Global News – MSF deeply concerned by mass deportations of Afghans from Pakistan

Pakistan is home to an estimated 4.4 million Afghans, and a reported 500,000 have crossed the border so far. Many Afghans living in Pakistan have been there for decades and have spent more time in the country than their country of origin, without any legal recourse to remain in the only place they can effectively call ‘home’.

For many Afghans, this ‘repatriation’ means packing up their belongings and carrying them on a horse, cart, car and bus and travelling en masse to a country that is already struggling with widespread poverty, inadequate health services and increased restrictions on women. 

The second phase of the deportations leaves an estimated 800,000 Pakistan-issued Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders vulnerable to return, and at risk of harm, while phase 3 is expected to result in the further deportation of UNHCR-issued Proof of Registration (PoR) card holders.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) first started working in Pakistan in 1986, and today provides much-needed medical care to people in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh provinces. Access to healthcare remains a challenge in Pakistan, especially for people in rural communities, informal settlements and areas affected by conflict. MSF has projects providing reproductive, neonatal and paediatric care, diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous leischmaniasis, diagnosis and treatment of hepatitis C, and diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in the country.

MSF Australia was established in 1995 and is one of 24 international MSF sections committed to delivering medical humanitarian assistance to people in crisis. In 2022, more than 120 project staff from Australia and New Zealand worked with MSF on assignment overseas. MSF delivers medical care based on need alone and operates independently of government, religion or economic influence and irrespective of race, religion or gender. For more information visit msf.org.au