AfghanRefugees The Conflict’s Early Days,

The conflict’s early days:

 The conflict’s early days:

The c0up that br0ught a c0mmunist g0vernment t0 p0wer in Afghanistan in April 1978 ignited the first 0f a series 
 0f c0nflicts that have crippled Afghanistan and left an probable 1.5 milli0n Afghans dead.2 Afghanistan's 

largely uneducated, traditi0nal, rural p0pulati0n deeply resent and resisted the new c0mmunist regime. Faced 

with widespread 0pp0siti0n, the regime turned t0 f0rce. Its vi0lent tactics left tens 0f th0usands 0f Afghans during

 the 1980s, new Afghan 0pp0siti0n f0rces – the mujahedeen 0r h0ly warri0rs grew rapidly, increasing the power

 0f the c0nflict. In 1981, s0me 1.5 milli0n Afghans were refugees; 3 by 1986, this number had increased t0 

nearly five milli0n, m0stly in Pakistan and Iran.4 M0st 0f the Afghan refugees in Pakistan were ethnic Pashtuns,

 h0used in refugee camps established by UNHCR thr0ugh0ut Pakistan’s tw0 western m0st pr0vinces, the 

N0rth-West Fr0ntier Pr0vince and Baluchistan. 0ver the years, the camps ev0lved int0 villages that began t0
  
 appear much like 0ther villages in Pakistan. Many 0f the refugees fixed 0ut reas0nable and boring lives, at 

least c0mpared t0 what they c0uld expect in Afghanistan. M0st 

f0und at least subsistence w0rk in the l0cal ec0n0my 0r rented land t0 cultivate. S0me maintain an f00th0ld in b0th 

c0untries by living in Pakistan while hire resident farmers t0 w0rk their land in Afghanistan[1]. Afghan refugees

 in Iran did n0t benefit fr0m similar aid, h0wever. In 1979, a rev0luti0n put an Islamic fundamentalist regime in 

p0wer in Iran and radical students seized the US embassy, taking d0zens 0f US citizens h0stage. The US and 

its allies were reluctant t0 fund pr0grammes in Iran even f0r refugees and Teheran did n0t want Western

 agencies including UNHCR in Iran. Left largely t0 fend f0r themselves, m0st Afghan refugees in Iran settled in

 urban centers, with little pr0tecti0n, f0rced t0 c0mpete with l0cal pe0ple f0r limited empl0yment 0pp0rtunities.

 The S0viet 0ccupati0n 0f Afghanistan pr0ved c0stly in b0th lives and expenses and sparked p0litical 0pp0siti0n 

within the fading S0viet Uni0n. In February 1989, M0sc0w withdrew its tr00ps fr0m Afghanistan and left in

 p0wer a puppet regime headed by M0hammed Najibullah. The UN tried t0 br0ker a peace agreement

 between Najibullah and the mujahedeen but failed t0 achieve any result. In April 1992, the mujahedeen

 captured Kabul and killed Najibullah.

sYet n0twithstanding the difficulty 0f assessing the exact sc0pe 0f the refugee pr0blem, issues such as security

 care and safeguarding 0f the refugees and m0re br0adly all aspects 0f the management 0f their presence have

 t0 be weigh against the careful c0nsiderati0n 0f Pakistan’s 0wn resp0nsibility f0r the c0ntinuati0n 0f the c0nflict

 and theref0re the r00t causes 0f their presence 0n its s0il.[2]

---

[

afghanrefuges.blogspot.com