Help for vulnerable Afghans must be top of Liz Truss’s priorities | Letter

It is the government’s duty to help avert a humanitarian and human rights catastrophe, say Elizabeth Winter, Stephanie Draper and Christine Allen

As a new secretary of state, Liz Truss, takes the reins at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, continued support for the people of Afghanistan – many of whose lives remain at great risk – must remain a top priority.

Civil society groups and NGOs have been inundated with requests from people needing help to reach safer locations, but only a few have received it (‘They left us to die’: UK’s Afghan aid staff in hiding from Taliban, 17 September).

Clarity is needed on how the UK’s resettlement schemes are and will be operating, including who qualifies, what specifically constitutes a “vulnerable and at-risk individual”, and whether the UK has secured agreement from any third countries to host at-risk Afghans as they await resettlement.

The government must also show leadership and make no compromises on the role of women in aid delivery. Protecting the rights of Afghan women, in particular human rights defenders and journalists, must be a priority.

Aid efforts are struggling in the face of the liquidity crisis in Afghan banks and the barriers arising from sanctions, counter-terror measures and challenges in the banking system. We appreciate that the government is trying to resolve these problems, but with winter fast approaching, and around half the Afghan population in need of humanitarian assistance and a third food insecure, the situation will become dire unless urgently addressed.
Elizabeth Winter Executive director, British & Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group
Stephanie Draper CEO, Bond, the UK network for organisation working in international development
Christine Allen Executive director, the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development

Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication.

Letters

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
UN donor conference falls billions short of $4.4bn target to help Afghanistan
Conference raises only $2.44bn as Russian foreign minister says west is responsible for country’s humanitarian crisis

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

31, Mar, 2022 @7:09 PM

Article image
Revealed: Foreign Office ignored frantic pleas to help Afghans
Thousands of urgent messages from MPs and charities had not been read by the end of the UK evacuation from Afghanistan

Michael Savage, Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi and Emma Graham-Harrison in Islamabad

28, Aug, 2021 @9:00 PM

Article image
The Guardian view on the Afghan evacuation: a governmental disaster and human tragedy | Editorial
Editorial: A damning report by the Commons foreign affairs committee exposes the full scale of failure by ministers and officials

Editorial

24, May, 2022 @5:49 PM

Article image
‘It’s a joke’: left-behind Afghans despair at dog rescue revelations
Idea that Boris Johnson personally approved animal evacuation adds to hurt, say those who worked with British

Emma Graham-Harrison and Amelia Gentleman

26, Jan, 2022 @6:06 PM

Article image
David Lammy visits Afghanistan to highlight humanitarian crisis
Shadow foreign secretary says UK government ignoring catastrophe as millions of Afghans go hungry

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

08, Jun, 2022 @8:00 AM

Article image
Foreign Office under Liz Truss has failed to regain global footing, report finds
Institute for Government says morale low, expertise on Russia lacking, and merger with DfID has not worked

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

28, Jul, 2022 @5:00 AM

Article image
Gordon Brown calls on Liz Truss to help raise funds for Afghanistan
Former prime minister says country is at risk of famine and UK must take lead in resuming delivery of aid

Dan Sabbagh

12, Jan, 2022 @2:03 PM

Article image
UK accused of abandoning world’s poor as aid turned into ‘colonial’ investment
Rebrand of Foreign Office’s development arm, seen as effort to rival China’s loans, will shift aid to private sector, warn NGOs and unions

Lizzy Davies

21, Dec, 2021 @7:00 AM

Article image
Britons stranded in Afghanistan call for urgent evacuation help
Group record message for UK officials as visa rules for dependants add to practical difficulties

Amelia Gentleman

07, Oct, 2021 @3:26 PM

Article image
‘They left us to die’: UK’s Afghan aid staff in hiding from Taliban
Evacuation of employees, not contractors, ‘splitting hairs’, says HRW, warning of days left to save lives

Katie McQue in Dubai

17, Sep, 2021 @5:00 AM