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Anti-Afghan sentiment is the dislike, hatred, fear, prejudice, resentment, discrimination against and/or any other form of negative sentiment towards Afghan people and/or negative sentiments towards the country of Afghanistan or anything associated with it.
The sentiment dates back at least two centuries and has seen a rise in the past few decades across the world with the increase of Afghan migrants, refugees and issues relating to unlawful acts, including terrorism and other forms of international crime that have connections to Afghanistan or Afghan people.
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Prejudice towards Afghan people in Australia was first known to be recorded in the 1800s when Afghan migrants first arrived as camel riders in Australia. [1] [2] [3] [4] An anti-Afghan league was even formed in 1886. [5] [6]
Afghan refugees and migrants have lived for decades in Iran. However, the crimes associated with Afghans have led to an increase in anti-Afghan sentiment amongst local Iranian citizens and authorities alike. [7] [8]
Anti-Afghan sentiment has been reported amongst locals in Pakistan, including public demonstrations with anti-Afghan slogans, resulting from the crime associated with Afghan residents in Pakistan. [9] The past few decades have only seen a rise in this sentiment from Pakistanis. [10] [11]
By late 2023, the Pakistani government began a massive campaign to deport Afghans living in the country; especially the ones with no legal status. The Pakistani government claimed they pose a security threat to the country and are a burden on the country's diminishing resources. [12] [13] [14]
The presence of Afghan refugees in Tajikistan incited prejudice amongst local Tajiks, also making it hard for Afghan traders to do business there. [15]
Turkey is currently claimed to be hosting the largest refugee population in the world. With the increase of Afghan refugees and crimes associated with them, public sentiment in Turkey began to turn against Afghans. [16] The result was a further stepping effort by Turkey's government to further secure its border with Iran to stop a further influx of Afghans. [16]
However, with the increase in crime and social disruption, anti-Afghan sentiment continued to rise in Turkey. [17] Social media in Turkey has seen an increase in hate speech against Afghans, even before more refugees arrived. [18]
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The rise of crime involving Afghan refugees and immigrants has stocked anti-Afghan public sentiment amongst locals across Europe. The worsening situation involving Afghan migrants and refugees in Europe resulted in politicians openly stating that Afghans will no longer be welcomed in their individual countries. [19] Another Afghan refugee was quoted stating the sentiment against Afghans was so bad that they were better off going back to Afghanistan rather than "facing humiliation" in Europe. [20]
The Austrian press reported the influx of Afghan refugees. At the time of arrival of Afghan refugees and migrants, the local authorities and citizens welcomed them. But soon after overstaying their welcome by increasing the crime problems in the country, public sentiment towards Afghans began to deteriorate badly and stir up anti-Afghan sentiment. [21] Some Afghan refugees accused of sex crimes against minors had previous deportation orders issued against them because of these unlawful acts. [22]
A number of sexual crimes committed by Afghan migrants/refugees has been reported. One of these cases involved the rape of a local fourteen year old girl in the town of Kempele by an Afghan national. The reported incident sparked public outcry against refugees and even sparked riots, with human shields of local Finnish citizens blocking the borders to prevent refugees from entering. Some Finnish parliament members even called on refugees not to come to the country. [23] [24]
A 2018 research report argued that ever since the incidents in Kempele, a surge in affiliating rape crimes with refugees has become a new trend based on stereotypical prejudices. [25]
A 23 year old Afghan migrant in Germany was arrested for raping an eleven year old girl. About twelve days after being released from prison, he raped a thirteen year old. He was re-arrested shortly. His previous release and actions, triggered public outcry. German politicians called for any migrant or refugee convicted of such offenses to be deported back to their country. The acting vice chancellor urged German people not to scapegoat migrants and warned right-wing groups not to exploit the incidents for propaganda purposes. [26] [27]
The rise of crime affiliated with Afghan refugees in Greece has amplified anti-Afghan sentiments in the country. Several incidents involving hate attacks on Afghan residents in Greece have been reported. [28] In one example an Afghan refugee family were beaten in Greece and set adrift into the sea. [29]
Italy has grown more and more resistant towards Afghan refugees; especially following public sentiment against the Roma people which was amplified by the European refugee crisis. The recent increase of Afghan refugees has strengthened right-wing sentiments in the country against accepting them. There has been a common sentiment in the country with affiliating refugees with crime. [30]
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The United Kingdom (UK) has witnessed increasing incidents relating to Afghan refugees causing backlash from locals. In one of these incidents a local teenage girl was forcefully held and raped by Afghan nationals. The incident went viral amongst local British residents on social media and resulted in violent public protests in which a police vehicle was damaged. [31]
Following the 9/11 incidents in 2001, a wave of violent anti-Muslim attacks and other sentiments were directed at Muslim residents. Amongst the slogans were hate speech directed towards Afghans. [32] [33]
Separately, anti-Afghan opinions also arose in the US for the country's involvement in the global drug trade. [34]
More recently, following the 2020–2021 US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, American politician Scott Perry, argued against allowing in Afghan refugees without proper investigation; claiming it could lead to a crime hike, including rape crimes against underage girls. He was amongst 16 other American politicians voting against allowing Afghan refugees in without having proper background checks done. His comments drew some criticism. Former president Donald Trump made similar concerns, claiming terrorists could be airlifted out of Afghanistan. [35]
Bacha Bazi, a practice sometimes found in Afghanistan, has been gaining critical attention over the decades by foreigners. [36] [37]
Xenophobia is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression which is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-group and an out-group and it may manifest itself in suspicion of one group's activities by members of the other group, a desire to eliminate the presence of the group which is the target of suspicion, and fear of losing a national, ethnic, or racial identity.
