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The Jincheon County Federation of Christian Churches gives a donation to Jincheon County on Wednesday for Afghans who recently arrived in Korea. (provided by Jincheon County)

The Afghans who were airlifted to South Korea in a miraculous escape after Kabul fell to the Taliban are adjusting well to life in Korea during their temporary stay at the National Human Resources Development Institute in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province. The 390 Afghans, who landed in Korea on Aug. 26-27, completed their quarantines on Friday, and are now able to go for walks on the institute grounds.

Korea’s Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the Afghans, said that the 383 who’d been tested for COVID-19 on Tuesday had all tested negative and that seven others who’d tested positive upon arrival in the country had now tested negative following treatment. As of Friday, the Ministry said, quarantine had been lifted, allowing them to return to normal activities.

The Afghans, who had been confined to their rooms during quarantine, are now allowed to visit rooms on their floor and others, as well as to take walks on the institute’s sports field. The 390 individuals have been divided into groups of eight are each allotted about an hour for walks and other outdoor activities between 8:30 am and 6 pm.

Provisions have also been made for the 53 children between the ages of 3 and 5. A daycare center will be set up for the children to play and take part in other activities.

Until now, the Afghans had been quarantined in their respective rooms given concerns about transmitting COVID-19. For their meals, they were served halal food prepared by a restaurant in Cheongju.

“We’re not exactly sure how [the Afghans] are spending their time since they’ve all been staying in their rooms, but they seem to be doing well. They’re satisfied with their halal meals, and they haven’t lodged any complaints about their living conditions. For the most part, they’re getting along well,” said Yu Bok-ryeol, director general of the Ministry’s support team for nationality and integration policy.

Now that the Afghans’ quarantine is over, the Ministry and other government agencies plan to run educational and activity programs for them. The North Chungcheong Province Office of Education is preparing to provide psychological counseling; education in Hangul, the Korean writing system; and culture and etiquette classes for 190 minors. That includes 53 children of preschool age (3-5), 80 children of primary school age (6-11), and 57 teenagers of secondary school age (12-17).

A handwritten letter sent to the Afghan children from Emily Dhong, a student at Yongsan International School of Seoul, is pictured. (provided by Jincheon County)

Emily Dhong, right, donates clothes she and her peers collected to Jincheon County Governor Song Ki-seop on Tuesday. (provided by Jincheon County)

Koreans continue to donate money and goods to the Afghan families who were airlifted from Kabul because of the work they’d done for the Korean government. Jincheon Central Church and the Jincheon County Federation of Christian Churches each donated 3 million won (US$2,557) on Thursday, and a cosmetics firm donated 1.5 million won (US$1,278) worth of makeup to the Afghans via Jincheon County on Friday.

Farmers living near the institute passed along grapes and tomatoes, while Emily Dhong and other students at an international school in Yongsan, Seoul, sent ten boxes of clothing and wrote letters in English to the Afghan children.

“I know you came from a warmer region, so I thought some winter clothes would be nice as a welcome gift,” Dhong wrote in her letter.

As of Wednesday, there had been 11 separate donations of money and products, with a total value of 32 million won (US$27,271).

The Ministry of Justice has arranged with the Korean Red Cross to distribute the public’s donations to the Afghans.

“There’s a steady stream of donations of money and products and inquiries about how to help our Afghan guests. We hope that public kindness and support will help them adjust comfortably to life in Korea,” said Jeong Jun-ho, an official with Jincheon County’s administrative support division.

By Oh Yoon-joo, Cheongju correspondent

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