FAIZABAD (Pajhwok): Afghan returning refugees in northeastern Badakhshan province voice concern over their dire economic situation and urge the caretaker government and national and international aid organisations to provide them with shelter and employment opportunities.
Neighbouring countries have, in recent years, treated Afghan refugees poorly and have undertaken their forced deportations.
Zekrullah, an inhabitant of Jurm district, who recently returned from Pakistan, told Pajhwok Afghan News he had migrated to Pakistan due to economic hardships and insecurity ten years ago.
He complained of harsh and unjust treatment by Pakistani police, saying he had performed arduous labour over the past decade against meagre wages, barely enough to survive.
Zekrullah said he was recently deported by Pakistani authorities and now suffers from severe financial difficulties and homelessness, currently living in a ruined compound under a tent.
He urged the Islamic Emirate and national and international aid organisations to assist them in construction of permanent shelters.
Meanwhile, Khairullah, a resident of Khash district in Badakhshan, who has returned from Iran with his family of four, shared similar concerns.
He said: “Twenty years ago, due to unemployment and economic hardship, I moved to Iran with my family. Life there was difficult and barely sustainable. Now that we’ve returned, we have neither a home nor work.”
He also urged the Islamic Emirate and aid agencies to prioritise job creation in their programmes so that Afghans were no longer compelled to emigrate.
Abdul Mutalib, a 40-year-old returnee, also lamented the lack of jobs and economic hardship, stating that he is currently living in a relative’s house in Khash district.
He described his time as a migrant in Pakistan as one of the worst periods of his life, saying he had been forced to migrate illegally due to poverty and unemployment.
He called on the Islamic Emirate and humanitarian organisations to focus on employment opportunities for returnees.
In response, Mohammad Kamgar, Head of Natural Disaster Management in Badakhshan, told Pajhwok that based on a recent directive from the High Commission for Returnees, local authorities have been instructed to coordinate with relevant institutions to address the challenges facing forcibly returned refugees.
He added that efforts were underway to provide permanent housing for returnees.
Also, Maulvi Qiyamuddin Haji Zada, Director of Refugees and Returnees in Badakhshan, said that food and non-food aid was being distributed to returning families.
He noted: “However, no residential settlement or permanent housing has yet been built for returnees in Badakhshan, but we are working to establish permanent shelters and employment opportunities for them.”
According to officials, over the past 15 months, 4,720 refugees have returned to the province from Turkey, Pakistan, and Iran.
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