Afghanistan Peace CampaignPakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has once again emphasized that there will be no change in this deadline and that Afghans must leave Pakistani territory.
As the deadline set by the Pakistani government for the deportation of Afghan migrants approaches, concerns among these migrants in Pakistan have increased.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has once again emphasized that there will be no change in this deadline and that Afghans must leave Pakistani territory.
Previously, the UN refugee agency asked Pakistan to reconsider this decision; however, the spokesperson for Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry stated that Islamabad is not obligated to consult with the UNHCR regarding Afghan migrants.
Shafqat Ali Khan, the spokesperson for the ministry of foreign affairs of Pakistan, said: “We are not bound to consult UNHCR. First of all, Pakistan is not a member of the Refugee Convention. So, anything we have done for the Afghan refugees was done voluntarily for the past 50 years. So, with regards to international obligations, we have fulfilled more than our share, by offering this kind of hospitality to Afghans and we continue to welcome them. But they should have Pakistani visas on their passport, and then they will be more than welcome.”
“The Pakistani government should, in recognition of the hospitality it has extended over the past forty years, be able to invoke customary rights and understand Afghanistan’s conditions, and delay these deportations to a later time,” said Mohammad Khan Talebi Mohammadzai, a migrant rights activist.
As the deadline nears, concerns are growing about the arrest and forced deportation of Afghan migrants in Pakistan.
Many Afghan migrants have asked Pakistani authorities to grant them more time to leave the country.
“Ten days remain, but the treatment of Afghan migrants is not good, and the Pakistani government is putting pressure on them to leave the country within these ten days,” said Nazar Gul, an Afghan migrant in Pakistan.
“There is an economic crisis in Afghanistan. Both Afghans who returned in 2021 and 2022 and other citizens are unemployed, and there are no educational opportunities there,” said Malik Shinwari, another Afghan migrant in Pakistan.
Previously, Amir Khan Muttaqi, acting foreign minister, had asked Iran and Pakistan to treat Afghan migrants humanely and to avoid their forced deportation.