It has been over a year now that Pakistan’s government has taken harsh steps to forcibly deport Afghan refugees to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.
The country, however, forgets that several of the deported refugees are born in Pakistan or have valid ID proofs to prove their citizenship in Pakistan.
A review report released on Wednesday by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) highlighted severe flaws in Pakistan’s citizenship laws, arguing that both laws need to be revised to comply with Pakistan’s international legal obligations and the customary law of refoulement of refugees.
The HRCP report highlights that the flawed definition of ‘foreigner’ in the Pakistani constitution has allowed the persecution of refugees under the Foreigners Act 1946. And, contrary to popular understanding, the Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951 unequivocally grants the right to nationality to anyone born in Pakistan, but this provision has simply not been applied correctly in the deportation process of refugees.
According to the HRCP report, titled Who Belongs: The Foreigners Act 1946 and Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951, Pakistan’s legal framework recognises only two distinct and broad categories of individuals concerning their relationship with the state: citizens and foreign nationals. It does not contain an adequate legal protection framework for refugees, despite Pakistan being amongst the largest hosts of Afghan refugees for almost half a century, nor does it contemplate a scenario where an individual lacks citizenship of any country and is therefore stateless.
Additionally, the refugees in Pakistan are not recognized as a distinct group of people different from foreigners or possible citizens under national law. The same report also highlights that in defining the category of individuals considered as foreigners, a critical examination of the Pakistan Citizenship Act of 1951 is indispensable.
The HRCP report added that a review of the Foreigners Act 1946 and the Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951 reveals clear gaps in the protection of refugees and citizenship rights. Moreover, both laws predate the formation of the Constitution of Pakistan in 1973 as well as several of Pakistan’s international human rights commitments (such as under CAT, ICCPR, CEDAW, Convention on the
Rights of the Child (CRC) etc.). Therefore, they fall short in encompassing commitments to guaranteeing fundamental rights granted in the Constitution and international law.
The report also highlighted that Pakistan must develop oversight mechanisms to prevent arbitrary use of powers and force against those deemed non-citizens, especially refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons under wide powers granted through various provisions of the Foreigners Act 1946.
Additionally, the HRCP report also suggested that the administrative stakeholders in Pakistan must uphold the fundamental international human rights law principle of non-refoulement and the prohibition of collective expulsion by developing appropriate mechanisms and allocating resources that ensure an individual assessment of the protection needs of refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons with due process.
(With ANI Inputs)
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