Afghan refugees continue to suffer and mistreat in Pakistan

Kabul: Afghan refugees who migrated to Pakistan after the Taliban took over for fear of persecution are enduring ongoing suffering and extremely “hateful and inhumane” mistreatment, Khaama Press reported.

Since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan in August 2021, Pakistan has been one of the main destinations to which Afghan refugees have migrated in search of better conditions.

New waves of Afghan refugees moved to Iran and Pakistan for various reasons, including fear of death threats and persecution by Afghanistan’s de facto regime.

However, in Pakistan, migrants have continued to face numerous challenges, including arbitrary arrest, harassment and imprisonment by the Pakistani police, due to their inability to provide valid visas and residence permits.

In particular, the Pakistani police and other relevant agencies have continued to detain and imprison Afghan refugees in different parts of the country, including the capital city of Islamabad, despite the refugees being certified by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. (UNHCR), Khaama Press reported.

Maniza Kakar, a lawyer for Afghan prisoners in Karachi, previously claimed that Pakistani police tore up the residency documents of some Afghan citizens while they were under arrest.

The Pakistani government’s alleged mistreatment of Afghan refugees has been called “inhumane and hateful”, drawing widespread criticism not only in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but beyond.

“In less than two years, I have been detained by the police three times: harassed, humiliated and bitten for not having a valid residence permit. Life has become extremely difficult for me in Pakistan. Every time I come across the police, I will keep running from one ally to another to avoid possible imprisonment and forced deportation to Afghanistan,” Khaama Press quoted an Afghan refugee as saying.

Another Afghan refugee who just moved to France told Khaama Press that, “Pakistan offers them nothing but countless sufferings. He asked other migrants to follow up on their immigration cases, otherwise they will continuously face mistreatment, harassment and humiliation”. “.

Most of the Afghan refugees currently residing in Pakistan are going through an extremely long process, which creates ambiguity and hopelessness.

According to Amnesty, more than 3.7 million Afghans who fled Afghanistan for political and economic reasons now reside in Pakistan. Furthermore, only 1.4 million people have official registration.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad also requested Pakistan to stop detaining Afghans earlier this month after anti-terror officials and other agencies detained 250 people for lack of travel documents, according to Khaama Press.