Responding to reports of arbitrary detention and harassment of Afghan refugees and asylum seekers by law enforcement agencies in Islamabad, Pakistan, Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for South Asia, said:
“Police have conducted nighttime raids, harassed and arbitrarily detained hundreds of Afghan refugees, including women and children, in the capital as part of a larger policy of discrimination against Afghans in the country. In addition to existing documentation requirements, Islamabad The requirement that all Afghan refugees obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC) imposes onerous obligations on them. The Pakistani government has repeatedly enacted arbitrary policies that have exacerbated the instability of Afghan refugees in the country, resulting in thousands of Afghan refugees leaving the country in the past 15 months. return to Afghanistan within a short period of time, and this latest policy measure puts an already at-risk population at risk.
The Pakistani government has repeatedly enacted arbitrary policies that exacerbate instability for Afghan refugees in Afghanistan…and this latest policy measure endangers an already at-risk population.
Babu Ram Pant, Deputy Regional Director for South Asia, Amnesty International
“The actions of the Pakistani authorities were sweeping and arbitrary in nature, resulting in the harassment and detention of refugees, even though they had valid documents and visas. All refugees and asylum seekers, regardless of their documentation status, are entitled to access under international human rights law due process and protection from forced deportation.
“Amnesty International urges Pakistan to comply with its obligations under international law, including the principle of non-refoulement, and to take immediate steps to secure the release of all detainees and to reverse its policy of immediate state clearance.”
background
The Joint Refugee Action Committee reports that more than 800 Afghans have been detained in Islamabad since January 1, 2025. No nationals are allowed to stay in the capital, Islamabad. The announcement comes after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) staged protests in Islamabad on November 26 and 27, during which the security forces used illegal force, resulting in the deaths of more than a dozen people. Police in the capital have reportedly been engaging in racial profiling of Pashtuns since the protests, leading to arbitrary roundups of Afghans and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa living in the city.
In October 2023, the Pakistani government announced the “Illegal Alien Repatriation Plan”, the first phase of which stipulates that “undocumented” Afghan refugees must leave the country within 30 days, otherwise they will be deported. Since then, 783,918 people have returned to Afghanistan. Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the Pakistani authorities to reverse their decision and provide Afghan refugees with protection from arbitrary detention and harassment in line with their international human rights obligations. In April 2024, Pakistan announced plans to begin the second phase of its plan to deport Afghan Citizens Card (ACC) holders, but it has not yet been fully implemented.
