VANCOUVER, CANADA – The UK Home Office has granted visas to the Afghan Youth Orchestra after the British media reported that it had denied them visas ahead of their performance in London.
In a statement on Monday, March 4, the Southbank Centre which organized the tour said that the British Home Office had rejected visa applications from 43 young musicians from Afghanistan who currently reside in exile in Portugal. The ensemble was arranged to perform in a multi-event tour in the UK beginning with a performance at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London this coming Thursday.
Christina Lamb, the chief international correspondent of the Sunday Times took it to X criticizing the British government’s consular decision.
“The Afghan Youth Orchestra has toured Spain, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and will perform in New York’s Carnegie Hall but [the UK Home Office] won’t let them in.”
Ms. Lamb rhetorically asked, “is it not enough that they fled the Taliban?”
Many other than Ms. Lamb voiced their criticism of the of the British Government on social media. Today, the Home Office announced that they have approved the visas, allowing the tour to take place as scheduled.
According to The Guardian, a spokesperson for the UK Home Office, after approving the visas, stated, “Musicians and performers are valuable and essential contributors to British culture.”
The spokesperson added, “programs should be considered based on individual merits and in accordance with immigration laws, and it is the responsibility of applicants to demonstrate compliance with these laws.”
The Afghan Youth Orchestra is one of the several ensembles of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM) which relocated to Portugal in the wake of the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.
In the past year, the group has performed in several European countries, including at the UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
The group has prepared a collection of Western and Afghan classical music for its Breaking the Silence tour in an effort to raise awareness about the plight of women in Afghanistan. The ensemble will perform in London, Liverpool, Manchester, and Birmingham.
According to the Guardian, Ahmad Sarmast, the founding director of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music and of the orchestra, described the initial decision as “heart-breaking.”
“The orchestra’s main goal is not just sharing music in the exile of Afghanistan under prohibitions and oppression, but its aim is to achieve cultural diplomacy, people to people, worldwide.”
