Death awaits you in Afghanistan, says refugee Mohammad Wali, insisting he prefers to endure a grim existence in a Pakistani camp than return home and be killed. Islamabad has put Afghan refugees in the crosshairs in recent weeks, claiming militants hide in Pakistani camps and calling for all refugees to be repatriated as part of a campaign to eliminate extremism. In Afghanistan, nearly four decades after the Soviet invasion sent the first refugees flowing over the border, the resurgent Taliban fight on, with civilians repeatedly caught in the carnage.
Days after a spate of attacks killed 130 people, Wali said a recent call to his family in the Afghan capital was filled with dire news. “They told me of terrible attacks and of the bombers blowing them up,” he said.
Pakistan hosts roughly 1.4 million registered Afghan refugees, the UN says. A further 700,000 undocumented are also believed to be living in the country. Pakistanis have long viewed them suspiciously, with police accused of harassment and extortion along with arbitrary arrests.
“Pakistan has been stressing the need for early repatriation of Afghan refugees as their presence in Pakistan helps Afghan terrorists to melt and morph among them,” the foreign ministry said.
The official pressure coincides with a souring of public opinion towards refugees, with some Pakistanis saying Afghans have overstayed their welcome. “Enough is enough, we served them for 40 years, shared our houses and treated them as guests,” said Peshawar resident Mehmood Khan. The UN’s refugee agency has warned against any forcible or coerced repatriations.
In late January, Pakistan extended a deadline by 60 days for refugees holding proof of registration cards to leave its territory.
But none who spoke to AFP wanted to leave, all citing security and work as day labourers.
“There is nothing left in my homeland... only war and fighting,” said Hajji Shahzada, 60, who came to Pakistan during the Soviet invasion four decades ago.
A recent report by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) found seven out of 10 Afghans who had returned after living as refugees abroad have been displaced twice. “Now is not the time to deport Afghans... It can destabilise the whole region and lead to immeasurable suffering,” NRC Secretary-General Jan Egeland said in the report. The conditions are so bleak that “many” returnees are sneaking back across the porous border and taking up their lives in Pakistan, said many refugees. — AFP
Sajjad Tarakzai
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