Wednesday December 24, 2014
ISLAMABAD (BNA) Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron) retired Lt Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch has rejected a perception that Afghan refugees will involuntarily be sent back to their country after the Peshawar school attack.
Speaking at a news conference along with Maya Ameratunga, acting representative of the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), here on Tuesday, the minister claimed that the registered Afghan refugees had never been found involved in terrorism-related incidents in the country and said they would not be repatriated against their will.
“We are not going to push them forcefully. They will be sent back respectfully on a voluntary basis and according to the timeframe decided upon,” he said, adding that the Afghan refugees had been living peacefully in Pakistan for more than three decades and they respected the country’s laws.
