Plight of
Stranded Pakistanis
By Mahfuzur Rahman
Via E-mail
Over 2.5 lakh stranded Pakistanis living in 66
camps across Bangladesh are the world's most forgotten
refugees. The plight of the refugees - better
known as Biharis worsens each day.
Even though they are without a homeland, neither
the United Nations nor the International Red Cross
and Crescent Society recognise them as refugees.
Bangladesh can ill afford these refugees but yet
it has been taking care of these people for nearly
three decades. The burden is becoming too much
for Bangladesh to bear.
"...the stranded Pakistanis have become a
burden for us...our people do not accept them
either. Absence of proper initiative from the
government is an impediment to the process of
solving this longstanding humanitarian problem,"
former President HM Ershad was quoted by a study
conducted by NewsNetwork.
The camps where these stranded people are staying
over three decades are the classic examples of
subhuman living that has hardly any difference
with animal life. Dingy and stinky atmosphere,
merger of both water and sewerage lines, lack
of latrines and clean water are constant threats
to health. Fever, diarrhoea and other diseases
are common phenomenon in the camp life.
Malnutrition of children threatens their usual
physical growth. What is worse there is no provision
for the education of children, no maternity care
for mothers, and no healthcare for the elderly.
Each family has been given one room -- 6 feet
by 6 feet. But no one realizes that these families
have grown in size over the years. Sometimes,
10 people live in one room, spanning three generations.
The question of privacy does not arise. Some of
the camps at Mohammadpur and Adamjee have become
crime valleys. Theft, mugging, trafficking in
drugs and prostitution continue with the placid
support of local influential people, police and
goons. Outsiders have easy access to these camps
and get involved in criminal activities like selling
drugs, illegal weapons and prostitution.
Life in the camps is fraught with insecurity,
threat of vandalism and physical violence. At
Mohammadpur and Mirpur camps, there were some
incidents of murders for various reasons. One
such murder took place at Mohammadpur Geneva Camp
in July 2004 when a video shop owner was slaughtered
in broad daylight.
Most of the men from the camps work as rickshaw-pullers,
technicians, drivers, tailors, cooks and weavers.
Mirpur Banarasi saree is all their contribution
to the wedding market. Women work in garment factories
and as domestic help.
Another acute problem being faced by these stranded
people is the threat of eviction from the camps
by vested interest groups, local politicians and
musclemen who sometimes enjoy the support of the
local administration. Since the cost of land in
Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Narayanganj, Syedpur or Chittagong
where these camps are located has increased manifold,
the rich people with the help of musclemen want
to grab the land to make housing plots or build
multistoried buildings.
Sometimes these greedy people make arson attacks
on the camps in a bid to evict the stranded Pakistanis.
Sometimes they apply force to displace them to
clear the lands in violation of previous decisions
or orders of the government. Consequently, the
leaders of stranded Pakistanis are forced to frequently
move the court to seek justice. Many cases against
the evictions are lying in the higher courts for
disposal. However, the Pakistanis keep on living
in the camps by getting temporary court injunctions
and by overcoming many odds and obstacles.
What is the reason behind the stalled repatriation
of these stranded Pakistanis?
As per a tripartite agreement signed by India,
Bangladesh and Pakistan in 1974, all the remaining
Pakistanis staying in camps were to be taken back
by Pakistan.
Since the repatriation process got stalled, late
President Ziaul Huq, former Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif and incumbent President Pervez Musharraf
never declined to accept these Pakistanis. Instead,
Nawaz and Musharraf made categorical assurances
to the governments in Dhaka for initiating the
process of repatriation. Some may point their
finger to the "Mohajir (Bihari) problem"
in Karachi as Sindhis do not accept them in their
province. But perceiving this reality, the Pakistan
government built tin-shed houses at Mia Chunnu
in Punjab for their rehabilitation with financial
support from Saudi-based voluntary organization
Rabita-al-Alam-al Islami.
Former Pak Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif when he
was the Punjab Chief Minister said, "I, on
behalf of the people of Punjab, urge to accommodate
in Punjab all the Pakistanis presently stranded
in Bangladesh. However, for obvious reasons the
responsibility to arrange funds for their repatriation
and resettlement is of the federal government
(of Pakistan)." After assuming office of
the Pakistan Prime Minister, Sharif had assured
both the Bangladesh government and the SPGRC delegation,
led by Nasim Khan, of taking back these Pakistani
citizens.
President Gen. Pervez Musharraf during his official
visit to Bangladesh also gave assurance to Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia's government to take up this
humanitarian issue on priority basis, but no initiative
is still in sight.
If the question of funds for repatriation and
rehabilitation comes, it is not insoluble. It
is understood that already there is a substantial
fund raised for this purpose and deposited in
a Pakistani bank (perhaps Habib Bank). Initiative
could be taken to raise the required fund through
international voluntary organizations that spend
billions of dollars for humanitarian causes across
the world. If the problem lies in the mindset
of Pakistani politicians, then it needs to be
solved by Pakistani politicians themselves. If
Pakistan could show its magnanimity by giving
shelter to refugees from different countries,
including Afghanistan, why it would not take back
its own people and ensure their legitimate rights
to end their ordeal in the camps?
Dr Hossain, who signed the India, Bangladesh and
Pakistan tripartite agreement in Delhi on April
9, 1974 was quoted by a study as saying, "There
should be a meaningful discussion aimed at resolving
this humanitarian problem. We had made a framework
to repatriate the remaining non-Bengalis. Perhaps,
the two governments do not give sufficient priority
to solve this problem."
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