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MSF ‘deeply concerned’ over new phase of deportations of Afghans from Pakistan
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said Wednesday it was deeply concerned for the rights and welfare of Afghan refugees in Pakistan in the wake of the recent announcement by Islamabad that it plans to start Phase Two of the deportation campaign.
Pakistan is home to an estimated 3.7 million Afghans, and a reported 500,000 have crossed the border so far.
Many Afghans living in Pakistan have been there for decades and have spent more time in the country than their country of origin, without any legal recourse to remain in the only place they can effectively call “home”.
For many Afghans, Islamabad’s “repatriation” campaign means packing up their belongings and carrying them on a horse, cart, car and bus and traveling en masse to a country that is already struggling with widespread poverty, inadequate health services and increased restrictions on women, MSF said in a statement.
The second phase of the deportations leaves an estimated 800,000 Pakistan-issued Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders vulnerable to return, while phase three is expected to result in the further deportation of UNHCR-issued Proof of Registration (PoR) card holders, MSF said.
MSF first started working in Pakistan in 1986, and today provides much-needed medical care to people in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh provinces.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) and UN agencies estimate that more than half a million people have been deported from Pakistan or voluntarily returned to Afghanistan in the past six months.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said last month that nearly two million Afghan refugees are living in Pakistan and that the agency needs $368 million this year to assist these people.
Three foreign nationals and one Afghan were killed when gunmen opened fire in Afghanistan’s central Bamyan province on Friday, the Interior Ministry said.
Abdulmatin Qane, the spokesman of the Ministry of Interior, said that three Afghans and four foreigners were injured in the shooting.
He added that four people were arrested in connection with the incident.
Qani did not specify which country the foreigners belonged to.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
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China and Pakistan call for inclusive ‘political framework’ and ‘moderate policies’ in Afghanistan
According to the statement, Wang and Dar called for concerted efforts from the international community to help Afghanistan address challenges in areas such as the humanitarian situation and economic development.
“The two sides agreed to strengthen communication and coordination on the Afghanistan issue,” the statement read.
“They called for concerted efforts of the international community to help Afghanistan properly address challenges in such areas as the humanitarian situation and economic development, and encourage Afghanistan to build an inclusive political framework, adopt moderate policies, pursue good-neighborliness, and firmly combat terrorism, including not allowing its territory to be used for terrorist acts.
“Both sides agreed to play a positive and constructive role in helping Afghanistan achieve stable development and integrate into the international community,” the statement read.
Negotiations are ongoing between Afghanistan and Iran to sideline the US dollar in bilateral transactions, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said this week.
According to media reports, Mohsen Karimi, the head of the CBI, said talks are ongoing between the two countries for the implementation of “offshore rial” in Afghanistan.
Karimi said the “offshore rial” is used with the aim of supporting the economic activity and exporters of the private sector of the country.
Recently, CBI Governor Mohammad Reza Farzin announced that Tehran plans to use the “offshore rial” for trade with Russia, Afghanistan and Iraq. He also said at the time that the idea of ditching the US dollar has produced positive results.
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