UN chief urges more aid for Afghan refugees

ISLAMABAD — The international community should step forward to create a partnership built around solidarity in order to provide a better future for the people of Afghanistan, Pakistan and the rest of the world, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

Addressing a refugee conference in Islamabad held on Monday and Tuesday, Guterres cited Pakistan’s solidarity and compassion for Afghan refugees in hosting them as a remarkable blueprint for the rest of the world to follow.

“The people of Pakistan have extended generosity to the Afghan refugees for 40 years, and this story is very close to my heart,” he told the gathering. “As we look at the challenges ahead, the global community must step up. Afghanistan and its people cannot be abandoned. Now it is time for the international community to act and to deliver.”

Since 1979, Pakistan has regularly been the world’s top refugeehosting country.

Inaugurating the conference, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said: “I say it with pride that my country has hosted millions of refugees and despite economic challenges, Pakistan has kept good relations with Afghan refugees.”

However, he said some political leaders in the region have used the refugee crisis for their personal advantage in order to gain votes and spread hate.

Khan warned that a fresh refugee crisis could arise for Pakistan if the international community failed to take note of developments.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said the people of Pakistan have stood with their Afghan neighbors. “Pakistan’s solidarity in hosting refugees is admirable,” he said, adding that the refugee crisis has had “an impact on the local economy, infrastructure, and security”.

Despite Pakistan’s own challenges, its use of innovative technology in refugee protection — such as with biometric registration in enabling the Afghans’ access to the national education system, healthcare and inclusion in the economy — have been recognized as a global model of good practice.

“We cannot forget how Pakistan and Iran opened their doors for Afghan refugees,” Afghan Second Vice-President Danish Sarwar said. Ending the war was imperative for the repatriation of Afghan refugees, he said.

The UN secretary-general underscored the need for a renewed commitment to peace in Afghanistan in order to enable the refugees to return. “We know the solution lies in Afghanistan,” said Guterres, who noted that as the Afghan conflict drags on, its impacts in terms of poverty and displacement are clearly evident.

“Working toward solutions for the Afghan people is not just a sign of solidarity, it is in the world’s best interest,” said Guterres.

Grandi said that amid the fighting in Afghanistan, “more than 400,000 people were displaced within the country last year alone”, by conflict, drought and other natural hazards.

“And just 8,000 refugees were able to return home through the voluntary repatriation program.”

Khan calls for peace

Khan told the conference: “We need peace in Afghanistan for development and the prosperity of internally displaced people.” Development could only be possible through trade and friendly relations, which would also help both countries to improve their ties with other Central Asian states, he said.

The prime minister said that there are no terrorist safe havens in Pakistan and the country is doing everything to aid the Afghan peace process on humanitarian grounds.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said peace and stability are indispensable. The country would continue supporting an Afghan-owned and Afghanled peace process, he said, adding that the world should join hands with Pakistan to provide the basic needs for the Afghan refugees and enable them to live a dignified life.