37,000 Afghan refugees return home
The refugees are extremely grateful to the Pakistani population for hosting them for over 30 years.
PESHAWAR:
After the start of the war in Afghanistan, more than three million refugees migrated from the country to Pakistan, where they were welcomed generously by the local population and provided shelter.
Once peace was restored in Afghanistan, these immigrants started to go back home, but the process remains extremely slow paced.
However, the process has picked up speed now and nearly 37,000 immigrants have returned home this year.
The immigrants going back home are also being provided financial support by UNHCR. The Afghan refugees are spread across different parts of Pakistan.
While a vast majority is concentrated in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the adjoining Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), a significant number is also living in Sindh, Punjab and parts of Balochistan.
The refugees are extremely grateful to the Pakistani population for hosting them for over 30 years.
Abdul Ahad, a refugee based in Peshawar states that he has always felt at home here. “Only God can compensate the Pakistani people for their kindness, as I am at a loss of words,” he said.
The deadline set by the government for these refugees to go back home is December 31, 2012.
The current year has already seen a 34% increase in the number of Afghan refugees returning home voluntarily compared to 2011.
According to Afsar Ali, a reporting officer at the Afghan Commissionerate, things have picked up speed because their policy expires in 2012.
This is also the first time that the refugees are being sent back in groups.
The families returning to Afghanistan are being provided a small plot of land and construction material to set up their homes.
Such incentives also play an important role in encouraging more refugees to go back home.
Earlier in the year, the UNHCR also announced in a workshop in Quetta that registered refugees would be issued visas under different categories after 2012 so that they can live in Pakistan legally.
After the start of the war in Afghanistan, more than three million refugees migrated from the country to Pakistan, where they were welcomed generously by the local population and provided shelter.
Once peace was restored in Afghanistan, these immigrants started to go back home, but the process remains extremely slow paced.
However, the process has picked up speed now and nearly 37,000 immigrants have returned home this year.
The immigrants going back home are also being provided financial support by UNHCR. The Afghan refugees are spread across different parts of Pakistan.
While a vast majority is concentrated in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the adjoining Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), a significant number is also living in Sindh, Punjab and parts of Balochistan.
The refugees are extremely grateful to the Pakistani population for hosting them for over 30 years.
Abdul Ahad, a refugee based in Peshawar states that he has always felt at home here. “Only God can compensate the Pakistani people for their kindness, as I am at a loss of words,” he said.
The deadline set by the government for these refugees to go back home is December 31, 2012.
The current year has already seen a 34% increase in the number of Afghan refugees returning home voluntarily compared to 2011.
According to Afsar Ali, a reporting officer at the Afghan Commissionerate, things have picked up speed because their policy expires in 2012.
This is also the first time that the refugees are being sent back in groups.
The families returning to Afghanistan are being provided a small plot of land and construction material to set up their homes.
Such incentives also play an important role in encouraging more refugees to go back home.
Earlier in the year, the UNHCR also announced in a workshop in Quetta that registered refugees would be issued visas under different categories after 2012 so that they can live in Pakistan legally.