Refugees from Afghanistan Stuck in Brazil Airport
Listen to the story (South African accent)
More than 100 Afghan refugees are living in Sao Paulo’s international airport. The refugees started leaving Afghanistan when the Taliban took control last year.
Since last year, Brazil has approved around 6,000 visas for Afghans. However, local officials in the city of Sao Paulo didn’t know that dozens of the refugees would start arriving this month.
It’s likely that more refugees will arrive because the number of flights between Brazil and the Middle East is increasing. Airlines added more flights to the region for the soccer World Cup in Qatar that starts in November.
A refugee agency at the airport says that there are about 130 Afghans living there. The process to find housing for them has not been fast enough. People are now putting pressure on the government to do something.
The refugees at the airport had a long, chaotic year before arriving in Brazil. The Afghans had to flee from the Taliban because they are persecuting people who worked with the previous government. The previous government was supported by the West.
Mohammad Aryobee is a civil engineer who arrived in Brazil last week after fleeing from Afghanistan. When talking about the refugees living at the airport, he said that their lives were in danger in Afghanistan.
Aryobee says his expectations in Brazil are not high. He just “needs a place to live and find a small job” to improve his life.
The local government of Sao Paulo is able to give the refugees three meals a day, a blanket and vaccinations.
Vocabulary19 words
- Afghan
- from or related to Afghanistan
- Refugee
- a person who runs away from/escapes war, violence, danger, etc. to find safety in a different country
- Take control
- assume power; gain control; take over
- Approve
- officially agree; accept; to say “yes”; authorize
- Official
- a person who works for the government and has power or authority; officer; executive
- Dozen
- twelve; twelve pieces
- Likely
- high chance; surely; high certainty; more than 70%
- Middle East
- the area from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to Iran
- Airline
- a company that flies people in airplanes (Lufthansa, KLM, Delta, Emirates, etc.)
- Agency
- an organization, company, or department that provides a service; bureau
- Housing
- a place to live; accommodation; living quarters; shelter
- Put pressure on (someone)
- To try to influence/persuade someone to do something; to make demands or expect something from someone
- Chaotic
- in a state or situation of confusion and disorder; disorderly; to be completely unorganized; a crazy situation
- Flee
- to run away, usually from danger or evil
- Persecute
- to treat someone terribly or unfairly, usually because of their race, religion or political beliefs; to punish; abuse; oppress
- Previous
- coming or occurring before something else; existing before in time or order; preceding
- The West
- usually means non-communist countries in Europe, North America, and Oceania
- Civil engineer
- a person who designs and maintains roads, bridges, airports, and other structures for the general public
- Expectation
- the feeling or belief that something will or should happen; looking forward to or waiting for something
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