December 4, 2001	Tuesday	Ramazan 18, 1422

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PESHAWAR, Dec 3: The UNHCR and the commissionerate for Afghan refugees (CAR), NWFP, would jointly start shifting, from Tuesday, the non-Pakhtoon Afghan displaced persons, living in the Jallozai makeshift camp, to a newly set up refugee camp at the Bassu area in Kurram agency, official sources told Dawn here on Monday.

Out of the over 60,000 total number of Afghan displaced persons living in the Jallozai makeshift camp, some 55 per cent are of non-Pakhtoons.

Talking to newsmen here on Monday, commissioner for Afghan refugees, NWFP, Naeem Khan, said that on daily basis between 500 to 700 displaced persons, from the Jallozai makeshift camp, would be shifted to the newly established camp at Kurram agency southwest of Peshawar, in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

“The non-Pakhtoon Afghan displaced persons are being shifted to the Kurram agency camp due to the resentment reported from certain areas of the province against the displaced persons belonging to ethnic minorities of Afghanistan,” said the commissioner following his meeting with the US ambassador to Islamabad Windy Chamberlin here on Monday.

In this connection, a team of the CAR officials also visited Dir district, in Malakand division of NWFP, on Sunday to assess the situation viz-a-viz threats to the non-Pakhtoon refugees.

The team, said the commissioner, held meeting with the district Nazim of Dir lower Dr Yaqoob to discuss the situation and possible measures that could be taken to meet any eventuality.

Dispelling the impression about the severity of the threats in Dir district — housing a large number of supporters of Tehrik-i- Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Mohammedi — the commissioner Afghan refugees said that a very few of the non-Pakhtoon refugees were settled in Dir hence threats being hurled from certain quarters apparently did not exist.

Some 4,000 ethnic Pakhtoons from the Jallozai makeshift camp — from among the displaced persons who illegally entered Pakistan in the pre and post Sept 11 situations — have so far been extended refugee status upon their shifting to the newly set up camp in Kotkai, Bajaur agency, in Fata.

All those Afghan displaced persons from among the inmates of the Jallozai makeshift camp, who would be shifted to the Kurram agency refugee cam under joint operations by UNHCR and CAR from Tuesday, would also be registered as refugees.