QUETTA, Pakistan - Pakistani authorities have put off plans to shut down one of the oldest camps for Afghan refugees, saying its inhabitants have refused to go home or to be relocated, a government official said.Pakistan had set June 15 as the deadline for the closure of Jungle Pir Alizai camp, in the southwestern province of Baluchistan, set up after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. But Khalid Mahmood, commissioner for refugees in the province, said the deadline would be missed. “As far as the deadline is concerned we are definitely not going to meet that,” he told Reuters late on Tuesday.
| Since the deadline is tomorrow. |
| Imagine that, Talibunnies finding safe haven in amongst their cousins and kinfolk. |
Pakistan has a plan for the voluntary, gradual repatriation of about 2.5 million refugees over the next three years in line with an agreement with Afghanistan and the U.N. refugee agency. It had aimed to close four camps this year, including Jungle Pir Alizai, 60 km (40 miles) west of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.
But observers say it is an uphill task to persuade Afghans to go because of insecurity at home and also because a large number have set up small businesses in towns and cities across Pakistan.
| In other words, they've settled into the Pak side of Pashtunistan and don't want to leave. |