Northern Ireland

Afghan refugees 'being ignored' amid Ukraine crisis

Darren Ferguson from Beyond Skin. Picture by Hugh Russell
Darren Ferguson from Beyond Skin. Picture by Hugh Russell Darren Ferguson from Beyond Skin. Picture by Hugh Russell

AN arts body which has worked on anti-racist and anti-sectarian projects for almost two decades has said Afghan refugees are being ignored amid the crisis in Ukraine.

Darren Ferguson, who founded Belfast-based Beyond Skin in 2004, said he had been working to help Afghan refugees following the Taliban takeover in August last year.

But he said Afghans have been effectively ignored following the Ukraine crisis.

"We've been trying to get some people out of Afghanistan since August but the applications are just sitting in the Home Office waiting to be processed," he said.

"The Home Office has told us we'll have to wait for a year because they're prioritising Ukrainian refugees.

"It's appalling what's going on."

Beyond Skin began a musical partnership with the Afghanistan National Institute of Music in 2017 and three years later, young artists from Northern Ireland collaborated with members of the Afghan Women’s Orchestra in Kabul.

Mr Ferguson said obtaining visas for performers has "always been problematic".

But he said he has been disappointed by the response from government following the Afghan crisis. He said while Ukrainian refugees are to be welcomed "the Afghan stuff is very problematic and it's been forgotten about".

Mr Ferguson said refugees and asylum seekers who have come to Northern Ireland have a huge amount to offer.

"There is amazing talent that has come to our shores," he said.

"If they would let people work, our economy would go into orbit. There are digital specialists, professional musicians and artists and fashion designers.

"It's unbelievable the wealth of talent."

He said most of the people Beyond Skin works with are asylum seekers who have been housed in hotels while their applications to remain in the UK are being processed.

"Some have been here for five months in hotels or shared housing," he said.

"I know people hear of hotels and think that's great, you're being looked after, but what they fail to understand is how that impacts on wider society.

"It doesn't help with integration."

He said many asylum seekers staying in hotels are suffering from poor mental health.

"We're going to face some serious problems if these aren't dealt with," he said.

He added: "We're coming across musicians who are super-talented and doing stuff with us which is really exciting. We keep bringing it back to music and arts and trying to get people into music studios and collaborate and get that creative energy going.

"It is difficult because you're working with someone who's doing something amazing and it's nearly like you're putting them back in their box again when you're taking them back to the hotel.

"My heart breaks sometimes. I think 'they've just been on stage and then have to go back to a hotel'."

Mr Ferguson said the mental health of one female Syrian refugee greatly improved after Beyond Skin helped her facilitate art workshops.

"Her mental health has just blossomed because she feels valued as an artist," he said.

This weekend, Beyond Skin is helping to host a music festival in Newcastle, Co Down, along with a team from global music festival Womad.

"We've a really good relationship with Womad. Womad Foundation actually sponsored part of our Afghan project," he said.

"One of the stages at the Womad festivals, which happen all over the world, is called 'Taste the World' where people cook their traditional food and sing songs. We're bringing that to the stage.

"We've some guests coming over and some who are based here. We have two refugees from Iran who will be cooking on stage.

"There's also an Iranian hip-hop artist who'll be one of the main performers."

He said many asylum seekers are keen to go to the festival.

"We are trying to bus a lot of people to the festival from hotels," he said.

"We're trying to raise money for buses because we have over 200 requests from people who want to go.

"One woman said to me the other day her daughter's mental health is not in a good place and she just wants to go to the festival and see music.

"We've got a volunteer driver who is going to take her and her daughter to it."

He said although a couple of buses have been booked more volunteer drivers are needed and he appealed to anyone who can drive people to the festival on Saturday or Sunday to contact Beyond Skin.

Mr Ferguson said other refugees "really feel for the people from Ukraine, but are just so frustrated by the Home Office".

"I just think we're missing a trick," he said.

"We have a goldmine of talent in people who have come to our shores, not by choice. We should be all over them. We should be embracing them and we're not."

A Home Office spokeswoman said it needed to move quickly to help Ukrainian refugees following the Russian invasion in February.

"It is wrong to set these two vulnerable groups against each other," she said.

"Putin’s brutal and barbaric invasion has meant we needed to move quickly to set up both the Ukraine Family scheme and the Homes for Ukraine scheme, so that people can find safety in the UK.

"At the same time, support for those under the ARAP (Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy) and ACRS (Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme) schemes continues, including processing cases.

"Up to 20,000 Afghan women, children and other at-risk groups will be provided with a safe and legal route to resettle in the UK and we are working as fast as possible to house everyone."

The Taste The World Festival will take place in the grounds of St Mary's Primary School in Newcastle on May 7 and 8.

Anyone willing to drive asylum seekers to the festival can contact Beyond Skin at info@beyondskin.net or 07792 503913.