[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 130 (Wednesday, August 3, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3910-S3911]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              AFGHANISTAN

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I rise today to note that, during this 
coming recess, we will mark the somber occasion of the 1-year 
anniversary of the fall of Kabul and the Taliban takeover of 
Afghanistan. I want to draw the attention of the Senate and the 
American people to one of our most urgent priorities in Afghanistan: 
providing immediate assistance for Afghan citizens that risked their 
lives to further U.S. interests and whose lives now stand in jeopardy 
should we not act soon.
  Nine days--in the short span of 9 days after seizing control of the 
first province to fall on August 6, 2021--Nimruz--a whirlwind of chaos 
ensued. The world watched as, one by one, all of the country's 
provinces fell to Taliban forces until finally reaching the capital 
Kabul on August 15. With little resistance from the Afghan forces we 
had trained and equipped over two decades, the Taliban simply entered 
and took control. In terrified desperation, many Afghans gathered what 
they could carry with them and fled. People left their whole lives 
behind--their houses, their jobs, their friends and family--risking 
their lives to flee the country in the wake of the Taliban takeover. 
Shocking images of Afghans clinging to U.S. evacuation flights as they 
took off could not have shown a clearer picture of the despair of so 
many Afghans.
  Amid this panic, the Biden administration acted swiftly to evacuate 
American personnel and most American citizens.
  We joined our international allies to call for a new Afghan 
Government that is united, inclusive, and representative, including 
with full participation of women. We joined international voices to 
reaffirm our commitment to ensuring rights of women and girls in 
Afghanistan. And along with our NATO allies, we committed to evacuate 
at-risk Afghans.
  And make no mistake, we as Americans remain committed to all these 
priorities. We stand united with our allies to further these goals and 
ensure a stable and secure Afghanistan. Central to the Taliban's 
beliefs is the Pashtun code of ethics, ``Pashtunwaly,'' in which 
``nang''--which means honor--stands as the central tenet. It is with 
``nang'' in mind that we call on the Taliban to honor their commitment 
to provide an accountable and inclusive government. We urge them to 
honor their original and oft-repeated promise to uphold human rights 
and support education for women and girls--commitments that recent 
reporting suggests they are not fulfilling.
  We call on them to honor their commitment to provide a safe and 
secure Afghanistan for all Afghans. We join our allies in the 
international community in these calls for action.
  Yet in the aftermath of the fall of Afghanistan, there remains one 
priority for the U.S. alone to undertake: ensuring the well-being of 
Afghan citizens who put their lives on the line to serve our country. 
These are the Afghans who worked at our Embassy and other diplomatic 
facilities, served as our translators, helped us engage with the Afghan 
Government, and provided us information and assistance. They are the 
Afghans that served and studied in U.S.-affiliated centers and 
universities. They are the Afghans who worked tirelessly to promote our 
principles as journalists working for U.S.-affiliated outlets, like the 
Afghan services of RFE/RL, Radio Azadi, and Ghandara. Without their 
assistance, U.S. lives would have been lost. Without their support, we 
would have been unable to talk about our U.S. values and priorities to 
the Afghan people.
  Without them, we would not have been able to work with the Government 
of Afghanistan to promote our shared goal of regional stability and 
security. To these individuals and their families, we owe a great debt 
for their assistance. The 77,000 Afghans currently in the pipeline for 
special immigrant visas, the 44,000 that await processing for their P1/
P2 visas, and yet another almost 5,000 that seek humanitarian parole, 
these individuals are all counting on us. So I call on the State 
Department to make renewed efforts to expedite these cases.
  I would like to recognize that, to date, our government has made 
enormous strides in this herculean effort; tens of thousands of these 
individuals were evacuated from Afghanistan following the collapse of 
the government. Yet tens of thousands more remain stranded in limbo, 
both in Afghanistan as well as in third countries--among others, in 
Pakistan, Qatar, UAE, Georgia, Albania, and the Kyrgyz Republic. They 
wait patiently, many of them running through their personal savings, 
many unable to work.
  We continue to support these individuals, oftentimes maintaining a 
delicate dialogue with the host countries about the long-term plans for 
these individuals.
  I would like to share with you the story of one such individual whose 
life hangs in the balance. It is with her permission that I share this 
story, and I will call her ``Arezo'' to safeguard her anonymity. Arezo 
is a bright young Afghan woman of Hazara heritage who studied at a U.S. 
university and later worked for an international human rights NGO. By 
all accounts, up until the collapse of Afghanistan, she was one of the 
many Afghans working to build a bright future for Afghanistan. When 
Kabul fell, like so many others, Arezo shred all the documents tying 
her in any way to the United States. She knew that if the Taliban 
discovered this connection, both her life and her family's lives could 
be at risk.
  While attempting to flee, Arezo and her brother were discovered by 
the Taliban and taken in for questioning about their reasons for 
wanting to leave the country. Arezo's brother was savagely beaten. 
Arezo was subjected to a humiliating virginity test. They were both 
taken into custody for several weeks, during which they endured brutal 
and inhumane treatment, often ridiculed by the Taliban guards for their 
Shi'a faith as ``untrue Muslims.''
  While incarcerated, Arezo witnessed the brutal rape of a 12-year-old 
girl at the hands of the Taliban. The crime of this child? She had been 
imprisoned for riding in local transport without a male family member 
escort. Miraculously, after external pressure, Arezo was released, but 
not without the threat hanging over her head that the Taliban would 
keep tabs on her. Arezo now waits for the United States to process her 
visa. Hers is one of the over 44,000 cases that remain backlogged, 
while her life hangs in the balance.
  I tell you this: It is in our direct, immediate interest to dedicate 
and reallocate resources to resolve pending cases like those of Arezo.

[[Page S3911]]

  Until we resolve their cases, we continue to expend enormous U.S. 
resources to support them in third countries, with no clear end in 
sight. We continue to ask much of our bilateral partners that have 
generously agreed to take in these evacuees. Our Embassies and 
government Agencies will continue to struggle with the overload caused 
by the burden of managing these extra cases. But most importantly, we 
owe it to these individuals who put their own lives on the line for our 
county to process their cases quickly.
  It is no accident that I chose the name ``Arezo'' as a stand-in for 
the young Afghan woman who, like so many others, awaits our action. 
Arezo is a Hazara name that means ``hope'' or ``faith.'' And like so 
many others, she has taken it on faith that the U.S. Government will 
make good on its promise to take care of the Afghans like her that have 
served--and continue to serve--U.S. interests and who still believe in 
the American dream and still believe that America will fulfill her 
promises.
  I encourage that at all levels of government, we work to identify 
resources to reallocate towards this goal. We have the resources, but 
we must redirect these resources and make it a top priority. I call on 
our State Department and USCIS colleagues to elevate the task of 
processing cases to a high priority status. I propose that we convene 
in committee to discuss additional ways that Congress can support the 
successful resolution of their cases and permanent resettlement. On the 
eve of the 1-year anniversary of an ignominious American withdrawal 
from Afghanistan, after a two-decade effort, I urge that across all 
lines of government, we recognize this priority and work promptly to 
resolve the cases of the many Afghans who have put their lives on the 
line for our country.

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