KABUL (SW) – The process of forced deportation of illegal Afghan immigrants from Pakistan continues, and concerns about the mistreatment and harassment of Afghan migrants by the Pakistani police, have increased.
The Human Rights Watch (HRW), recently said in a report that Afghan immigrants are being harassed and their property taken from them by the Pakistani police during their deportation from this country.
Heather Barr, Associate women’s rights director and former Afghanistan researcher at the Human Rights Watch, tells Salaam Watandar: “Pakistanis not only deport Afghans, but treat them offensively when they are deported.”
She adds that the group arrests, seizures and destruction of Afghans’ property have been recorded in their report. The Pakistani officials also take and destroy the identity cards of some of Afghan immigrants, Mrs. Barr said.
According to the report, the Pakistani authorities have committed massive violations against Afghan immigrants and forced them to leave this country.
Meanwhile, a number of Afghan immigrants who have returned to the country from the Spinboldak-Chaman and Torkham route in the last few days, say that the Pakistani police harassed and expelled them, and confiscated their assets.
The 37-years-old JanBaz, who was returned to Afghanistan two days ago, says: “We were arrested by the police in Quetta, they took the 27,000 kaldars that I had with me. They insulted and humiliated me a lot. After that, they forcibly expelled me and my family.”
Saidjan, another returnee from Pakistan, says that before being deported from this country, the Pakistani police first destroyed his identity card. “At the beginning, they said that we will not evict those who have legal documents; But I had a card, they destroyed it. I had five types of cards for myself and my family. They arrested me and humiliated me a lot, all my property remained.” He added.
On the other hand, Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the de-facto government, has called the harassment of Afghan immigrants by the Pakistani police against international principles and good neighborliness.
He said: “The Islamic Emirate wants to encourage Afghan immigrants to come to the country; But they should not be harassed in such a way that they get hurt, go to jail, or their property is taken from them.” Mujahid adds that Afghan immigrants in other countries should not be treated against international principles.
Based on the statistics of the Afghan embassy in Islamabad, since the beginning of the process of expelling illegal Afghan immigrants from Pakistan, more than 400,000 Afghans have left this country.
ENDS
