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| April 10, 2002 | Wednesday | Muharram 26, 1423 |
UNHCR stops DPs registration
PESHAWAR, April 9: United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) on Tuesday stopped registration of Afghan refugees at the voluntary repatriation centre in Takhta Baig, Khyber Agency, for an indefinite period due to mounting tension in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan, where farmers have started protest against the interim government’s move against poppy cultivation.
Hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees, including women and children, have been stranded at the voluntary repatriation centre at Takhta Baig, waiting for a green signal to proceed to their homeland.
Talking to Dawn a UNHCR official said: “We have stopped registration at Takhta Baig till further orders due to tense situation in Nangarhar.”
He said security was their main concern and they could not allow refugees to cross into Afghanistan unless the protest subsided in the area. The tense situation in the province was hampering repatriation, he added.
Tension has gripped the entire province for the last two days as poppy growers blocked the main Torkahm-Jalalabad Highway and other routes followed by a severe bomb explosion in the provincial capital on Monday morning which reportedly killed five people and injuring more than 18 people. Afghan defence minister Qasim Fahim narrowly escaped the attack.
A UNHCR press release issued here said that 700 trucks carrying more than 15,000 refugees were standing at Takhta Baig because of the tension in Jalalabad and other parts of Nangarhar province.
Meanwhile, two new repatriation centres, one in Nawa Pass, the tribal area of Mohmand Agency, and second in Balali near Quetta, Balochistan, have started registration of Afghan returnees. The UNHCR reported that around 200,000 refugees had registered for repatriation in Pakistan.
The repatriation from Pakistan was started on March 1 at Takhta Baig. The UN refugee agency also set up four mobile teams for Peshawar. These teams are functioning in areas like Hayatabad, Arbab Road, Cantonment area and Dalazak Road that have big refugees concentration in the provincial capital.
These mobile teams first would carry out pre-registration exercise and then the registered refugees would be invited to the Takhta Baig centre for complete registration.
This exercise has been initiated to check the trend of fake registration by the refugees, official said.
RUUD LUBBERS VISIT: The UNHCR chief, Ruud Lubbers, is likely to arrive in Pakistan on a two-day visit on April 18, the press release said. The high commissioner will visit Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. After Kabul visit, the commissioner on his way to Pakistan will also visit Shalman refugees camp, Khyber Agency, same day. Mr Lubbers will open a new registration centre at Aza Khel near Peshawar on April 19 and would proceed to Islamabad.
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