Pakistan has drawn criticism of the Taliban after its decision to deport Afghani nationals in Pakistan. The Taliban-appointed Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan, Amir Khan Muttaqi has accused Pakistan for ‘humiliating’ Kabul by this act, as stated by Khaama Press, an online Afghani news outlet. The Asian News International (ANI), citing the Khaama Press, reported these newly raised concerns by Muttaqi with the Pakistani military and other authorities. But for the time being, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has not yet acted on the measures to stall deportations.
Going further, Muttaqi claimed that it is the intention of Pakistan to exert pressure on Kabul, but the country won’t succumb to these tactics. The Acting Minister also shared his uneasiness regarding Pak’s self-selected wish to expatriate Afghan migrants. Even after sharing his apprehension to the citizens and armed forces of Pak, the stress to expel these vulnerable sections looms in Afghanistan. Moreover, the complexities of relations with the surrounding nations makes this episode even more complicated.
Table of Contents
Perils and Provocations
The UN Refugee agency, the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees raised alarms related to the perils and provocations that awaits a considerable number of Afghans who will be forced to leave the state of Pakistan on an immediate basis. The current data displays that a huge chunk of individual groups returned to Afghanistan. In October of this year, after the issuance of the ‘ultimatum’, more than 250,000 out of 1.7m illegal immigrants left Pak to arrive in their homeland, Afghanistan.
Contentions for Pakistan
Both sides have contrasting stories to tell. While Pakistan holds the claim of the earlier Afghanis voluntarily departing, Kabul contends the use of force by the Pakistani authorities to expel them after the November’s deadline. The TOLO News reported that the Acting Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in Afghanistan, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, who issued a cautionary note to Islamabad, pressed on the need for the officials involved to tackle the Afghan expatriates properly.
Stanikzai also mentioned the response of the Afghans to this situation during a meeting on the “Future Economic Development of Afghanistan”. Additionally, he asserted that the country is well-equipped with a sound defense mechanism including military weaponry. As per the refugees and Repatriation Department of Kandahar, the capital city of Afghanistan, over 31,500 returned from Pakistan in the past five days.
The Announcement
The caretaker government of Pakistan, Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, declared the deadline to be October 31 for the Afghan deportees to leave Pak or undergo compulsion for the same. The authorities cleared the air on sending back those immigrants who had no legal documents. But now, Islamabad is under the radar, accused of agitating the refugees, as reported by The Express Tribune.
The problem of terrorism in the land of Pakistan remains inevitably rampant. But due to its recent effectiveness in handling terrorism, the government diverted its attention from this subject to the Afghan migrant issues. The Dawn reports that besides voluntary expatriation, the individuals who were held for imprisonment on minor offenses are also being relocated and shifted to Afghanistan.
Further Reads:
Israeli attack kills 3 kids in Lebanon, angry Hezbollah vows revenge
Russia’s dominant Military Supply to India since the 1960s Ending
