ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has said it was illegal for Afghans living in the country to support or be involved in any political or electoral activities ahead of general elections scheduled for February next year, warning the migrants of expulsion if they did not comply.
Islamabad last month announced it would expel over a million undocumented migrants, mostly Afghans, amid a row with Kabul over charges that it harbors anti-Pakistan militants. Since the announcement of the deportation drive on Oct. 3, tens of thousands of Afghans, many of whom have lived in Pakistan for decades, have had to leave the country, and authorities are rounding up many more in raids across the country.
“Afghan nationals residing in Pakistan are cautioned that it is illegal to support or provide funding to any candidate for political and electoral activities in Pakistan,” the interior ministry said in a statement on Monday. “Any Afghan citizen involved in such activities will be deported regardless of legal status in Pakistan.”
In the 1980s, millions of Afghans fled to neighboring Pakistan during the Soviet occupation of their country. The numbers witnessed a spike after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.
Even before he expulsion drive began, Afghans have long complained about constant harassment due to the lack of citizenship rights for those who have spent decades living and working in Pakistan.
Human rights activists have for years called for Afghans born in the country to be given nationality in accordance with Pakistani law, which grants citizenship to anyone born in the country, except for children of diplomats and enemy aliens.