Roundups of asylum seekers: Dushanbe expels Afghans
Since the beginning of July, all refugees who fled the Taliban regime in 2021 have been receiving text messages ordering them to leave Tajikistan within 15 days. Those living in the country legally and many former collaborators of the pro-Western government in Kabul are also targeted. There are reports of men, women and children being loaded onto small buses. This crackdown comes on top of others already in place against Afghan exiles in Pakistan and Iran.
Dushanbe (AsiaNews) - Tensions between Tajikistan and Afghanistan have been dragging on for a long time, as the Tajik minority is one of the main ethnic groups in Afghanistan but has no representation in the institutions controlled by the Taliban.
The geographical proximity has led to large flows of Afghan refugees into Tajikistan in recent years, but now the authorities in Dushanbe have decided to deport them en masse, although the measures involved in this operation are still unclear, as are the number of people involved, where they have actually been transferred to and for what specific reasons.
UN agencies and humanitarian activists warn that forced expulsions may be considered violations of international law, given that many of these refugees could be in danger of their lives if they return home.
Tajikistan has officially admitted to implementing the resolution, with a statement from the press office of the border control forces reporting to the National Security Committee, which refers to a “growth in the flow of foreign citizens” who have entered Tajik territory illegally, some of whom “clearly violate the rules established for coexistence”.
These violations include participation in drug trafficking, propaganda of extremism, including through unacceptable behaviour, the presentation of false documents to obtain refugee status, the use of the territory for transit to third countries and the possession of documents of another nationality.
At the beginning of July, all refugees and asylum seekers in Tajikistan received text messages ordering them to leave the country within 15 days, otherwise they would be forcibly deported.
The authorities have not commented on this measure, nor have they acknowledged the authenticity of the messages. Reports have since emerged of the arrest and expulsion of many people, as first reported by the Afghan television channel Amu, according to which these measures also affected those who were officially registered and living in Tajikistan on a completely legal basis.
Among those deported are also former collaborators of Afghan state structures who fled immediately after the return of the Taliban in 2021 and who, upon returning to their homeland, risk their lives, as has already happened to many citizens who collaborated with the pro-Western government overthrown after the Americans left the country.
Journalists from Radio Ozodi also reported receiving many reports from Afghans who had been arrested and expelled from Tajikistan, and travelled to the city of Vakhdat, 26 kilometres from Dushanbe, where hundreds of Afghan refugees are living in compact groups. In front of one of the buildings, they were blocked by men in military uniform, who refused to comment.
Some Afghans nevertheless made anonymous statements, recounting the arrival of Gazel minibuses on which dozens of men, women and children were loaded and transported to unknown locations. The other refugees are trying not to leave their homes, stuck in fear of being deported, and even Tajiks living in the area confirm that they have witnessed these mass round-ups and how the remaining Afghans are trying to move to other places to escape capture.
Most Afghans claim to have arrived in Tajikistan legally, to be in possession of residence permits and to be officially registered with the relevant authorities, but even these conditions do not protect them from deportation.
According to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there are currently around 9,000 Afghan refugees living in Tajikistan, and the human rights agency in Dushanbe has stated that in 2024, 11,000 asylum seekers were registered by the Ministry of the Interior, 63% of whom came from Afghanistan.
Of these, 2,280 have received documents certifying their official refugee status, 2,591 have been granted temporary residence permits and only four have been refused refugee status “on the basis of false statements and documentation”. The situation of Afghans remains increasingly precarious throughout the region, given that Iran and Pakistan have also been proceeding with expulsions in recent months.
.png)
10/09/2021 11:29
20/06/2018 14:20
