MONITORING (SW) – Muhammad Abbas Khan, Pakistan’s Chief Commissioner for Afghan Refugees, has called for an international conference to address the challenges faced by Afghan migrants living in third countries.
He emphasized the need for voluntary repatriation processes and an increase in the acceptance of Afghan asylum seekers by Western countries. Khan proposed that the conference be held in Islamabad to tackle these issues.
According to Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, Khan raised this issue during a meeting in Islamabad. He said: “The primary goal of this conference should be to encourage Western countries to increase their quotas and expedite the asylum application process for Afghan migrants from Pakistan. A tripartite meeting with the Islamic Emirate and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will soon be held to discuss the challenges faced by Afghan refugees.”
Khan further highlighted that out of 600,000 Afghan applicants for resettlement in Western countries, only 8,000 have been relocated. He pointed out that Afghanistan’s capacity for repatriating migrants is also limited, which could create additional challenges.
On the other hand, some Afghan citizens who have traveled to Pakistan in the past three years to pursue their asylum applications report that pressure on Afghan migrants continues to mount in the country.
Zaher Bahand, an Afghan migrant in Pakistan, stated that Afghan refugees in Pakistan face challenges such as visa renewals, forced deportation, and lack of employment opportunities.
He added: “There are no schools for children besides harassment by the police and arrests. In the past year, five Afghan suicide incidents have occurred in Pakistan. The processing of asylum cases is slow, and we are exhausted from waiting.”
Another Afghan migrant, Emal Habibi, also expressed that the difficulties for Afghan refugees continue to worsen each day. “Countries have not acted as they should, and people are still waiting. Additionally, there are no educational opportunities for youth, and the visa periods have expired.”
Previously, the United Nations reported that 1.3 million Afghan refugees currently live in Pakistan with Proof of Registration (POR) cards, while nearly 600,000 undocumented Afghan migrants have been expelled from the country since last year.
