Amnesty's Refugee and Immigrant Rights Campaign comes as Pakistan's newly elected government announced it will expand and speed up plans to illegally deport Afghan refugees in the country after next week's Eid al-Fitr festival. said James Jennion of the home. International said:
“The Pakistani authorities’ callous disregard for the persecution, gross human rights violations, and humanitarian catastrophe that await Afghan refugees if they are forcibly returned to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan is heartbreaking. Instead of heeding their calls, the newly elected government of Pakistan unfortunately extended deportation to Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders.
Pakistan's “illegal alien deportation program” violates refugee law and international human rights law and puts the lives of all Afghan refugees at risk.
James Jennion, Amnesty International Refugee and Migrant Rights Campaigner
“This decision puts the lives of more than 800,000 Afghan refugees across Pakistan at risk and threatens a new wave of harassment and detention after the holy month of Ramadan.
“Pakistan’s ‘illegal alien deportation plan’ violates refugee law and international human rights law, particularly the principle of non-refoulement, and is a violation of refugee law and international human rights law, especially the principle of non-refoulement, and is a violation of refugee law and international human rights law, and in particular violates the principle of non-refoulement and is a violation of refugee law, including all Afghan refugees, especially women, girls, journalists, human rights activists, women protesters, Artist, former Afghan government and security official. Also, government decisions lack transparency and arbitrarily revoke the validity of ACC documents issued by the Pakistani government itself.
“We call on the Pakistani authorities to immediately reverse these decisions and urgently pass human rights-compliant legislation that protects the rights of refugees in the country, and to join the ranks of States Parties to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its Protocol. I ask you to become.”
background:
After the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, many Afghans living in fear of persecution fled to Pakistan, where they face the threat of arbitrary detention, arrest and deportation.
In October 2023, the first phase of the Illegal Alien Deportation Plan was announced, giving 1.4 million refugees a 30-day deadline for “illegal alien” Afghan refugees to be deported or subject to deportation. was at risk.
Since then, Amnesty International has documented a complete lack of transparency, due process, and accountability in the detention and illegal deportation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan, with increasing harassment and hostility against them. Things got even worse.
In the second phase of the 'Repatriation Plan', Pakistan-issued Afghanistan Citizen Card (ACC) holders will be sent to the country on Eid-ul-Fitr, a major Islamic holiday scheduled for April 10, 2024 in the region. After the festival, they are deported. Phase 3 is expected to involve the forced and illegal deportation of UNHCR-issued Certificate of Registration (PoR) cardholders.
Since September 2023, 527,981 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan, leaving behind their homes, property and communities in Pakistan. The government says there are more than 800,000 ACC holders, while UNHCR estimates there are 1.3 million PoR holders in Pakistan.
Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the government to reverse its decision to deport Afghan refugees, most recently including a 10-point statement on human rights. charter For the newly elected government in Pakistan.
