Aust, US, Canada: migrant & native experiences; Films: How many Afghan refugees is Australia taking? Are we going to expand our refugee intake?

How many Afghan refugees is Australia taking? Are we going to expand our refugee intake? - ABC News

How many Afghan refugees is Australia taking? Are we going to expand our refugee intake?

By political reporter Tom Lowrey
Posted Thu 19 Aug 2021 at 4:31amThursday 19 Aug 2021 at 4:31am, updated Thu 19 Aug 2021 at 6:57amThursday 19 Aug 2021 at 6:57am

The government says visa applications made by Afghan nationals will be processed as a priority.(

Defence: Sergeant Glen McCarthy)
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As much of the world is stunned by the images of huge crowds swarming the airport in Kabul, desperate to flee Taliban rule over Afghanistan, other nations are slowly responding.

Dedicated refugee programs are being set up in many countries for the enormous numbers of Afghans likely to be displaced.

The world has been here before — very recently with refugee crises in places like Syria, and historically in places like Vietnam.

So what is Australia doing? And how does it compare?
Dedicated spots — but no lift to refugee caps

Australia will offer 3,000 places in its humanitarian visa program specifically for those now fleeing Afghanistan.

Priority will be given to people with family already in Australia, women and girls, children and persecuted minorities like Hazaras.

It is important to note that this is not a special intake of refugees.

The 3,000 will come from within the existing number of available humanitarian visas.

Australia is currently offering 13,750 humanitarian visas each year.

That number was cut from 18,750 in last year's budget.

So Australia is not going above and beyond the ordinary refugee intake — it is simply setting aside some of those places for Afghans caught up in the current situation.
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The chaotic and dangerous security situation in Kabul is posing stiff challenges to the federal government's evacuation mission in Afghanistan.Read more

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said yesterday there is room in the cap, so it will be used.

"COVID has meant that the process of running our refugee and humanitarian program, like all of our visa programs, have been running at lower levels," he said.

"And so we can accommodate these additional numbers, but within the existing processes."

There are other visas being offered to those who worked alongside Australian forces in Afghanistan, with hundreds expected to be flown out of Kabul as a priority.

And the federal government has committed to allowing Afghans currently in Australia on temporary visas to remain indefinitely, but has made clear that those who arrived by boat do not have a path to permanent residency.
Read more about the Taliban's advance in Afghanistan:
How the Taliban 's smoke and mirrors strategy helped it seize Afghanistan
Will the West recognise the Taliban? There are some critical questions to be answered
Women in Afghanistan fought to play sport, and now they fear it's being ripped away from them.
What are other countries doing?

Australia's commitment falls short of what is being offered by some other developed countries.

Late last week, Canada detailed a plan to offer 20,000 special humanitarian visas to vulnerable Afghans in response to the current crisis.

Like Australia, Canada had a long military involvement in the war in Afghanistan, deploying 40,000 troops between 2001 and 2014.

Britain is also offering 20,000 new refugee visas to Afghans fleeing the current circumstances.

Five thousand will be offered in the first year, with women, girls and other vulnerable groups to be given priority.

The UK has called on other countries to step up their efforts to assist.

More than 100,000 British troops served in Afghanistan since 2001, and a further 5,000 visas are being offered to Afghans who worked alongside the British military.

Mr Morrison appeared to reference the approaches being taken by both countries, as he yesterday ruled out making similar moves.

"You would have heard other countries talk about figures of 5,000, I note that some are talking about figures of 20,000," he said.

"But, can I tell you, there are no clear plans about that.

"Australia is not going into that territory."

The United States, who had by far the largest military presence in Afghanistan, has been grappling with how to assist the many tens — even hundreds — of thousands of Afghans who worked alongside them throughout the war.

An existing program offers "special immigrant visas" to people who can meet strict criteria demonstrating their work, but the program has been criticised over its administration.

The country is now opening up its refugee visas to those who might fall short of qualifying for the special visas, in the hope of bringing more in.

US President Joe Biden recently lifted the United States' refugee cap to 62,500, reversing deep cuts to the program made under former president Donald Trump.
What has Australia done in the past?

There is precedent for setting up dedicated refugee programs during times of significant global turmoil.

At the height of the Syrian refugee crisis in 2015, the Abbott government was coming under significant pressure to take in more refugees.

Hundreds of thousands of refugees were streaming into Europe, forced from their homes by the Syrian civil war and the rise of ISIS.

For one year, the refugee intake almost doubled, as the government agreed to take in 12,000 Syrian and Iraqi refugees.

And there are historical precedents, too.

The withdrawal from Afghanistan has drawn comparisons to the end of the Vietnam War.

Between 1975 (when Saigon fell) and 1982, Australia took in roughly 55,000 Vietnamese refugees.

Vietnamese refugee boats PK3402 and Tu Do in Darwin.(

Australian National Maritime Museum / Michael Jensen)

And at roughly the same time, many Cambodian refugees were arriving on Australian shores.

Between 1975 and 1986, more than 12,000 Cambodian refugees were taken in.

A 1979 photo of the exterior of S-21 prison, where thousands of people were tortured by the Khmer Rouge.(

DC-Cam: Ho Van Tai)
Are there calls for Australia to do more?

Human rights and refugee advocacy groups have asked Australia to bolster its efforts given the scale of the crisis in Afghanistan.

Amnesty International has suggested the efforts by the UK and Canada provide a clear model.

"I think we should we be looking at at least 20,000 places," said Amnesty's Refugee Advisor, Graham Thom.

"Match what the UK is doing, match what Canada is doing.

"If we need to spread that out over a couple of years, so be it, but we need a solid commitment to what is going on in Afghanistan right now."

And there are similar calls within the Afghan community in Australia.

Refugee advocate Shukufa Tahiri said the promises made by the UK and Canada should be the baseline.

"At the minimum, it should match that commitment," she said.

"Our involvement in Afghanistan for 20 years, the promises that were made — there is an expectation that Australia take a response that is much more than increasing the composition of the existing humanitarian intake."
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