ISLAMABAD (AP) – Forcibly deporting Afghans from Pakistan could lead to severe human rights violations including the separation of families and deportation of minors, the United Nations warned Saturday.
Pakistan recently announced a crackdown on migrants living in the country illegally, including 1.7 million Afghans, telling them to return to their home countries by Oct. 31 to avoid mass arrest and expulsion.
The government denies targeting Afghans and says the focus is on people who are in the country illegally, regardless of their nationality. It said it is setting up a hotline and offering rewards to people who tip off authorities about such migrants.
The UN agencies said Afghanistan is going through a severe humanitarian crisis with several rights challenges, particularly for women and girls, who are banned by the Taliban from education beyond sixth grade, most public spaces and many jobs.
“Such plans would have serious implications for all who have been forced to leave the country and may face serious protection risks upon return,” it said, referring to Pakistan’s crackdown.
They acknowledged Pakistan’s “sovereign prerogative” over domestic policies and said they are ready to help register and manage Afghan nationals, including those who may be in need of international protection.
The International Organization for Migration and UN Refugee Agency called on countries to “suspend forcible returns of Afghan nationals and ensure any possible returns to the country take place in a safe, dignified and voluntary manner.”
Landlords and real estate owners in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, have received notices telling them to evict “illegal Afghans” and their families by the end of the month or face action.
Police have asked clerics in some of the city’s mosques to tell worshippers of their duty to inform on Afghans in their neighborhoods.
The information minister in the southwestern Pakistani province of Baluchistan, Jan Achakzai, said hundreds of Afghan families have voluntarily left the country and crossed the border since the announcement. Rights groups and the Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan have criticized the crackdown.