New Delhi, India — The Philippines has agreed to process a limited number of special visas for Afghan refugees in Manila who fled the Taliban rule, under an agreement with the United States.
The Department of Foreign Affairs announced the deal on Tuesday, stating that Afghan nationals will transit through the Philippines to complete their Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) processing before resettlement in the United States.
“The US government will provide necessary services for Afghans temporarily in the Philippines, including food, housing, security, medical care, and transportation to complete their visa processing,” the DFA said in a statement.
No timeline has been set for the agreement, which is currently undergoing final domestic procedures for implementation.
The US embassy in Manila said Afghan SIV applicants will be temporarily housed at a CARE (Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts) facility in the Philippines.
“The US government will facilitate visa processing for a limited number of Afghan SIV applicants in the Philippines. For operational security reasons, we will not disclose the capacity of the facility or the number of guests present at any given time,” said US embassy spokesperson Kanishka Gangopadhyay.
Afghans requesting special visas
Former US State Counselor Derek Chollet explained in a previous CNN Philippines report that the Afghans were the closest partners of the US during the two decades of American presence in Afghanistan.
“We, the United States, stand by those Afghans who worked with us, often for nearly two decades, side by side in Afghanistan,” Chollet said. “These were our closest partners on the ground, working with US diplomats, military officials, and other personnel. They were our brothers and sisters.”
Meanwhile, Senator Imee Marcos, committee on foreign relations chairperson, has raised concerns about the deal with Washington.
“Nalusutan ba tayo? Sino-sino yang mga darating? Ilan sila? Saan sila titira? ‘Di naman yan bilanggo, iikot sila sa buong Pilipinas? Gaano katagal sila sa atin, alam natin kung gaano katagal ang US visa at umabot ng higit 4 na taon mga pino-process na Afghan? Sa dami ng problema natin, gusto ba talaga nating dagdagan?” Marcos questioned.
[Translation: were we blindsided? Who are these people coming over? How many are they? Where will they stay? They’re not prisoners; will they be traveling around the Philippines? How long will they be with us? We know how long a US visa lasts, and it took over 4 years to process for Afghans. With all our problems, do we really want to add more?]
Marcos previously conducted an investigation on the “real intention” behind the US request.
