When the Taliban capture the Afghan capital Kabul on August 15, 2021, and seize power in the country again, this puts the activists at Medica Afghanistan in mortal danger.
They destroy documents, burn evidence and photographs. Some go underground, staying in hotels, newly rented apartments or in friends’ houses. Within a week, in spite of the extremely difficult circumstances, they manage to compile comprehensive lists with names and details of vulnerable activists and their families, sending these to medica mondiale in Germany.
A crisis team is working round the clock
A crisis team has been set up there, working round the clock to secure pledges from the German government to take in the refugees and to find a way for them to leave their country. The provisions set by government departments and the people responsible seem to be changing daily.
Through messaging services, women's rights activists in Afghanistan and Germany stay connected around the clock. They share security information and organize women and their families into groups to respond flexibly to new escape options as well as dangers. The medica team in Cologne and Berlin works in shifts, sending stories for the children and forwarding messages of solidarity from partners in Liberia, Rwanda, and Kosovo. Trauma specialists from northern Iraq send breathing exercises. Even in difficult situations, communication does not break down. Every message makes one thing clear: We will not leave you alone!
Protests and solidarity
Many human rights organisations in Germany and around the world are in the same situation as medica mondiale, trying to find solutions to support staff, allies and their families in their efforts to escape. As well as women’s rights activists, the Taliban are also pursuing other human rights campaigners, journalists and local employees of international organisations – anyone who tried to promote human rights and democracy.
These organisations are constantly sharing information about any developments or opportunities to evacuate their staff. Thanks to the support from a range of allies, including the civil society initiative “Kabul Luftbrücke” (Airlift Kabul), medica mondiale manages to evacuate the vulnerable activists and some of their close family members to Germany.
Alongside the crisis team at medica mondiale, a “Welcome team” is also set up. They gather together essential supplies for those arriving with young babies, laptops for their mothers, and toys for older children. Language lessons are offered to all relatives.
Workshops on self-care help to make it easier to settle in, but also to cope with the oppressing situation and worries about family and friends back in Afghanistan. Some of the evacuated staff also participate in the “Welcome team” and help run these workshops.
In cooperation with the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, a course of postgraduate studies in Social Work is set up in 2022, which more than half of the activists from Medica Afghanistan participate in.
The fight for women's rights continues
Together with eleven former psychosocial specialists from Medica Afghanistan, medica mondiale starts the “Self-Care and Collective Care Platform” in 2023. This enables Afghan activists in Germany, Iran, the USA and Afghanistan to access psychosocial support.
In the same year, 30 former colleagues who are now refugees set up Hami – Women Empowerment Organization e. V. In September 2024, Hami receives the Human Rights Award from the Gerhart and Renate Baum Foundation.
