Afghanistan rejects repatriation deadline extension
Leaves Pakistan in a fix over how to deal with the issue.
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan now faces a fresh dilemma over the fate of more than two million Afghan refugees – still the biggest number of refugees in a country – as Kabul has rejected Islamabad’s decision to grant a six-month extension in their legal stay in Pakistan.
Pakistan had issued Proof of Registration (PoR) cards to Afghan refugees which were to expire on December 31, 2012. However, last week Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf announced the extension following the Pakistan, Afghanistan and UNHCR tripartite agreement on repatriation of Afghan refugees.
Presently, 1.6 million registered and nearly one million unregistered Afghans are residing in Pakistan, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and Pakistani officials.
A committee led by Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron), Engr Shaukatullah, will monitor the repatriation of refugees, said a government statement issued after the extension was granted following demands by both the Afghan government and UNHCR.
Both are not ready to deal with the repatriation of such a big number of refugees to a country where some 150,000 people are fighting the Taliban.
Pakistan’s decision was good news for Afghan refugees. Many of them are still unwilling to go back on the plea that there is instability and lack of economic opportunities in their homeland. Some parents say their children, born and brought up in Pakistan, are unaware of even the language and culture of Afghanistan.
He added that around 80,000 refugees are living in the camp for over 20 years.
A group of Afghan refugees at the Bagheecha camp near Mardan held the same view and hoped Pakistan will not end its long hospitality towards Afghans.
Abdul Wali Kakar, a representative of Afghan refugees ‘shura’ or council in Punjab, welcomed Pakistan’s decision but demanded a three-year extension in the expiry of PoR cards.
Afghan Ambassador in Islamabad, Umar Daudzai, said Afghanistan strongly opposes any move to forcibly expel the refugees. “Islamabad has assured Kabul that refugees will not be forced to leave as any such step would be contrary to the spirit of neighbourhood.”
UNHCR was also quick to welcome Pakistan’s decision, but Afghanistan says six months is not enough and that the prime minister did not fulfil his promise for a longer extension.
Representative of UNHCR in Pakistan, Neill Wright said: “While the six-month extension is important, Afghan refugees will be left wondering what the future has in store for them in July 2013 and beyond. UNHCR will therefore continue to encourage the government to maintain asylum space in the challenging transitional period ahead.”
However, Afghan Minister for Refugees and Repatriation affairs Dr Jamahir Anwari termed Pakistan’s decision “unilateral and unjustifiable,” reported Afghanistan’s state news agency Bakhtar.
“The decision of the Pakistani government to extend the residence permit of Afghan refugees for six months breaches the previous agreement,” Anwari was quoted as saying.
He also said that during the tripartite talks between Afghanistan, UNHCR and Pakistan’s government held in Lahore on December 7 and 8, Afghanistan called for a three-year extension and the Pakistani prime minister promised to refer the case to the parliament.
The UNHCR has mentioned a surge in voluntary repatriation since October 2012, and noted a 40% increase compared with 2011.
UNHCR says Pakistan is committed to implementation of the Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees between 2012 and 2014. The strategy includes a second phase of the Refugee Affected and Hosting Areas initiative that requires projects worth $495 million to assist communities that have hosted refugees in Pakistan.
These projects focus on infrastructure development, water and sanitation, health, education, environment and livelihood in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Sindh, Punjab and Fata.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 22nd, 2012.
Pakistan now faces a fresh dilemma over the fate of more than two million Afghan refugees – still the biggest number of refugees in a country – as Kabul has rejected Islamabad’s decision to grant a six-month extension in their legal stay in Pakistan.
Pakistan had issued Proof of Registration (PoR) cards to Afghan refugees which were to expire on December 31, 2012. However, last week Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf announced the extension following the Pakistan, Afghanistan and UNHCR tripartite agreement on repatriation of Afghan refugees.
Presently, 1.6 million registered and nearly one million unregistered Afghans are residing in Pakistan, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and Pakistani officials.
A committee led by Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron), Engr Shaukatullah, will monitor the repatriation of refugees, said a government statement issued after the extension was granted following demands by both the Afghan government and UNHCR.
Both are not ready to deal with the repatriation of such a big number of refugees to a country where some 150,000 people are fighting the Taliban.
Pakistan’s decision was good news for Afghan refugees. Many of them are still unwilling to go back on the plea that there is instability and lack of economic opportunities in their homeland. Some parents say their children, born and brought up in Pakistan, are unaware of even the language and culture of Afghanistan.
He added that around 80,000 refugees are living in the camp for over 20 years.
A group of Afghan refugees at the Bagheecha camp near Mardan held the same view and hoped Pakistan will not end its long hospitality towards Afghans.
Abdul Wali Kakar, a representative of Afghan refugees ‘shura’ or council in Punjab, welcomed Pakistan’s decision but demanded a three-year extension in the expiry of PoR cards.
Afghan Ambassador in Islamabad, Umar Daudzai, said Afghanistan strongly opposes any move to forcibly expel the refugees. “Islamabad has assured Kabul that refugees will not be forced to leave as any such step would be contrary to the spirit of neighbourhood.”
UNHCR was also quick to welcome Pakistan’s decision, but Afghanistan says six months is not enough and that the prime minister did not fulfil his promise for a longer extension.
Representative of UNHCR in Pakistan, Neill Wright said: “While the six-month extension is important, Afghan refugees will be left wondering what the future has in store for them in July 2013 and beyond. UNHCR will therefore continue to encourage the government to maintain asylum space in the challenging transitional period ahead.”
However, Afghan Minister for Refugees and Repatriation affairs Dr Jamahir Anwari termed Pakistan’s decision “unilateral and unjustifiable,” reported Afghanistan’s state news agency Bakhtar.
“The decision of the Pakistani government to extend the residence permit of Afghan refugees for six months breaches the previous agreement,” Anwari was quoted as saying.
He also said that during the tripartite talks between Afghanistan, UNHCR and Pakistan’s government held in Lahore on December 7 and 8, Afghanistan called for a three-year extension and the Pakistani prime minister promised to refer the case to the parliament.
The UNHCR has mentioned a surge in voluntary repatriation since October 2012, and noted a 40% increase compared with 2011.
UNHCR says Pakistan is committed to implementation of the Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees between 2012 and 2014. The strategy includes a second phase of the Refugee Affected and Hosting Areas initiative that requires projects worth $495 million to assist communities that have hosted refugees in Pakistan.
These projects focus on infrastructure development, water and sanitation, health, education, environment and livelihood in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Sindh, Punjab and Fata.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 22nd, 2012.