Five parliamentary parties have reportedly proposed to the federal government to extend Proof of Registration (PoR) cards to Afghan refugees till December 31, 2021 on the pattern of Iran, well informed sources told Business Recorder.
These recommendations were submitted by Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman, Amir JUI(F), Senator Siraj-ul-Haq, Amir Jamaat-e-Islami, Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, ANP, Mahmood Khan Achakzai, Chairman PMAP and Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao, Chairman QWP.
Presently, Pakistan is hosting over 1.4 million registered and an estimated 0.6 million unregistered Afghan refugees. Voluntary repatriation has gained momentum during this year particularly since July 1,2016. Till October 26, 2016 over 300,000 registered and over 200,000 unregistered Afghan refugees have been voluntarily repatriated. As such it is estimated that towards the end of the year over 650,000 Afghan refugees ( 400,000 registered and 250,000 unregistered ) would have likely returned to their homeland.
The leaders of five parliamentary parties maintain that Pakistan has hosted millions of Afghans for thirty five years and any attempt now to repatriate them forcefully or with undue haste would undo decades of goodwill and hospitality shown by Pakistan's to their Afghan brothers and sisters.
"To ensure stability in the region, maintain our good rapport and in view of the national security paradigm, the Government of Pakistan must continue with voluntary, gradual and honourable repatriation of Afghan refugees with the assistance of the United Nations and the international community," the sources quoted the five parties as saying.
They have proposed that in order to pursue this objective, the five signatory political parties to this paper propose and recommend the following:(i) government should set a viable and realistic timeline for the return of Afghan refugees to their country of origin. The proof of registration cards and tripartite agreement may be extended till December 31, 2021 in line with the policy adopted by Iran . However, efforts must simultaneously be taken to maintain the current momentum of voluntary repatriation;(ii) the government must ensure that Afghan refugees in Pakistan are not exposed to any harassment, exploitation or extortion;(iii) Ministry of SAFRON should coordinate with the government of Afghanistan and UNHCR to workout appropriate agreed timelines for voluntary repatriation;(iv) government should engage the Government of Afghanistan and the international community for the creation of necessary pull factors and a conducive environment to enable the voluntary repatriation and reintegration processes to continue;(v) unregistered Afghans should be documented as per the Prime Minister's directive, NADRA should issue biometric cards to Afghan refugees and Ministry of SAFRON may take up the matter with IOM for treating this caseload at par with POR card holders and provide the same incentives. Till such time as the documentation process by NADRA is completed, undue harassment and application of Section 14 of the Foreigners Act, 1946 should be avoided;(vi) Afghan refugees who wish to return should be allowed sufficient time to dispose of their properties and wind up their businesses and the Government may set up a mechanism to aid this process;(vii) Afghans who have invested Rs 5 million and above in Pakistan may be granted two years extendable visas and with investments of over Rs 20 million may be offered five year business visas. Amendments may also be made to relevant laws and policies to enable Afghans making investments of over Rs 50 million to apply for citizenship as is offered by most countries of the world through various means;(viii) businesses such as carpet weaving, transport, trade and the gem stone related industry in which Afghans are involved should be encouraged and incentivized through a coordinated mechanism and taxed accordingly;(ix) Afghan students should be allowed to complete their pursuit of academics and offered student visas for prescribed periods as certified and recommended by the heads of respective educational institutions. The families of Afghan students should also be given visas to enable families to live together while members are studying in Pakistan ;(x) a flexible visa regime and naturalization policy should be implemented for socio-cultural engagements and family ties.
The Government should introduce a flexible visa regime for Afghan patients coming from across the border at the earliest. The Government may consider outsourcing the task of facilitation in this regard;(xii) Government should consider the issuance of work visas to skilled and unskilled registered Afghan refugees who opt to surrender POR cards and obtain Afghan passports, subject to the condition that their families repatriate to Afghanistan.
This will encourage voluntary repatriation and will also provide employment opportunities to the returnee families;(xiii) Pakistan needs to enact appropriate legislation governing the subject of refugees keeping in view its own national interest and specific environment and ;(xiv) a parliamentary committee should be constituted to monitor and oversee the management and voluntary repatriation of afghan refugees.
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