Washington D.C. - Alarming increases in the number of displaced people in Pakistan must lead Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke to make the protection of civilians a top U.S. policy priority in Pakistan, Refugees International (RI) said today. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reports that the conflict in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) has forced approximately 450,000 people to flee their homes. This figure is expected to increase to around 600,000 in the coming weeks. With Ambassador Holbrooke currently visiting the region, RI is calling for the U.S. to ensure international humanitarian law is upheld and to urge the government of Pakistan to reduce the suffering of Pakistani civilians.
"The U.S. must address the devastating humanitarian consequences of the war in Pakistan," said Patrick Duplat, advocate for Refugees International. "The Pakistani government's crackdown on militants is supported by the international community, and in particular the U.S. government. Ambassador Holbrooke must make it clear to the government of Pakistan that the U.S. is deeply concerned about the fighting's impact on civilians, and will not continue to support indiscriminate military operations."
The Pakistani army's heavy-handed crackdown on militants has disproportionately harmed civilians. When visiting the NWFP in December 2008, Refugees International interviewed displaced families who spoke of areas being bombed, resulting in the destruction of entire villages, civilian casualties and displacement. The army sometimes warns of impending attacks, but many villagers have nowhere to go.
The ongoing military offensive launched last summer has uprooted around 450,000 people from their homes, and UNHCR believes that figure could increase to approximately 600,000 in the coming weeks. Many have lost family members, as well as their homes, crops and livestock. Assistance is scarce, as poor security has severely limited the access of humanitarian agencies.
"Civilians are hostages of both the militants and the Pakistani army," said Kristele Younes, Senior Advocate with Refugees International. "The Pakistani government is quickly alienating local people and losing their support, as military operations continue to create more civilian casualties and more displacement. Ambassador Holbrooke, on his first trip to the region in his new high-profile post, must encourage the government to take all possible measures to ensure that civilian casualties are minimized, and that adequate assistance is reaching displaced people."
Refugees International is a Washington, D.C.-based organization that advocates to end refugee crises. In 2008, Refugees International conducted two missions to Afghanistan and Pakistan to identify the problems facing refugees, returnees and internally displaced people in the region. Read their most recent field report, "Afghanistan and Pakistan: Raise Voices for Civilian Protection" at http://refugeesinternational.org/policy/field-report/afghanistan-and-pak....
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Contact: Vanessa Parra; +1-202-828-0110 ext. 225
Vanessa@refugeesinternational.org
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
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