Amnesty International calls on Pakistan to stop deportation of Afghan refugees

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Amnesty International has called on Pakistan to stop deportations and detentions of Afghan refugees, TOLO News reported. In a statement, Amnesty International said the action by Pakistan began while Afghanistan was in a humanitarian crisis.

Amnesty International stressed that Pakistan must respect the rights of Afghan refugees. It asked Pakistan to stop the process of deporting and detaining Afghan refugees.

It stated that the deportation poses a significant threat to the human rights of Afghan women and girls.

In a statement, Amnesty International said, “For decades, tens of thousands of Afghan refugees have made Pakistan their home. However, this recent decision will force Afghans back to danger in Afghanistan”, TOLO News reported.
“Notably, the deportation pose a significant threat to the human rights of Afghan women and girls, including their rights to education, work, and freedom of movement. For most Afghan women and girls, their only chance of gaining formal education is through staying in Pakistan,” it added.

Alireza Karimi, a refugee’s rights activist, said the statement of the United Nations Office also included that the Pakistan police by misbehaving and harassing elderly people can have a “very negative effect” on the mood and mental state of Afghan refugees. Political analysts do not believe that Pakistan’s action is appropriate in the current situation.

“The statement of the United Nations office also mentions that the Pakistpolice, by misbehaving, extorting refugees, and harassing elderly people, homeless women and children, can have a very negative effect on the mood and mental state of Afghan refugees,” TOLO News quoted Karimi as saying.

Meanwhile, the Afghan refugees who have been deported from Pakistan following Islamabad’s deadline, are struggling with cold weather amid dire conditions, TOLO News reported. The deportees said that they were forced to leave everything behind in Pakistan and are now facing dire conditions.

Pari Gul, an 80-year-old woman, had been living in Pakistan for 40 years. She said, “We have spent 40 years in Pakistan. We have done farming. They have forcefully deported us. If they give us anything, we will be happy. We don’t have a house and land.”

Earlier in October, Pakistan announced it would expel over 1.73 million undocumented Afghan refugees after November 1. Meanwhile, the deportees raised concerns about their situation as the weather is getting cold in many areas of Afghanistan.

“We cannot do farming and we don’t have any house. We want the Taliban to help us,” TOLO News quoted a deportee named Zahir. Taliban has prepared a terminal in Kabul’s Sarai Shamali area as a camp for the deportees. The camp has more than 50 tents and it has the capacity to hold 500 people.

“This is an emergency process. They will be staying for one or two nights in the terminal. We provide them with all facilities,” said Kabir Khil, head of the terminal.

The spokesman for the Taliban-led Kabul security department, Khalid Zadran, said that they have made preparations to help the Afghans being deported from Pakistan. (TOI)