MANILA, Philippines — Three hundred Afghan nationals arrived yesterday in the Philippines to await the processing within 59 days of their Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) to the United States.
The Afghans, mostly former employees at US facilities and their families, arrived on a chartered flight from Kabul.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed the arrival of the Afghan nationals and the start of the processing of their visas by the US embassy.
“All applicants completed extensive security vetting by Philippines national security agencies. They also underwent full medical screening prior to their arrival in the Philippines,” DFA spokesperson Ma. Teresita Daza said in a statement.
Office of American Affairs Assistant DFA Secretary Jose Victor Chan-Gonzaga, US embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Robert Ewing, Philippine Bureau of Quarantine official Dr. Gerry Camba and US State Department linguist Mohammad Yama Behnaam greeted the Afghan nationals and their families upon their arrival.
The Philippines and the US signed on July 29, 2024 an agreement allowing the Afghans’ temporary stay in the Philippines while their special US visas are being processed. The Americans left Afghanistan in 2021 after 20 years of defending its regime from the Taliban, which thereafter took over the country.
“These are people we know, these are people we trust. Some fought with us on the battlefield, but many worked with us day in and day out at our embassy and facilities around the country. They took the chance to come and work for us,” a State Department official said
As part of its agreement with the Philippines, the US government is supporting all necessary services for the Afghan SIV applicants while they are in the Philippines, including food, housing, medical care, security and transportation.
“The US embassy has also assured us that the program will not impact the normal processing of immigrant and nonimmigrant visas for Filipinos,” Daza said.
During their meeting in Washington in May, US President Joe Biden made an arrangement with President Marcos regarding the temporary stay of a limited number of Afghans in the Philippines seeking special US visas.
“The Biden administration remains committed to the thousands of brave Afghans who stood side-by-side with the United States over the course of the past two decades.”