The deportation of illegal Afghan refugees staying in Pakistan has been going on since the government gave an ultimatum to all refugee Afghan nationals to leave Pakistan by November 1 last year.
New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday extended the deadline till June 30th for the deportation of Afghan refugees residing in the country with Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, according to an official statement.
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The deportation of illegal Afghan refugees staying in Pakistan has been going on since the government gave an ultimatum to all refugee Afghan nationals to leave Pakistan by November 1 last year.
The PoR is an identity card for Afghan refugees that entitles them to remain in Pakistan legally and is issued by the country’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA). PoRs are issued to Afghan refugees after they get themselves registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
In a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sharif, the Pak government also said that Afghans with POR would be repatriated to Afghanistan in the third phase.
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“The Cabinet has approved the extension of POR cards of Afghan refugees till 30th June this year, enabling the cardholders to avail schools, bank accounts and other facilities in Pakistan for the time being. These POR cardholders will be repatriated in the third phase of the ongoing repatriation program of illegal nationals residing in Pakistan,” said the statement.
Pakistan’s move to deport Afghans back to their native country has been condemned by the global human rights bodies.
According to Amnesty International, since November 2023, a total of 5,27,981 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan—leaving behind their homes, properties and community in Pakistan.
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The global rights body has repeatedly urged the government to reverse its decision to deport Afghan refugees, most recently in its ten-point Human Rights Charter for the newly elected government in Pakistan.
During the cabinet meeting, the members also received a briefing from the Aviation secretary on the progress of the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines.
“The meeting was also briefed by the Secretary Aviation about measures taken to improve facilities at airports across the country, especially Lahore and Karachi,” said the statement.
