Faryal Shahzad is joined by Amina Masood, a human rights activist leading a petition to halt the crackdown on Afghans.
In early October, Pakistan's interim government declared that all illegal immigrants must be repatriated within the month or face deportation. This has disproportionately affected millions of Afghan refugees and asylum seekers who have been residing in Pakistan for an extended period.
Under section 4 of the country's citizenship act, children born to Afghan refugees in Pakistan are entitled to Pakistani citizenship. Justice Ayesha of the Supreme Court emphasized that Pakistan is obligated by UN Conventions to protect the rights of refugees.
The influx of Afghan refugees to Pakistan began with the USSR invasion of Afghanistan, and now, the third generation of these families, born in Pakistan, unequivocally holds Pakistani citizenship. The reasons behind the sudden implementation of this policy, especially right before elections, remain obscure. The motives of the apex committee and the urgency behind giving Afghans only a month to leave are shrouded in mystery.
The question arises: does the caretaker government possess the authority to implement such drastic and impactful policy changes? According to Pakistani law, the caretaker government is primarily responsible for managing day-to-day state affairs.