An Afghan interpreter who worked for our defence force has described how it feels to be in New Zealand after escaping the Taliban and is imploring Aotearoa's leaders not to recognise the group as the government of Afghanistan.
Bashir Ahmad and his family have recently left managed isolation and quarantine, free to start a new life in New Zealand. Getting here wasn't easy, however, for the Afghan national who served our country as an interpreter in the central Asian nation.
When the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in August, Ahmad and his family's lives were at risk due to their previous work for New Zealand. While nations attempted to evacuate their citizens and those who had served them, Ahmad and at least 37 other families were unable to get to Kabul airport for security reasons.
Three months on, after living in fear that the Taliban may find them, Ahmad has made it out via means he is not willing to speak about so as not to jeopardize them for others still in Afghanistan. He said his family were helped with their "very difficult journey" by officials in New Zealand as well as friends here.
The former interpreter told The AM Show on Monday morning just how it felt to be in New Zealand.
"It's so good. It's so good… the environment and the New Zealand people you know, it feels so good," he said.
"My family, they're doing good. They're very happy. My kids are playing around. In the past week, we went to several parks and playgrounds. Everything is going so well. They are so happy."
But while Ahmad and his family have arrived in New Zealand, he's worried for those who have not been so lucky. Newshub reported on Sunday that of the 547 visas approved during the fall of Kabul for those who worked for the NZDF and their immediate family members, only 60 have made it to New Zealand.
"I am really concerned about these people," Ahmad told The AM Show. "These people some of them are very vulnerable. They don't have the proper education, how to manage their paperwork, and they don't have the resources. They don't have the money. They don't have that good place to stay. They're just hiding around."
"I think Immigration and MFAT has made a lot of efforts. I really want to appreciate all their efforts. But right now, these people are left behind and they have directly worked with the New Zealand Defence Force. I think they deserve to be evacuated as soon as possible."
In October, Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta appointed Matthew Hawkins as our Special Representative to Afghanistan. Mahuta said his role would be to support those wanting to leave the country.
"As we continue to try help people who have been able to cross land borders into neighbouring countries, I am appointing a Special Representative for Afghanistan to support our efforts on the ground and work closely with our partners to secure onward travel out of the region and on to New Zealand."
Ahmad hopes New Zealand doesn't recognise the Taliban administration as being a "legitimate government".
"They have the ideology that they want to oppress people… They overthrew the legitimate government. I think the international community has the responsibility that they do not recognise it."
When the Taliban took Kabul in mid-August, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was asked if New Zealand would recognise the group as being the country's government.
At that stage, she said the focus was on evacuating people from the country, but that "New Zealand will always fall back on its values".
"What we want to see is human rights upheld. We want to see women and girls being able to access work and education. These are things that traditionally have not been available to them when there has been governance by the Taliban.
"I would just, again, implore those who have made these moves in recent days to acknowledge what the international community has called for: human rights and the safety of their people."
However, it appears in the months since, the Taliban has continued its barbaric ways.
Just on Monday, New Zealand was one of a number of countries that raised concerns over the alleged killings and disappearances of former members of the Afghan security forces.
"We underline that the alleged actions constitute serious human rights abuses and contradict the Taliban's announced amnesty," said the statement.
"Reported cases must be investigated promptly and in a transparent manner, those responsible must be held accountable, and these steps must be clearly publicised as an immediate deterrent to further killings and disappearances."
It finished by saying that the countries will "measure the Taliban by their actions".
