Amnesty International Calls On Pakistan To Reverse Decision To Deport Refugees
Amnesty International urged Pakistan to immediately reverse the decision to deport refugees and adhere to international human rights laws.
Amnesty International urged Pakistan to immediately reverse the decision to deport refugees and adhere to international human rights laws.
The organisation said that the deportation of refugees is a violation of human rights and raises serious concerns about their access to safety, welfare, and basic services.
According to the latest statements of the Pakistani officials, the country’s government has decided to deport at least 1.4 million immigrants without official residence documents from the country starting November 1.
Amir Mir, Punjab's Caretaker Information Minister confirmed on Friday, that around 99,000 "illegal" immigrants have been arrested before the November 1.
Mir said that of them, 33,000 people do not have residency documents and will be deported.
Over the past few weeks, numerous media reports have surfaced regarding the detention and deportation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan.
Qaiser Khan Afridi, the spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Pakistan, asked registered asylum seekers to refer to the organisation’s lawyers if they face police harassment.
Afridi told Afghanistan International that the lawyers of the organisation are available to asylum seekers all over Pakistan.
Afridi confirmed that there had been reports in recent months that Pakistani police had even harassed asylum seekers who had official documents from the UN Refugee Agency and were registered with the agency.
He said that if the police arrest these asylum seekers, they may be freed by contacting the defence lawyers hired by this organisation.
