Afghan Resettled Refugees in Pakistan -- USAGM
Metadata
- Afghan Resettled Refugees in Pakistan -- USAGM
- August 12, 2022
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script English Afghan Resettled Refugees in Pakistan - Ahmed HEADLINE: Without Documentation, Afghan Refugees in Pakistan Struggle to Meet Needs TEASER: Those lacking a proof of registration card are finding it difficult to obtain basic necessities such as health care, housing PUBLISHED AT: (8/10/22 & 6:06p) BYLINE: Malik Waqar Ahmed CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Islamabad, Pakistan VIDEOGRAPHER: Malik Waqar Ahmed VIDEO EDITOR: Malik Waqar Ahmed SCRIPT EDITORS: KE; Reifenrath, DJ (ok) VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original | VOA Deewa Service PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __ TRT: 2:53 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: EDITOR NOTES: Re-releasing with a new track for clarity)) ((INTRO)) [[As the Taliban seized control of their country last year, hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled to neighboring countries. In Pakistan, many Afghan refugees are facing unique difficulties due to lack of documentation. Malik Waqar Ahmed of VOA reports from Islamabad. Narrated by Ayesha Tanzeem.]] ((NARRATOR)) Seventeen-year-old Benazir Akhtari is teaching kids in a roadside tent in Islamabad, Pakistan. Like her, these kids don’t have many opportunities to get a formal education. ((Benazir Akhtari, Afghan Refugee)) ((Female in Dari)) “I came to Pakistan full of hope, thinking that I would continue my education here. For six months, I knocked on the door of every school. None would take me because I don’t have a POR card.” ((NARRATOR)) Akhtari is just one of roughly 250,000 Afghans who fled to Pakistan last year. Once in the country, Afghan refugees can receive a proof of registration card, or POR, which allows them to live in Pakistan legally. The card is issued by the Pakistan government in coordination with the U.N. Refugee agency — the UNHCR. Because so many refugees need the card, the wait can last a year or longer. And that is making life incredibly hard. ((Gul Agha Sahak, Afghan Refugee)) ((Male in Pashto)) “Getting a house to rent is very difficult. We can’t get sim cards for our phones. Any basic necessity is hard to get without this card.” ((NARRATOR)) Even before the Taliban takeover, nearly 3 million Afghan refugees lived in Pakistan. Many of them arrived in the 1980s, during the decade-long Afghan war between the Soviet Union and Afghan religious fighters known as the Mujahideen. Even some of these refugees from decades ago don’t have official refugee status. Many of the newly arrived refugees say they want to move elsewhere, mostly to Europe or North America. (Officials at the UNHCR say issuing the card takes time and effort. ((Qaiser Khan Afridi, UNHCR Spokesperson)) ((Male in Pashto)) “When people arrive in such a huge number, it becomes very difficult to process them. We have increased our capacity. But we must interview and screen them properly, so it takes time.” ((NARRATOR)) Meanwhile, without the card, the refugees can’t access even the most fundamental needs, like health care. ((Zhola Sahar, Afghan Refugee)) ((Female in Pashto)) “Once, I went to the hospital, but they wanted to see my documents. At the time, I had neither a refugee card nor a passport. So I could not get treated.” ((NARRATOR)) Akhtari wonders if her dream of becoming a doctor will be crushed as she waits to be legally recognized in Pakistan. ((For Malik Waqar Ahmed in Islamabad, Pakistan, Ayesha Tanzeem, VOA News))
- Transcript/Script Afghan Resettled Refugees in Pakistan - Ahmed HEADLINE: Without Documentation, Afghan Refugees in Pakistan Struggle to Meet Needs TEASER: Those lacking a proof of registration card are finding it difficult to obtain basic necessities such as health care, housing PUBLISHED AT: (8/10/22 & 6:06p) BYLINE: Malik Waqar Ahmed CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Islamabad, Pakistan VIDEOGRAPHER: Malik Waqar Ahmed VIDEO EDITOR: Malik Waqar Ahmed SCRIPT EDITORS: KE; Reifenrath, DJ (ok) VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original | VOA Deewa Service PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __ TRT: 2:53 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: EDITOR NOTES: Re-releasing with a new track for clarity)) ((INTRO)) [[As the Taliban seized control of their country last year, hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled to neighboring countries. In Pakistan, many Afghan refugees are facing unique difficulties due to lack of documentation. Malik Waqar Ahmed of VOA reports from Islamabad. Narrated by Ayesha Tanzeem.]] ((NARRATOR)) Seventeen-year-old Benazir Akhtari is teaching kids in a roadside tent in Islamabad, Pakistan. Like her, these kids don’t have many opportunities to get a formal education. ((Benazir Akhtari, Afghan Refugee)) ((Female in Dari)) “I came to Pakistan full of hope, thinking that I would continue my education here. For six months, I knocked on the door of every school. None would take me because I don’t have a POR card.” ((NARRATOR)) Akhtari is just one of roughly 250,000 Afghans who fled to Pakistan last year. Once in the country, Afghan refugees can receive a proof of registration card, or POR, which allows them to live in Pakistan legally. The card is issued by the Pakistan government in coordination with the U.N. Refugee agency — the UNHCR. Because so many refugees need the card, the wait can last a year or longer. And that is making life incredibly hard. ((Gul Agha Sahak, Afghan Refugee)) ((Male in Pashto)) “Getting a house to rent is very difficult. We can’t get sim cards for our phones. Any basic necessity is hard to get without this card.” ((NARRATOR)) Even before the Taliban takeover, nearly 3 million Afghan refugees lived in Pakistan. Many of them arrived in the 1980s, during the decade-long Afghan war between the Soviet Union and Afghan religious fighters known as the Mujahideen. Even some of these refugees from decades ago don’t have official refugee status. Many of the newly arrived refugees say they want to move elsewhere, mostly to Europe or North America. (Officials at the UNHCR say issuing the card takes time and effort. ((Qaiser Khan Afridi, UNHCR Spokesperson)) ((Male in Pashto)) “When people arrive in such a huge number, it becomes very difficult to process them. We have increased our capacity. But we must interview and screen them properly, so it takes time.” ((NARRATOR)) Meanwhile, without the card, the refugees can’t access even the most fundamental needs, like health care. ((Zhola Sahar, Afghan Refugee)) ((Female in Pashto)) “Once, I went to the hospital, but they wanted to see my documents. At the time, I had neither a refugee card nor a passport. So I could not get treated.” ((NARRATOR)) Akhtari wonders if her dream of becoming a doctor will be crushed as she waits to be legally recognized in Pakistan. ((For Malik Waqar Ahmed in Islamabad, Pakistan, Ayesha Tanzeem, VOA News))
- NewsML Media Topics Conflict, War and Peace, Politics
- Topic Tags Resettled Refugees
- Network VOA
- Embargo Date August 12, 2022 14:49 EDT
- Description English As the Taliban seized control of their country last year, hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled to neighboring countries. In Pakistan, many Afghan refugees are facing unique difficulties due to lack of documentation. Malik Waqar Ahmed of VOA reports from Islamabad. Narrated by Ayesha Tanzeem.
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English