Afghan Refugees in Pakistan await extension of repatriation deadline

Refugees remain under pressure to return to Afghanistan before the month ends.

PAKISTAN: The deadline imposed by Pakistan on its 1.6 million registered and 0.6 million unregistered Afghan refugees approaches with the current government showing no intentions of providing more time for the process. The proof of registration cards held by these refugees will not be recognized come July 1 and all refugees risk arrest and deportation.

Earlier this month, it was said by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Home and Tribal Affairs Department that the deadline was expected to be extended further as the matter was under discussion. The first deadline was set for December 31, 2012, before former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf postponed it to June 30 following the Pakistan, Afghanistan and UN Refugee Agency tripartite agreement regarding Afghan refugees.

The government set up camps to gather refugees from Sindh and Punjab six months ago so the process of documenting and repatriation would go smoother. Approximate 62000 Afghan refugees returned home from Pakistan just last year.

Pakistan has played host to over 5 million refugees since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Out of that, 3.8 million have returned post the US-led invasion. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees is has been assisting the return of these refugees through monetary benefits. Assistance of up to $157 is being provided to refugees who have returned with timber, furniture, clothes and livestock in anticipation of their lives ahead.

Governmental pressure aside, most refugees still seem reluctant to leave this territory. They’d stay for as long as they’re allowed to. Those who have left with little hope have done so because the Taliban threat they faced once in Afghanistan has now shifted to Pakistan.