To:
President,
Islamic Republic of Pakistan,
Islamabad
Dear Sir,
We would like to bring to your notice the recent
Police Action against innocent Afghan Refugees at Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
About a month ago, some unknown assailants attacked
a Police Party at Dhok Saidan, Rawalpindi, in which two policemen died
and one was injured. The injured policemen stated that the assailants
looked like Afghan Refugees.
Thereafter, the Rawalpindi and Islamabad Police
launched a campaign against Afghan Refugees.
The Afghan Refugees were asked by the Police
to produce a Passport with a valid Pakistani Visa, if they could not
do so, they would be arrested. Almost none of the Afghan Refugees in
Pakistan have a valid Pakistani Visa, therefore almost every Afghan
in Rawalpindi and Islamabad area was arrested.
Also the police did not accept any other document
like Refugee Card (Shanakati Pass), Camp Documents, Ration Card or UNHCR
documents as valid documents and Afghans Refugees in possession of such
valid documents were also arrested. This is all the more ironic as at
present, the Pakistan Government is not issuing any visas to Afghan
Nationals.
In the first four days alone 2000 refugees were
arrested in Rawalpindi, mainly from Subzimandi, Kachiabadi, Khataria
Market and Kahayabani-e-Sir Syed. 470 Afghan Refugees were arrested
by the Siala Police in a single day. Of these about 1200 were sent to
the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. The remaining were released by the Police
after taking bribes.
The Rawalpindi and Islamabad Police also raided
the houses of Afghan Refugees and in addition to arresting the refugees
the police also took away all the belongings of the refugees. The Rawalpindi
and Islamabad Police have also arrested a large number of Afghan Refugee
Children (under the age of 15 years) for not having valid documents.
Children are not required by law to possess or carry valid documents
of any kind.
One Afghan Refugee had taken his seriously ill
sister to Islamabad for treatment, where she was admitted to a hospital,
the brother came out to buy some medicines, where he was arrested. His
plea that his sister was in hospital and there was no one else to take
care of her, fell on deaf ears and he was sent to the Adiala Jail. His
sister was discovered in the hospital by her other relatives who started
to look for them after a few days. In at least one instance, Islamabad
Police opened fire on an Afghan Refugee who tried to flee on seeing
a police party.
The Rawalpindi and Islamabad Police have also
detained a number of Afghan Refugee Women on the charges of having no
valid documents, most of them have not been sent to prison except six
women who are presently detained at the Adiala Jail.
The Police action has greatly increased the police
harassment against the Afghan Refugees. At the moment it is impossible
for an Afghan Refugee to walk in Rawalpindi and Islamabad without being
robbed by the police or if they have no money to be arrested and sent
to prison.
At present there are between three thousand to
four thousand (3000 to 4000) innocent Afghan Refugees detained at the
Adiala Jail. Of these 6 are women and more then 200 are children.
The conditions of the Afghan Refugees at the
Adial Jail is particularly bad. More than a hundred detainees are confined
in barracks that generally house only 60 inmates. The Afghan Refugees
are given sub-standard food and in lesser quantity as compared to the
Pakistani inmates. Most importantly, inviolation of all laws, everyday
from 6 am to 2 pm all the Afghan Detainees are put to forced labour
(BEGGAR). Under the law only convicts awarded Rigorous imprisonment
can be put to labour, no one else. The Jail Staff also take all the
money from the prisoners that they receive from visitors etc.
The condition of the children (minor) detainees
is particularly pathetic. The children are being kept in the same barracks
as the adult detainees. .
The courts are also very slow in processing the
cases of the Afghan Refugees. The Courts at Rawalpindi do not accept
bail bonds submitted by Afghan Refugees.
Sir, as you are
well aware, when the Afghan Refugees first arrived in Pakistan, Pakistan
agreed to treat all them as Refugees. Only the head of the family was
issued Shankati Passes and only those living at the camps were given
Camp Documents. Now that the end of the Afghan Crisis is in sight and
all Afghans are looking forward to return to their homeland with dignity
and pride and have nothing but goodwill for their Pakistani hosts, it
is very unfortunate that campaigns like these are allowed against innocent
Afghan Refugees. In the interest of justice and friendly relations between
the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan, Revolutionary Association of
the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) appeals to your goodself to order/direct
:
1. The immediate release of all innocent Afghan
Refugees (those not involved in any criminal cases) presently being
detained at Adila Jail and other prisons in the country.
2. The immediately release of all innocent Afghan
Refugee Women and children detained at various prisons in the country.
3. The immediate suspension of the harassment
of Afghan Refugees by the Rawalpindi and Islamabad Police.
4. Innocent Afghan refugees may be detained only
till such time that they can prove their identity; innocent Afghan Refugee
women and children should not be detained/arrested at all.
5. The cases of Afghan Refugees pending in courts
be expedited.
6. Afghan Refugee detainees should not be discriminated
at the Prisons and other places of detention and should not be subjected
to ‘forced labour’ unless so directed by a court of law.
Yours truly,
Revolutionary Association of the Women of
Afghanistan (RAWA)
June 3, 2002
You can support our appeal by sending protest letters to the President
of Pakistan, The Interior Minister or to Pakistan embassy in your country:
General Parviz Musharraf
President of Pakistan
Fax: 0092-51-9224768
CE@pak.gov.pk
Lt. Gen.(R) Moin-ud-din Haider
Interior Minister of Pakistan
Fax.0092-51-9202642
minister@interior.gov.pk
Dr. Maleeha Lodhi
Ambassador of Pakistan to the USA
Fax: 202-3870484
parepwashington@erols.com
Please also send copy of your letter to the
following Pakistani newspapers and news agencies:
Dawn
letter@dawn.com
The News International
thenews@comsats.net.pk
The Nation
nation@brain.net.pk
The Frontier Post
editor@frontierpost.com.pk
NNI
nni@comsats.net.pk
Online
online@pes.comsats.net.pk