No involuntary repatriation of Afghans
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ISLAMABAD: Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron) retired Lt Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch has rejected a perception that Afghan refugees will involuntarily be sent back to their country after the Peshawar school attack.
Speaking at a news conference along with Maya Ameratunga, acting representative of the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), here on Tuesday, the minister claimed that the registered Afghan refugees had never been found involved in terrorism-related incidents in the country and said they would not be repatriated against their will.
“We are not going to push them forcefully. They will be sent back respectfully on a voluntary basis and according to the timeframe decided upon,” he said, adding that the Afghan refugees had been living peacefully in Pakistan for more than three decades and they respected the country’s laws.
Also read: Number of Afghan refugees in country growing steadily
“We will continue to maintain our traditional hospitality,” Mr Baloch said, adding that Pakistan was a responsible state of the United Nations and was committed to honouring all international agreements signed by it.
He said there were 1.5 million registered Afghan refugees in the country and the number of unregistered refugees was also almost the same. He asked the unregistered refugees to get themselves registered in view of the law and order situation.
The UNHCR’s acting representative said the unregistered Afghans did not enjoy any protected status in Pakistan and they were considered as illegal migrants and the Pakistan government had a sovereign right to take action against them.
Published in Dawn December 24th , 2014
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Comments (34) Closed
Dec 24, 2014 06:10am
It is silly to deport those refugess who have been born in and have spent all of their lives in Pakistan.
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Dec 24, 2014 06:20am
Here comes the UN and its cronies breathing down Pakistan's neck. They would not let the network of terrorism dismantled in Pakistan with their tactics. So sad...
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Dec 24, 2014 06:24am
Why not pass them over to India via Wagah border, after all the Afghan and Indian government specially their notorious intelligence agencies are best of buddies.
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Dec 24, 2014 06:31am
Pakistani Government and Army will not send these Afghan's back, as it will stop the foreign monetary help. Who else will support the lavish life style of our politicians and Army elites if there is no monetary help.
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Dec 24, 2014 06:32am
Send them back at least for the fact that they are thankless people who have been misusing our hospitality and still support India over us and bad mouth Pakistan wherever they go.
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Dec 24, 2014 07:13am
This is not effecting u. But we suffered. This is too much. Sent them back. We want no afghan in Pakistan.
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Dec 24, 2014 07:15am
Then when will they go to Afghanistan, because in next 100 years no afghani want to got back voluntarily.
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Dec 24, 2014 07:31am
Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron) retired Lt Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch said there were 1.5 million registered Afghan refugees in the country and the number of unregistered refugees was also almost the same.
Its really an eye opening figure??? think this a great burden over pakistani resources, due this thins huge no, there is unemployment, inequality, disturbance and threat to security.
Govt should sent then back now for the save of prosperous and Terror free Country.
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Dec 24, 2014 07:34am
afghani refugie must return to there country we need space and confort for our pakistani population the war is finish in afghanistan
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Dec 24, 2014 07:42am
They should be repatriated Immediately with border check posts . Afghanistan situation is far better than Pakistan. We can't afford anymore minister
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Dec 24, 2014 07:50am
I can't remember any attack that was planned by Afghans. Peshawar attack was planned by TTP and the attackers were either Chechens or some other ex-Soviet state. I understand Afghan refugees being an extra burden on our economy but blaming them for this attack by KPK gov is simply yet another attempt to transfer responsibility. Security in KPK is the provincial gov's responsibility, no ifs buts about it.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:05am
Why not they are going back to their country? Why Pakistani government is not taking decision for repatriating Afghan refugees back to their country? Do you people still wait for another Peshawar like brutality? Really it is shame for us and come a see how many people of Pakistan is victimized by these refugees. They have made computerized national identity card and captured land of Pakistani. Please don't accept any request from UNHCR, because this is in the entrust of entire Pakistan that they have to go back.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:19am
Qadir Baloch`s statement is dumb,the refugees who wanted to go back have already gone, those who are staying back do not want to go and Baloch is ready to keep them, so what was the point of the news conference.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:29am
They could afford to hold a presidential election. They have a standing army.
