UNHCR calls for dialogue on Afghan refugees

Organisation acknowledged, praised Pakistan's decades-long tradition of hosting Afghan refugees

ISLAMABAD:

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Thursday called for a humanitarian approach to issue of Afghan refugees and stressed for renewing dialogue between Pakistan and Afghanistan to ensure safe, voluntary, and dignified return of individuals.

According to spokesperson Qaiser Khan Afridi, UNHCR called for constructive engagement between Pakistan and Afghanistan to facilitate voluntary, informed, and dignified returns, ensuring sustainability of reintegration efforts in Afghanistan, where human rights situation remained dire.

The organisation acknowledged and praised Pakistan's decades-long tradition of hosting Afghan refugees, many of whom had fled conflict, persecution, and instability since the late 1970s.

"The government and people of Pakistan have a commendable, decades-long history of hosting Afghans who fled conflict and violence in the past," Afridi noted.