The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called on the Pakistani government to “suspend forcible returns of Afghan nationals before it is too late to avoid a human rights catastrophe”.
“We call on them to continue providing protection to those in need and ensure that any future returns are safe, dignified and voluntary, and fully consistent with international law,” OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said in a statement from Geneva on Friday.
“We believe many of those facing deportation will be at grave risk of human rights violations if returned to Afghanistan, including arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, cruel and other inhuman treatment, spokesperson said.
She said, “We are extremely alarmed by Pakistan’s announcement that it plans to deport ‘undocumented’ foreign nationals remaining in the country after Nov 1, a measure that will disproportionately impact more than 1.4 million undocumented Afghans who remain in Pakistan.”
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, close to 30m people currently need relief assistance in Afghanistan, out of a population of 43m, and 3.3m are internally displaced.
“We remind the de facto authorities of the international human rights obligations that continue to bind Afghanistan as a state and their obligations to protect, promote and fulfill human rights.”
