As Pakistan escalates efforts to expel Afghan migrants, many are being forced to auction off their household belongings at deeply reduced prices.
Most of those affected are in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, where authorities have intensified pressure on Afghan nationals to leave.
Shujauddin, an Afghan migrant living in Rawalpindi with his six-member family, said he faces deportation despite holding a valid visa. In preparation, he has put his household items up for auction.
“I rented this shop a year ago for a huge sum—about 1.8 million Pakistani rupees—and invested in it. But now, because of the government’s decision, I am being forced to move to another city,” he said. “If I don’t leave, they will arrest and deport us back to Afghanistan. I have put all my shop’s goods up for auction at very low prices.”
Other Afghan migrants described similar hardships, saying they lack financial stability and cannot afford to start over again.
“I have been living in Pakistan for five years,” said Ikram Ahmadi, another Afghan migrant. “We spent a lot of money here, worked hard, and bought household items. Just as our lives were getting settled, the government decided to deport us. Now we have to sell everything, but the things we bought for 20,000 rupees are not even selling for 10,000. Some items, even at 5,000 rupees or less, remain unsold.”
Bahara Rufi, another migrant, said that even those with valid documents are being pressured to relocate.
“When we left Afghanistan, we sold all our household items and moved to Pakistan. But now, we are being forced out of Rawalpindi and told to move to another city in Pakistan. Because we are Afghan, we aren’t allowed to live anywhere,” she said.
Despite holding legal visas, many Afghan migrants fear arrest and deportation, forcing them to abandon their homes and businesses.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has granted Afghan refugees with valid visas and those with relocation cases until the end of March to remain in Pakistan. After that, Pakistani police are expected to begin arresting and forcibly deporting Afghan nationals from Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
