Afghanistan Peace CampaignA number of Pakistan’s media outlets reported that Islamabad plans to deport about 67,000 Afghan migrants after Eid al-Fitr.
According to the reports, the Interior Minister of Sindh province has ordered Pakistan’s police to cooperate in implementing the second round of the plan to return Afghan migrants to Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, some Afghan migrants once again complained of the mistreatment by Pakistani police and the challenges in that country.
According to them, Afghan citizens cannot freely move around and are at risk of deportation despite having legal documents.
Afghan migrants in Pakistan demand the interim government of Afghanistan and the Government of Pakistan address these challenges.
“Despite having legal POR and ICC cards, Afghan migrants have spent a long time in fear and dread. It is regrettable that Afghan migrants residing in Pakistan constitute a significant portion of the host country’s economy, yet they occasionally fall victim to bilateral policies,” Atiqullah, an Afghan migrant in Pakistan told TOLOnews.
“They are threatened and pressured by the real estate agents and by the Pakistani police. They suffer every moment. The real estate agents pressure them and force them to leave their homes,” said Faizullah, another Afghan migrant in Pakistan.
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations called Pakistan’s decision to start the second round of deportations unilateral and not in the interest of both countries.
Abdul Mutalib Haqqani, a spokesman for the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation, told TOLOnews: “We are ready to cooperate with them and deliver them to their areas.”
Activists of migrant rights said that the implementation of the second round of Afghan migrants’ deportation from Pakistan will add to the challenges of migrants.
“It can really create many problems for the migrants. We also ask the Islamic Emirate to have a meeting as soon as possible with the high-ranking officials of Pakistan and with the office of the United Nations and the immigration rights department so that they can find a solution for their problems,” said Alireza Karimi, an activist for migrant rights.
Earlier, Mohsin Raza Naqvi, the Interior Minister of Pakistan, announced the start of the second round of the deportation of Afghan migrants in less than a month.