Photo courtesy PID
Defending the interim government’s ongoing repatriation of undocumented migrants, particularly Afghans, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Monday stressed that the overall socio-economic and security cost of millions of foreigners in the country has been “staggering.”
In an op-ed published in the U.K.’s The Telegraph, he noted that globally, governments were adapting to a new era of mass migration linked to conflict, climate change, and economic opportunism. “The West is no stranger to painful judgments that must be made in managing undocumented foreigners,” he wrote, referring to a plan to deport illegal Rwandan immigrants as illustrating the challenges for policymakers seeking to balance human rights with hard realities. Similarly, he said, France, Italy, Germany and the U.S. were all reckoning with their own influx of millions of refugees.
“Pakistan’s problem is of a different magnitude altogether,” he wrote, noting 4-5 million migrants—roughly the population of Ireland—had arrived in the country over the past 30-40 years. “Many have no right to remain,” he stressed, adding Pakistan had accommodated these refugees without being a signatory to the 1951 Convention on Refugees or its 1967 Protocol.
“Hospitality is in Pakistan’s DNA, which is why we have, and will continue to fulfil our legal, moral and humanitarian obligations,” he wrote, adding the country had given “ample opportunity” for those with no right to remain to leave voluntarily. Unfortunately, he said, multiple attempts at repatriation had failed because a “significant number” of undocumented had persistently refused to formalize their status, choosing instead to stay in the shadows.
Many undocumented, he wrote, worked on the black market and paid no taxes, depressing wages for legitimate workers. “They are also susceptible to exploitation by the criminal underworld, with all its disturbing links to terrorist organizations operating in the region,” he stressed.
Noting that at least 16 Afghan nationals were involved in suicide attacks inside Pakistan since August 2021, Kakar said 65 terrorists killed in encounters with security forces were also identified as Afghans. “No responsible government can ignore such concerns. Whenever we raised this with the interim Afghan government, they advised us to ‘look inwards.’ We have finally decided to heed to their advice to put our house in order,” he added.
Acknowledging the criticism of the ongoing repatriation policy from “those who do not understand the complex history of the problem,” he said any such program would have a “small number” of particularly difficult cases. However, he maintained, all officials involved in the program were under strict orders to treat deportees with due respect and care. “Furthermore, our emphasis is on voluntary, safe and dignified repatriation of individuals (along with their legally acquired assets), and not on deportation,” he said, adding around 93 percent of the returnees to Afghanistan had done so voluntarily. “Importantly, none of the 1.46 million Afghans who applied for proof of registration cards have been returned; nor have 800,000 or so individuals who hold Afghan citizen cards,” he added.
Noting 79 transit centers provided free meals, shelter and medical facilities to returnees, he said particular care was being taken of women and children, with emergency helplines available to report abuses. Emphasizing that Pakistan took the risk of persecution of those who return very seriously, he said Islamabad was reassured by the visible concern showed for their welfare by the interim Afghan government.
Referring to the West’s exit from Kabul in August 2021, the caretaker noted this had brought a new influx of refugees to Pakistan. “We will not deport at-risk groups, such as musicians, journalists, and human rights activists. We do however need help from other countries,” he said, noting only 59,033 of the new arrivals were resettled outside Pakistan, while 42,068 await evacuation to the west. “The rest have failed to put forward a convincing case to anyone for asylum, and continue to stay in Pakistan illegally,” he added.
“Pakistan, today, stands at the crossroads of history. We can no longer continue to compromise our national security by accommodating such huge numbers of undocumented individuals. Our ultimate aim is to build a safer, more peaceful and prosperous Pakistan—with associated benefits for our own people, for the region, and the wider world,” he concluded.