UN agencies offer 'support' for managing Afghans

UNHCR, IOM ask govt to consider plight of human rights challenges in Afghanistan

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation of Migration (IOM) on Saturday offered their support to Pakistan in “developing a comprehensive and sustainable mechanism to register and manage Afghan nationals, including those who may be in need of international protection”.

While appreciating Pakistan’s generous hospitality towards Afghan nationals for over four decades despite challenges, the international refugee and migration agencies appealed to the government of Pakistan to consider the human rights violations that might occur in their efforts for “forced repatriation of Afghan nationals”, including the separation of families and deportation of minors.

The UN agencies released a joint statement after Pakistan announced plans to deport around 1.75 million “illegal” and undocumented Afghan immigrants back to their home country.

The statement highlighted the plight of human rights challenges in Afghanistan, particularly for women and girls.

“Such plans would have serious implications for all who have been forced to leave the country and may face serious protection risks upon return,” the statement read, adding that the Taliban-ruled country was facing a humanitarian crisis already.

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However, the UNHCR and IOM acknowledged Pakistan government’s sovereign prerogative over domestic policies, its need to manage populations on its territory, and its obligations to ensure public safety and security.

The UN agencies urged Pakistan to protect all vulnerable Afghans who had sought safety in the country and could be at imminent risk if forced to return.

In the end, the UNHCR and IOM called for Pakistan's government to ensure that all return was “voluntary, safe, and dignified — without any pressure, to ensure protection for those who are seeking safety”.

They added that the agencies would continue to call on “all countries to suspend forcible returns of Afghan nationals”.

On Thursday, the deportation of Afghan citizens living illegally in Pakistan kicked off as 16 trucks carrying 20 families reached the Torkham border.

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Caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti announced earlier in the week that all foreign nationals living illegally in the country, including millions of Afghans, had been given until Nov 1 to leave voluntarily or face deportation.

The measures, including the introduction of the “one document regime” for Afghanistan, were part of a raft of measures approved by the civil and military leadership to deal with rising terrorist incidents.

Although the government did not mention any country by name, it is evident that the move was aimed at hundreds and thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan illegally. According to official estimates, as many as 1.1 million Afghans had been residing in the country illegally. They neither had any documents, nor any other legal means to stay in the country.

On Friday, Interim Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani defended the government's decision to deport all illegal immigrants, including Afghans, from the country, terming the decision "in line with international practice".

Jilani said no other country allowed illegal immigrants to stay like Pakistan had in the past forty years.

However, the ruling Taliban government of Afghanistan termed Islamabad's decision to expel undocumented Afghan nationals "unacceptable" and denied Afghan refugees' involvement in the security issues faced by Pakistan.