Kauser News Reporter from Kabul Afghanistan Research shows that More than 75% of Afghan citizens who worked with the US government in Afghanistan are currently left behind under the Taliban government. According to a report released by NBC News, the United States has evacuated only about 3 percent of Afghans who worked for the American government and applied for special visas, leaving behind an estimated 78,0001.
In an interview with Kauser News Journalist, some of these individuals shared their experiences.
Mr. D worked as a journalist with Coalition Forces for over 7 years. While his coworkers were able to relocate to Europe, Canada, or the United States under the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, he is currently struggling with the documentation process. It has been almost 2 years since he applied for COM (Chief of Mission) approval after being denied three times.
Mr. M worked as a security guard for a United States Army Corps of Engineering contractor construction company for over 10 years. He is facing challenges with obtaining a recommendation letter. Many Afghan individuals who worked with contractor or subcontractor companies are also experiencing difficulties with documentation, as there is no response to their emails, and past Army, email accounts have been deleted.
IRAP shares and analyzes: newly released documents obtained by the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and related lawsuits. These documents provide insights into Project Rabbit, a program developed by the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of State (DOS) to streamline the employment verification process for Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants. Here are the key points from the analysis:
- Background: The Afghan SIV program was created to provide a pathway to safety for Afghans who worked with the United States mission in Afghanistan. The employment verification process within the SIV program has long been criticized as burdensome and slow.
- Timeline: The documents reveal that Project Rabbit was initiated only a few months before the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. In June-July 2021, the DoD was formally asked to assist with employment verification for SIV applicants. Project Rabbit began in August 2021.
- Staffing and Challenges: Project Rabbit faced staffing issues, with a small number of individuals handling the program. Unwilling companies could not be compelled to provide employee data, and there was no public avenue for willing companies to contact Project Rabbit. Despite a large backlog of SIV applicants, the number of matched cases decreased over time.
- Initial Success: In the first six months of operation, Project Rabbit resulted in a significant number of matches. By December 2021, nearly 4,600 pre-COM SIV applicants were matched through the program.
- Staffing Issues and System Limitations: Emails and meeting notes indicate that Project Rabbit faced staffing challenges and system limitations. The lack of dedicated resources within the DoD hindered the program’s scalability and sustainability. DoD proposed transferring primary responsibility for Project Rabbit to DOS and suggested improvements like an electronic portal.
- Plummeting Case Matches: The statistics released through the FOIA request confirm DoD’s predictions. Over time, the number of cases matched through Project Rabbit significantly declined. Since February 2023, only 1,396 cases were matched, while the backlog of pre-COM and at COM SIV applicants reached 126,673 as of October 2022.
- Takeaways and Recommendations: The analysis concludes with recommendations to address the shortcomings of Project Rabbit. These include allocating more staff and resources, creating a public way for SIV-applicant-employing companies to access Project Rabbit, incentivizing or requiring companies to provide employment data, and increasing flexibility in the SIV program regarding letters of recommendation.