Anti-Arab racism includes opposition to, dislike, fear, or hatred of Arab people.
Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. People who harbour such sentiments often stereotype Muslims as a geopolitical threat or a source of terrorism. Academics, authors and policymakers still continue to debate the exact meaning of the term.
Afghan refugees are citizens of Afghanistan who were forced to flee from their country as a result the continuous wars that the country has suffered since the Afghan-Soviet war, the Afghan civil war, the Afghanistan war (2001–2021) or either political or religious persecution. The 1978 Saur Revolution, followed by the 1979 Soviet invasion, marked the first major wave of internal displacement and international migration to neighboring Iran and Pakistan; smaller numbers also went to India or to countries of the former Soviet Union. Between 1979 and 1992, more than 20% of Afghanistan's population fled the country as refugees. Following the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, many returned to Afghanistan, however many Afghans were again forced to flee during the civil war in the 90s. Over 6 million Afghan refugees were residing in Iran and Pakistan by 2000. Most refugees returned to Afghanistan following the 2001 United States invasion and overthrow of the Taliban regime. Between 2002 and 2012, 5.7 million refugees returned to Afghanistan, increasing the country's population by 25%.
Anti-Hindu sentiment, sometimes also referred to as Hinduphobia, is a negative perception, sentiment or actions against the practitioners or religion of Hinduism. It exists in many contexts in many countries, often due to historical conflict. There is also scholarly debate on what constitutes Hinduphobia in the Western World.
Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political ideology that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in which they are not citizens. Illegal immigration occurs when people immigrate to a country without having official permission to do so. Opposition to immigration ranges from calls for various immigration reforms, to proposals to completely restrict immigration, to calls for repatriation of existing immigrants.
There were 1,318,755 Muslims reported in the 2021 census in the Greater London area. In the 2021 census Office for National Statistics, the proportion of Muslims in London had risen to 15% of the population, making Islam the second largest religion in the city after Christianity.
The article describes the state of race relations and racism in the Middle East. Racism is widely condemned throughout the world, with 174 states parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by April 8, 2011. In different countries, the forms that racism takes may be different for historic, cultural, religious, economic or demographic reasons.
Afghans in Pakistan are temporary residents from Afghanistan who are registered in Pakistan as refugees and asylum seekers. They fall under the jurisdiction of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Most of them were born and raised in Pakistan during the last four decades. Additionally, there are also Special Immigrant Visa applicants awaiting to immigrate to the United States.
Afghans in Iran are citizens of Afghanistan who are temporarily residing in Iran as refugees or asylum seekers. They form the largest percent of the Afghan diaspora. The first wave of Afghans crossed into Iran after the start of the Soviet–Afghan War in 1979.
Turkish Afghans are citizens of Turkey and non-citizen residents born in or with ancestors from Afghanistan. This group is part of the larger Afghan diaspora around the world. According to latest reports, there are around 129,323 Afghan refugees and asylum seekers in Turkey. The government of Turkey claims that the total Afghan population in its country is around 300,000. At the same time others have mentioned a total of 420,000. This number likely includes citizens, legal residents, visitors, and the aforementioned refugees and asylum seekers. The reason for the different numbers is that there is no proper way to count undocumented foreign nationals in a country.
Anti-Pakistan sentiment, also known as Pakistan-phobia, Pakophobia or Pakistanophobia, refers to hatred, fear, hostility or irrational fixation toward Pakistan, Pakistanis and Pakistani culture. The opposite is pro-Pakistan sentiment.
