9,000 Afghans repatriated in since March: UNHCR

ISLAMABAD—More than 9,000 registered Afghan refugees have returned to their homeland under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) voluntarily repatriation programme since March 1 this year. According to UNHCR figure, 8,025 refugees repatriated from NWFP, 540 from Balochistan, 153 from Sindh and 363 from Punjab. UNHCR is processing and facilitating those Afghans who are willing to repatriate to their homeland voluntarily.
UNHCR has set-up one voluntary repatriation centre in Peshawar and Quetta for refugees. Each repatriate receive an amount of US $ 100 upon arrival in Afghanistan.
Since UNHCR started assisting returns to post-Taliban Afghanistan in 2002, a total of 3,238,778 Afghans have been processed to return home from Pakistan. The number includes more than 1.56 million in 2002; 343,074 in 2003; 383,598 in 2004; 449,520 in 2005; 133,015 in 2006 and 364,476 in 2007, he added. He said that, registered Afghans who wish to repatriate with UNHCR assistance, they can approach to the Voluntary Repatriation Centers (VRCs) located in Quetta and Peshawar, Afghans approaching these centres must bring PoR cards along with tow colour photographs of their family.

—Online