helped our government in Afghanistan's reconstruction project. It is said that this is the first time a transfer operation has been carried out from Korea to Afghanistan for more than 9,000 km and 20,000 km round trip.
A Ministry of National Defense official said, "We used the name of the operation 'Miracle' to give hope to Afghan helpers to make a new choice while crossing the deadlock and guaranteeing their lives." said
The 391 Afghans transferred to South Korea are helpers and their families who helped the Korean government in the reconstruction project in Afghanistan. He has worked at the Korean Embassy in Afghanistan, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Bagram Korean Hospital in Afghanistan, Afghan Vocational Training Center, and Charika Korea Regional Reconstruction Team.
By occupation, doctors and nurses, IT specialists, interpreters, and professional training instructors are people who are evaluated as highly skilled professionals in Afghanistan.
Among them, 100 children under the age of 5, including 3 newborns born in August.
Choi Jong-moon, 2nd Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, said, "They are not refugees, but special contributors." "The government's moral responsibility to those who helped Korea, responsibility as a member of the international community, international status as an advanced human rights country, and Afghans who are in a similar position in other countries. We decided to transfer them in consideration of the fact that they were transferred in large numbers,” he explained.
“These facilitators are at risk of life and death under the Taliban, and from the standpoint of a Korean who values morality and loyalty, I cannot say that I am ignorant.”
The government drew a line on the possibility that among the Afghans arriving in Korea this time, there might be Taliban-related people.
A government official explained, "There will be no major problems because they thoroughly checked their backgrounds from the time they were hired, and they have been verified over a long period of service ranging from 1 to 2 years to 8 years." .
When Afghans arrive at Incheon Airport, they will go through quarantine procedures such as testing for COVID-19 and then stay at the National Civil Service Human Resources Development Center in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, for about six to eight weeks. Once short-term visas are issued to them, they will be collectively changed to long-term visas, and it is known that they will be treated with the status of sojourn equivalent to those recognized as refugees.
It is known that there are some opposition to the entry of Afghans in large numbers, citing differences in religion and culture.
A government official said, "There may be objections to large-scale acceptance of foreign refugees, but Korea has grown to accept about 400 people, not 10,000 or 1,000," said a government official. did.
Meanwhile, President Moon Jae-in said on the 25th, "Fulfilling our moral responsibility to the Afghan people who helped us is a natural and meaningful task."