Afghan Refugee Crisis

 

Pakistan had been the home of millions of Afghan refugees who had fled their home country in different waves.

The first major influx of Afghans came due to Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.

Similarly, the second major influx came very recently when Kabul fell to Talibans.

To host these refugees, Pakistan did receive aid from international organizations.

Although there were voices from the society against these refugees due to conflicting social values, but all was good at least at the state level. Things started to change when the relationships between Pakistan and Afghanistan worsened when Taliban government took the reins of power.

Initially, Taliban take over was celebrated in some quarters in Pakistan.

The arguments being presented to justify the deportation of Afghan refugees are the increase in the number of terrorist attacks in Pakistan. Authorities claim that the people involved in many attacks were Afghan nationals.

The second and less talked about argument is the burden on economy. These claims may have their fair share in the reality of things, but the actual reasons are strategic ones.

Pakistan had been pursuing the case of Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan hideouts in Afghanistan since long but Afghanistan had been adamant and did not take any significant action.

So, as a last resort, Pakistani authorities have decided to take this route to pressure Afghanistan government. And all this is despite international criticism.