Law and Policy: In Afghan Refuges

Law and Policy:

Law and Policy:

As n0ted earlier, alth0ugh 0verall Pakistan has been a gener0us h0st t0 Afghan refugees, its p0licy has been shy. Fr0m 1978 t0 January 1980, the g0vernment 0f Pakistan supp0rted the refugees 0nly with its 0wn res0urces. Beginning in 1979, quite a few d0zen camps were set up, m0st 0f them in the NWFP and a few in Bal0chistan. M0re0ver, the Afghan refugees in Pakistan did n0t suffer the pr0blems that 0ften virus large displace p0pulati0ns such as plague 0r malnutriti0n. Fr0m the early days 0f the S0viet invasi0n 0f Afghanistan, Pakistan’s p0licy t0ward Afghan refugees has been n0tably liberal. Pakistan d0es in fact all0w the refugees basic rights. The 1973 c0nstituti0n pr0tects freed0m 0f m0vement 0nly f0r Pakistani citizens. H0wever Pakistan is a party t0 the Internati0nal C0venant 0n Civil and P0litical Rights, which pr0vides f0r general rights 0f freed0m 0f m0vement and ch0ice 0f residence. In fact the g0vernmen d0es n0t imp0se restricti0ns 0n the m0vement 0r home 0f registered Afghans, 0r 0n help t0 th0se living 0utside camps. Refugees have always been quite free t0 settle wherever they wish. They als0 have been all0wed t0 travel thr0ugh0ut the c0untry, alth0ugh Pakistan’s g0vernment d0es n0t issue internati0nal travel d0cuments t0 refugees.lPakistan ratified the Internati0nal C0venant 0n Ec0n0mic, S0cial and Cultural Rights, was rec0gnizes a general right t0 w0rk, 0nly in 2008. H0wever, alth0ugh Pakistan’s pertinent law pr0hibits the hire 0f a pers0n wh0 has n0 permissi0n t0 remain in the c0untry, the auth0rities have always t0lerated refugees w0rking in the inf0rmal sect0r. In the f0rmal sect0r refugees 0fficially need Pakistani allies and cann0t h0ld imm0vable pr0perty 0r the vital d0cuments t0 0wn a business. The law, h0wever, is by passed a fact t0lerated by the auth0rities. In the NWFP f0r example, refugees cann0t 0fficially 0wn trucks but in pragmatism d0minate the entire transp0rt sect0r. The Pakistan g0vernment als0 all0ws Afghan refugees access t0 basic health services. H0wever n0n Afghan refugees and haven seekers as well as Afghans wh0 exist in urban settlements d0 n0t have access t0 public sch00ls and must send their children t0 pers0nal sch00ls. Pakistan is n0t a party t0 the 1951 C0nventi0n linking t0 the Status 0f Refugees, and has n0 legislati0n t0 rec0gnize refugees. It is, h0wever, b0und by the pr0visi0n 0f the 1966 Internati0nal C0venant 0n Civil and P0litical Rights, which all0ws expulsi0n 0nly by law, requires the G0vernment t0 all0w th0se it needs t0 eject t0 give reas0ns against d0ing s0 and further requires that c0mpetent auth0rities review their cases. Pakistan is als0 signat0ry with0ut reservati0n, t0 the 1984 C0nventi0n against t0rture and 0ther “cruel, inhuman 0r humiliating treatment 0r punishment which pr0hibits ref0ulement 0f any0ne in instance where there is a large peril that the individual will be t0rtured. As a practical matter h0wever, being a party t0 the C0nventi0n against t0rture d0es n0t really change anything as regards the n0n-ref0ulement 0f the refugees.

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