KABUL: Leader of Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PKMA) Mahmood Khan Achakzai has opposed the government policy of repatriation of Afghan refugees saying that Khyber Pakhtunkhw (KPK) of Pakistan belongs to Afghans and they can live there without any fear.
In an interview with Afghanistan Times, Achakzai said “If Afghans are harassed in other parts of Pakistan, they should come here to the Pakhtunkhwa province, where no one can ask them for refugee cards, because it also belongs to them,” while responding to a query about Pakistan’s decision on repatriation of Afghan refugees.
To another question, he said Pakistan and Afghanistan should sit and talk about Torkham border issue, otherwise, they should leave this matter to China and the United States, they will figure it out within two weeks.
When asked if Pakistani Pashtuns were unhappy over Pakistan’s decision to build gates at the Afghan border, the PK-MAP leader said that Torkham and forced repatriation of Afghan refugees are two separate issues and Pashtuns are concerned about the matters of Afghan refugees.
Mahmood Khan Achakzai, whose elder brother is Governor of Balochsitan said he would not allow the harassment of Afghans on their own soil.
Political analysts said that Mahmood Khan Achakzai was speaking the language of Afghanistan and its refugees who are a big burden on Pakistan economy.
PTI leader Shaukat Yusufzai speaking on the statement of Achakzai said that the MNA never spoke in support of Pakistan. He said Mr Achakzai has so much love for Afghanistan, he should plead their case with Afghan government and also himself move to that country.
He said the statement of Mr Achakzai was based on personal interests. Talking to media persons informally,Minister for States and Frontier Region Lt Gen Rtd Abdul Qadir Baloch said that Afghans cannot be allowed to stay in Pakistan any longer. He said the Afghans have been occupying one million jobs in Pakistan. He said the government wants honourable return of the refugees.
The Minister said that Afghanistan government has not honoured its commitment regarding return of the refugees. He said the Afghan govt was given a plan for the return of the refugees but it has not been implemented. He said complaints of the KPK government about Afghan refugees are justified.
