A file photo of Afghan refugees in Pakistan. PHOTO: REUTERS
As the last date, November 15, for the repatriation of over one million illegal refugees is approaching fast the repatriation of the aliens is getting a speedy momentum, he told The Express Tribune. “December 31 had been fixed as a deadline for the return of more than 1.5 million Afghan refugees who have legal stay in the country.”
Giving out details of those Afghan refugees who had moved back to their country by the end of the last month, the chief commissioner said that about 124,000 refugees who were residing illegally in different parts of Pakistan for many years have already left.
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“More than 90,000 registered refugees were repatriated during July and August. Out of those 90,000 refugees around 70,000 were residing in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) while the rest were settled in Punjab and Sindh,” he added.
Dr Zaib said that according to the official estimates, around 8,000 Afghans will leave Pakistan every day after Eidul Azha, adding that at present 3,000 to 3,500 of such foreigners are returning on a daily basis.
He agreed that it would not be possible to repatriate more than 2.5 million — registered and non-registered Afghans — by the end of this year when the final deadline for their total repatriation will expire.
The official went on to say that a high-level conference of all the relevant officials will again review the issue of the whole situation in mid-November to chalk out the next course of action. “I think that a fresh deadline will have to be fixed by the government for the return of remaining Afghan refugees.”
Commenting on media reports that thousands of refugees who own properties in Pakistan were being faced with numerous problems to sell out their houses and business centres as most of them were built unlawfully, Zaib said the government will help them in disposal of their properties. “We will not create an environment which may encourage extortionists.”
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The commissioner, however, said that the refugees were legally not allowed to purchase land or buildings in Pakistan. “The [Pakistan] government cannot help those Afghan refugees who had purchased land or constructed buildings by using fake CNICs.”
In response to a question, he said that it would not be possible for the Afghan refugees to return to Pakistan once they have left for their own country. “After the newly introduced border management system no one will be allowed to enter Pakistan from Afghanistan without legal documents,” the official added.
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