US actress Angelina Jolie, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) special envoy, gives a statement in Goudebou, a camp that welcomes more than 11,000 Malian refugees in northern Burkina Faso, on International Refugee Day on June 20, 2021.
MANILA, Philippines — Angelina Jolie is on a mission as she finally created an Instagram account on August 21.
Much like her heroic starrers, the Hollywood actress said she will stand as the voice of Afghans currently embattled after the Taliban had taken over Afghanistan early this week.
The “Eternals” star posted the handwritten photo of the letter she received from an Afghan girl.
The girl related how she felt about the Taliban taking over and how she fears for her rights like going to school being taken away from her.
Angelina wrote as caption: “Right now, the people of Afghanistan are losing their ability to communicate on social media and to express themselves freely. So I’ve come on Instagram to share their stories and the voices of those across the globe who are fighting for their basic human rights.”
Jolie recounted her experience being on the border of Afghanistan two weeks before the 9/11 or Sept. 9, 2001 attacks led by Al-Qaeda in the United States. It was there where she met Afghan refugees who had fled the Taliban, which took control of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
“It is sickening to watch Afghans being displaced yet again out of the fear and uncertainty that has gripped their country. To spend so much time and money, to have blood shed and lives lost only to come to this, is a failure almost impossible to understand,” wrote the United Nations Special Envoy to the High Commissioner.
Jolie was promoted as Special Envoy in 2012 after more than a decade as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Goodwill Ambassador.
“Watching for decades how Afghan refugees – some of the most capable people in the world – are treated like a burden is also sickening. Knowing that if they had the tools and respect, how much they would do for themselves. And meeting so many women and girls who not only wanted an education, but fought for it.
“Like others who are committed, I will not turn away. I will continue to look for ways to help. And I hope you’ll join me,” Jolie urged the public. She ended her posts with the hashtags
#Afghanistan, #AfghanWomen, #AfghanGirls, and #HumanRights.
Angelina racked up 4.4 million followers with just one post in 14 hours.
She is set to appear in the popular Marvel Cinematic Universe as one of the heroes in “Eternals” premiering in November.
Reporting by Sean Tyler Chan
AdChoiceTV News 