Migration history

Afghan refugees began flowing into the Netherlands in the late 1980s, fleeing violence in their homeland. In the decade up to 2002, the Netherlands was the second-most popular destination in Europe for Afghan asylum-seekers, behind Germany; they made up more than 20% of the total of roughly 170,000 applications for asylum filed by Afghans in Europe. The Dutch government settled them in a variety of areas with the policy aim of preventing the formation of large immigrant communities in the cities.

As a result of the increasing inflow of asylum-seekers, the Dutch government set up a war crimes investigation unit in the late 1990s; the first refugees they charged with war crimes were Heshamuddin Hesam and Habibulla Jalalzoy, both former members of the Afghan intelligence service KHAD

KHAD

Khadamat-e Etela'at-e Dawlati translates directly to English as: "Government Information Agency". However, this phrase is more correctly translated as Government Intelligence Service...

 during the 1980s Soviet war in Afghanistan

Soviet war in Afghanistan

The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist-Leninist government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign "Arab–Afghan" volunteers...

. Their presence, when it became known, evoked a great deal of unrest and fear among the Netherlands' Afghan community. Charged with abusing prisoners

Prisoner abuse

Prisoner abuse is the mistreatment of persons while they are under arrest or incarcerated.Abuse falling into this category includes:* Physical abuse: Needless beating, hitting, or other corporal punishment....

 in a 2005 trial, they received sentences of 12 and 9 years in prison, respectively.

In 2003, the Netherlands signed a voluntary repatriation agreement with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and the transitional government of Afghanistan, recognising the right of Afghan refugees in the Netherlands to return to Afghanistan and establishing procedures. However, by 2007, only 800 had returned; most refugees feel that public safety, women's rights, and educational conditions in Afghanistan are insufficient. Young people who choose to return may also encounter language difficulties, as they exhibit language shift

Language shift

Language shift, sometimes referred to as language transfer or language replacement or assimilation, is the progressive process whereby a speech community of a language shifts to speaking another language. The rate of assimilation is the percentage of individuals with a given mother tongue who speak...

 towards Dutch and away from Dari.

Demographic characteristics

, statistics of the Dutch Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek

Statistics Netherlands

Statistics Netherlands, founded in 1899, is a Dutch governmental institution that gathers statistical information about the Netherlands. In Dutch it is known as the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek, often abbreviated to CBS. It is a department of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and is...

 with regards to people of Afghan origin showed:

• 30,737 persons of first-generation background (16,619 men, 14,118 women)
• 7,002 persons of second-generation background (3,620 men, 3,382 women), of which:
  • 271 persons with one parent born in the Netherlands (136 men, 135 women)
  • 6,731 persons with both parents born outside the Netherlands

For a total of 37,739 persons (20,239 men, 17,500 women). This represented more than 7.5 times the 1996 total of 4,916 persons. The proportion of persons of second-generation background increased from 7.7% to 18% over the same period; the rest of the growth was due to immigration. As with other migrant ethnic groups, their age structure is skewed towards young people—90% are younger than 45, a similar proportion to Turkish

Turkish-Dutch

Turks in the Netherlands are citizens of the Netherlands who are of Turkish ancestry. As of 2010, Turks form the largest ethnic minority in the Netherlands.- History :...

, Iranian

Iranians in the Netherlands

Iranians in the Netherlands form one of the newer and larger populations of Iranians in Europe.-Terminology:Iranians/Persians in the Netherlands are sometimes referred to by hyphenated terms such as "Dutch-Iranians", "Iranian-Dutch", "Dutch-Persian", or "Persian-Dutch"...

, and Somali migrants

Somalis in the Netherlands

Somalis in the Netherlands are naturalized Dutch citizens and residents born in, or with ancestors from Somalia. They form one of the larger Somali communities in Europe.-Migration history:...

, but much higher than the equivalent figure of 60% in the native Dutch population.

Integration and community

Afghan migrants to the Netherlands have founded roughly 130 different associations, mostly aimed at maintaining Afghan culture in the Netherlands and providing charitable assistance—especially materials like blankets, food, and furniture—to people and non-governmental organisations in Afghanistan. Afghans form a relatively heterogeneous group both socially and ethnically, with representation of speakers of various languages of Afghanistan

Languages of Afghanistan

Afghanistan is home to more than 40 languages, with around 200 different dialects. The two official languages of Afghanistan are Persian Dari and Pashto, also known as Pakhto or Afghani. Both are Indo-European languages from the Iranian languages sub-family...

 and representatives of various political factions in Afghanistan ranging from communists to democrats and Islamic activists; within organisations, most prefer to work with people of a similar background.

Health issues

Stress-related illnesses are common among migrants of Afghan background, due to a variety of causes including war, separation from relatives, and uncertainty about their future due to economic and residency permission issues. Differences in the health care systems of Afghanistan and the Netherlands have proven confusing to some refugees. The general practitioner

General practitioner

A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...

plays a far more important role in the Dutch system. In contrast, in the Afghan system, patients often bypass their family doctor—or in rural areas, village herbalist—to consult specialists in urban areas directly. Mistrust of Dutch doctors in common, possibly stemming from Afghans migrants' general feeling of social exclusion.