Caretaker govt aims to expel ‘1 million aliens by January next year’

• More than 340,000 illegal foreigners left Pakistan so far.
• Repatriation process slowed down in last few days: Achakzai.
• Provincial minister says second phase of crackdown initiated.

Balochistan Caretaker Information Minister Jan Achakzai has said that the second phase of a crackdown against illegal foreigners has already been initiated and the government is aiming to expel as many as 1 million aliens by January 2024.

More than 340,000 illegal migrants, mainly Afghans, have voluntarily left or been deported from Pakistan since the government announced its policy to deport undocumented refugees on October 5.

The interim government had announced in October that all illegal immigrants should leave Pakistan by the 1st of November or face forceful expulsion.

Addressing the media in Quetta earlier today, the caretaker provincial minister said all government agencies are involved in the crackdown on the illegal migrants, according to Geo News. 

“Those under any delusion that they will dodge crackdown live in fool’s paradise,” he added.

Repatriation of unregistered Afghan nationals is continuing via Chaman border but the process slowed down in the last few days, Achakzai added.

Thousands of Afghans are returning to their homeland on a daily basis through Chaman and Torkham borders.

Apart from other measures for the dignified return of Afghans to their country, transit camps equipped with facilities have been established in various districts for their temporary accommodation.

The decision to expel illegal foreigners was taken in an apex committee meeting on the National Action Plan (NAP) on October 3 after a deadly suicide blast in Balochistan’s Mastung, in which over 60 people lost their lives. In most of the recent terror incidents in Pakistan, Afghan nationals or soil was reportedly used.

According to a statistical report released by the independent think tank Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), at least 271 militant attacks took place during the first half of 2023, resulting in the loss of 389 lives and injuring 656 individuals. Terror activities in the country soared by 79% during the period.

The United Nations (UN) has also said that refugees residing in Pakistan should be allowed to exit the country voluntarily and no pressure should be exerted on them.

Pakistan has hosted millions of Afghan refugees since the Soviet Union’s invasion in 1979.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) data, approximately 1.33 million registered refugees hold Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, and 840,000 possess Afghan citizenship cards.