ZULFIQAR ALI — PUBLISHED about 22 hours ago
PESHAWAR: Registration of Afghan nationals living in Pakistan without legal documents will start on July 25.
The Rs500 million exercise to be jointly conducted by the Ministry of State and Frontier Regions, Afghan Commissionerate and Afghanistan’s Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations through the National Database and Registration Authority is likely to be completed in January 2016.
Acting Commissioner for the Commissionerate of Afghan Refugees Waqar Maroof told Dawn that around one million undocumented Afghans would be registered across Pakistan.
He said the Nadra had been tasked with carrying out the exercise, which would be completed in six months.
“This exercise will enable the government to get firsthand and accurate data of undocumented Afghans,” he said.
He said the target was to register one million Afghans during this stipulated period and if the number exceeded, then the government could extend the process.
Pakistan, Afghan authorities to conduct exercise by Jan 2016
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has distanced itself from the issue of unregistered Afghan nationals and is dealing with matters related with registered refugees in Pakistan.
The country currently hosts 1.6 million refugees, who have been issued Proof of Registration cards by the government and their legal status will expire by the end of December 2015. Officials said around one million unregistered Afghans were living in Pakistan of which 600,000 were in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
They said the government had carried out first registration campaign of Afghans through Nadra in 2006.
The officials said registered families were issued Proof of Registration cards in 2010 for a period of three years and the government had to extend their stay in 2012 and 2014.
Registration of undocumented Afghans is part of the National Action Plan made in the wake of terrorist attack on the Army Public School and College Peshawar on December 16, 2014.
Around 142 students and teachers were killed in the attack. Law-enforcement agencies have launched a campaign against illegal Afghans. A large number of them has already been deported to Afghanistan.
To facilitate Afghan nationals, the authority will set up 21 registration centres across the country including 11 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Peshawar will have four centres, Nowshera one, Haripur and Mansehra one, Kohat and Hangu one, and Mardan and Dir one each. Sites for opening centres have been identified.
Waqar Maroof said after verification and registration, Nadra would issue Afghan Citizen Card to each family that would contain all details.
He said the card would be issued in 40 days after registration.
The acting commissioner for the Commissionerate of Afghan Refugees said every family would have to verify itself through MRR and commissionerate before getting the new card.
He said the new card would legalise the refugees’ temporary stay in Pakistan.
“This is last chance for unregistered Afghans. If they do not get themselves registered, then illegal Afghans will be dealt according to the law of land,” he said.
Meanwhile, the tripartite commission comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan and UNHCR will meet in Kabul in August to discuss strategy for the repatriation of 1.6 million registered refugees beyond December 2015.
Officials said around 45,000 refugees had returned under the UN sponsored voluntary repatriation programme since January last.