On Monday, ISLAMABAD responded to criticism of Pakistan’s crackdown on foreigners living in the country illegally by claiming the move did not go against international norms.

Pakistan is set to deport over 1.7 million Afghans by Tuesday, prompting worry from the UN High Commission for Human Rights and other international organizations.
“We have seen the press statement by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,” reads a statement from the foreign office’s spokesperson.
A spokeswoman for the Pakistani government made it clear that all illegal immigrants, regardless of their nationality or country of origin, are subject to the IFRP (Illegal immigrants Repatriation Plan). “The decision is in exercise of Pakistan’s sovereign domestic laws, and compliant with applicable international norms and principles,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said.
This strategy does not apply to any foreign national who is properly registered to live in Pakistan, she emphasized.
The statement went on to say that the Pakistani government took its pledges to ensure the safety of persons in precarious situations very seriously.
“Our record of the last forty years in hosting millions of our Afghan brothers and sisters speaks for itself,” she added.
The spokesperson also stressed the importance of the international community’s prioritization of increased collective efforts to handle prolonged refugee situations through the development of long-term solutions. To achieve this goal, Pakistan will keep cooperating with other countries.
In the meantime, a proposal to deport all illegal immigrants has been finalized by the federal cabinet. Nearly 200,000 Afghans have returned to their nation in the last two months, Information Minister Murtaza Solangi said at a news conference.
Solangi stressed that the crackdown was not aimed against any specific nationality. During the repatriation campaign, the minister assured the public that women, children, and the old would be given priority.
The administration has agreed to establish “holding centers” where Afghans without proper documentation can be held before being sent back to Afghanistan.
The ministry of information has stated that anyone who are currently staying in Pakistan illegally are free to return once they secure proper visas.
He cautioned that landlords who knowingly house illegal aliens would be treated as complicit in the crime and subject to legal consequences.
Pakistan’s decision to expel all Afghans living there illegally was part of a larger policy made in light of the country’s security and economic predicament.
According to Pakistan’s interior minister, unlawfully entering Afghans were responsible for half of the country’s 28 suicide attacks this year.
The Afghan Taliban government’s reluctance to eliminate the threat posed by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is another factor complicating Pakistan’s already strained ties with Kabul.
According to official sources, Pakistani authorities concluded there would be no modification to the timeline or strategy despite pressure from several western countries for a reevaluation of the decision.