In Turkey, xenophobia and discrimination are present in its society and throughout its history, including ethnic discrimination, religious discrimination and institutional racism against non-Muslim and non-Sunni minorities. This appears mainly in the form of negative attitudes and actions by some people towards people who are not considered ethnically Turkish, notably Kurds, Armenians, Arabs, Assyrians, Greeks, Jews, and peripatetic groups like Romani people, Domari, Abdals and Lom.
Anti–Middle Eastern sentiment is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against people who belong to or originate from the various ethnic groups of the Middle East. Although it is commonly associated with Islamophobia, as Muslims constitute the majority of the region's population, it is a distinct type of hatred in itself and may not always stem from religion-based animosity. People who harbour negative feelings towards the region's people view them as barbaric and inferior on racial, ethnic, cultural, or religious grounds, or a combination of any of these factors.
American Muslims often face Islamophobia and racialization due to stereotypes and generalizations ascribed to them. Due to this, Islamophobia is both a product of and a contributor to the United States' racial ideology, which is founded on socially constructed categories of profiled features, or how people seem. In the first half of 2024, anti-Muslim incidents rose about 70% amid Gaza attack.
Crimes may be committed both against and by immigrants in Germany. Crimes involving foreigners have been a longstanding theme in public debates in Germany. In November 2015, a report that was released by the Federal Criminal Police (BKA) stated that "While the number of refugees is rising very dynamically, the development of crime does not increase to the same extent." Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière (CDU) noted that "refugees are on average as little or often delinquent as comparison groups of the local population." A 2018 statistical study by researchers at the University of Magdeburg using 2009-2015 data argued that, where analysis is restricted to crimes involving at least one German victim and one refugee suspect and crimes by immigrants against other immigrants are excluded, there is no relationship between the scale of refugee inflow and the crime rate. In 2018 the interior ministry under Horst Seehofer (CSU) published, for the first time, an analysis of the Federal Police Statistic, which includes all those who came via the asylum system to Germany. The report found that the immigrant group, which makes up about 2% of the overall population, contains 8.5% of all suspects, after violations against Germany's alien law are excluded.
Islamophobia is characterized by a hatred against the religion of Islam and those perceived to be following the religion, typically fueled by fear and hatred and sustained through the evolving stereotype of the Muslim identity. It has become increasingly common and widespread throughout the world, in particular since the September 11 attacks in the United States, however it existed in society before this. In Europe, there has been an increase in cultural tensions between national majorities and marginalized Muslim countries, as shown by the results of the 2009 elections in the European Parliament with a large vote toward anti-immigration. Within Italy, there is a large Islamic presence of approximately 1.25 million people, stemming from the widespread migration and settlement that began in the 1970s, in particular from North Africa. The Islamic population of Italy increasingly faces challenges when it comes to their position in society, with the increasing cultural hostility that stems from the growing presence of Islamophobia. Islamophobia has been present within Italy for many years; for example, in the 1920s, Muslims were not permitted to settle in the country due to their religion being viewed as "against common morality." The intensity of Islamophobia in Italy is enhanced by the historical religious structure of the state – which is heavily based on the Catholic Church.
Islamophobia in Poland is the fear, hatred of, or prejudice against the Islamic religion or Muslims in Poland. Since the Muslim community in Poland is small the situation has been described as "Islamophobia without Muslims". According to Monika Bobako, Islamophobia is one of the main elements of the Polish nationalist discourse. Islamophobia in Poland takes the form of xenophobia and discrimination towards Muslims or those perceived as Muslim.
In Turkey, while most instances of anti-Arab sentiment have been directed at Syrian refugees, the phenomenon has more recently grown to include other Arabs, such as those from the Gulf countries. The country's far-right politics frequently consist of discourse portraying the Syrians and other Arabs as a backwards and uncivilized force afflicting the Turks. Rising levels of anti-Arab sentiment have also been attributed to the Turkish economic crisis. Additionally, it is also rooted in Turkey's migrant crisis, which began alongside the Arab Spring; the Turkish government had documented 3.7 million Syrians as refugees by 2018. That same year, the United Nations reported that 63.4% of all registered Syrian refugees in the world were in Turkey. A number of Turkish politicians have been critical of the large Arab presence in the country since the beginning of the Syrian Civil War.
The COVID-19 pandemic was first reported in the city of Wuhan, Hubei, China, in December 2019. The origins of the virus have subsequently led to an increase in acts and displays of sinophobia, as well as prejudice, xenophobia, discrimination, violence, and racism against people of East Asian and Southeast Asian descent and appearance around the world. With the spread of the pandemic and formation of hotspots, such as those in Asia, Europe, and the Americas, discrimination against people from these hotspots has been reported.