They vote. They have an economy. They need go back and contribute there.
These refugees need to go back. Every each one of them. They are a drain
on the economy here. They take away jobs from the Pakistanis. Time to go
back. And help their country. Also they are a big part of some negative aspects
that are plaguing Pakistan. Besides, they are not wanted here.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:36am
Unfortunately, the refugees will never agree to go back to AFG willingly because for them, there is nothing to go back to. There is no economy, no security, no resources, etc. This entire chapter of Afghan refugees has not been handled properly by the Pakistan authorities from the get go. There should have been some strategy to handle them but the Zia regime was more interested in getting dollars from the rest of the world in the name of caring and feeding the refugees than actually doing some planning. The result is in front of us.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:38am
Well done Mr Minister! honour international agreements and keep on dis-honouring domestic agreement which is that state will protect its citizens no matter what. It is already 3 decades of hospitality and what we got, burden on national treasury, AK-47 and drugs in return. Act or leave the job for someone who can!
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Dec 24, 2014 08:56am
Its okay if we dont want to force them out of the country. That's not good for our relationship with Afghanistan right now but lets not lie about their criminal activities. Drugs, smuggling and abduction for ransom comes to mind.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:59am
Any good reason to keep them? I don't think so.
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Dec 24, 2014 09:01am
"Afghan refugees had been living peacefully in Pakistan for more than three decades and they respected the country’s laws"
LIES LIES LIES
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Dec 24, 2014 09:19am
Well said abdul qadir baloch sahab. They are very nice and innocent people.
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Dec 24, 2014 09:28am
The successive governments has failed to convince the international community and concerned authorities about the problems being faced by the ordinary Pakistani' due to the presence of huge number of legal and illegal Afghan immigrants and it clearly shows there incompetence and delusion...
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Dec 24, 2014 09:34am
why is there a matter of will? they have to go back to their country for the sake of their generations and ours.Pakistan cannot afford them anymore. our own people are suffering and its enough of hospitality. PTI is right on spot this time.
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Dec 24, 2014 09:50am
Government official are in state of denial
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Dec 24, 2014 09:56am
What nonsense?
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Dec 24, 2014 10:04am
That is a sane statement.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:06am
What a meaningless policy? How long the country has to continue suffering because of burden of millions of Afghan refugees? Another failure of our Governments for the last many many years.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:16am
Good Sir! they are our brothers and we both should respect one another. Trust me we the Pakistanis are as much corrupt and involved in illegal activities as the Afghans are, if not more.
Our nations need education to irradiate poverty, militancy and make us better citizens of the world.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:31am
True, this was a gross suggestion to kick out our honored guests.
Plus, they also add to our GDP.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:32am
Indeed, hopefully it doesn't comes to this. We in an emotional state have made some absurd suggestions.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:37am
According to the Western powers that spent 13 years and countless billions of dollars, Afghanistan is a far better country than when they came in! Therefore, ALL refugees should be returned to their homeland ASAP so they can benefit from the improved situation in Afghanistan.
Pakistan is struggling to take care of its own citizens let alone also deal with an unknown number of million refugees some of whom date back to 1979 & 1980 era. Regrettably non of the governments over the past 35 years have dealt with this matter seriously but time has now come to put this right.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:52am
And my respected Minister which Afghan would like to go back voluntarily now! , after almost 20 years in Pakistan....
seriously these ministers have completely lost the plot.
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Dec 24, 2014 10:56am
They have not been found guilty because it is the unregistered ones that are causing problems. Where else are these Uzbeks coming to Pakistan from?
Please also consider the economic drain. Let us see Australia accept them. (Speaking from the perspective of recent crackdown on asylum seekers in Australia)
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Dec 24, 2014 11:10am
yes you aid will stop otherwise.
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Dec 24, 2014 11:25am
Every Afghan refugee born in Pakistan is a pakistani in our eyes; they should be given the nationality. Illegal immigrants should register and have their rights as refugees.
We can have oath ceremonies asking them to swear allegiance with Pakistan. I think, it is HUGE injustice that two generations born in Pakistan are not considered as Pakistanis.
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