Pakistan no longer a militant safe haven: PM Imran

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan stressed on Monday Pakistan was no longer a militant safe haven, and said his administration fully supported the Afghan peace process.

“I can tell you that there are no safe havens here,” Khan said at Refugee Summit here, marking 40 years of hosting Afghan refugees in Pakistan. “Whatever the situation might have been in the past, right now, I can tell you... there is one thing we want: peace in Afghanistan.”

While Pakistan could not “completely guarantee” that no Taliban were hiding among the estimated 2.7 million Afghans living in Pakistan, Khan said his government had done all it could to prevent attacks in Afghanistan, including by building a border fence.

The Prime Minister said the entire leadership in Pakistan, including civilian and military, was on the same page for its commitment to peace in Afghanistan. He said ensuring connectivity between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia was future of the region’s development and prosperity that required commitment by all stakeholders.

Khan said the people of Afghanistan suffered the most in recent history and stressed it was responsibility of the world to share the burden with Pakistan. He said the “pleasant side” of Afghan refugees in Pakistan was rearing of a professional cricket team of Afghanistan of its own, who recently defeated the under-19 Pakistani cricket team.

The Prime Minister also drew the attention of audience towards blatant human rights violations in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir where minorities, particularly Muslims, were marginalised. He said the racist ideology of incumbent Indian government had severe implications and urged the United Nations to take notice of the situation.

The high-profile event was attended by United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, diplomats, representatives of international organisations and members of foreign media. US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, who has for more than a year led talks between the Taliban and Washington, also attended the conference. He said he was “cautiously optimistic” about progress toward an eventual deal.

The US has “commitments from the Talibs on security issues,” he said.UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who is on a three-day visit to Pakistan, credited Pakistan for supporting Afghan refugees. “For 40 years, the people of Afghanistan have faced successive crises, for 40 years, the people of Pakistan have responded with solidarity,” Guterres said, while calling on the international community to do more. “As we look to the challenges ahead, the global community must step up,” he said.

The UN chief said Pakistan’s resilience and exceptional generosity made it the second largest refugee-hosting country in the world. He quoted a verse from Surah Taubah of the Holy Quran, saying: “And if any one of the polytheists seeks your protection, then grant him protection so that he may hear the words of Allah. Then deliver him to his place of safety.”

Afghanistan’s Second Vice President stressed the Afghan government fully supported negotiations between the United States and Taliban for durable peace, but emphasised the importance of direct talks with the Afghan government as well. He called for a joint programme and mechanism with an oversight of the United Nations to facilitate repatriation of Afghan refugees through a planned process in a voluntary and gradual manner.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said Afghan displacement could only be resolved through peace. He acknowledged that Pakistan’s generosity to Afghan refugees for four decades had a cost in shape of impact on local economy, infrastructure, security and environment. He commended Pakistan for allowing the Afghan refugees to open bank accounts and urged the donors for further development of resources to address the problems of a large number of refugees.