Deportation of Sharbat Gula A Grave Injustice: AI

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شنبه 15 عقرب 1395 ساعت 11:14 نوشته شده توسط Faridullah Hussainkhail

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Amnesty International said on Friday the deportation of the famous green-eyed Afghan girl, Sharbat Gula, from Pakistan was a grave injustice.

Gula was recently arrested and charged for having a fake Pakistan identity card.

"Pakistan's decision to deport Sharbat Gula is a grave injustice. For decades, she was known as the world's most famous refugee and seen as a symbol of Pakistan's status as a generous host. Now, by sending her back to a country she hasn't seen in a generation and her children have never known, her plight has become emblematic of Pakistan's cruel treatment of Afghan refugees," said Amnesty International's South Asia Director Champa Patel.

"By forcing Afghan refugees to return across the border into the arms of an increasingly deadly conflict, Pakistan is in breach of the principle of non-refoulement. It is putting the lives of vulnerable people at risk of serious human rights abuses." Patel added.

Meanwhile Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal he stated on his facebook page: "With utmost delight, I announce that Sharbat Gula is now free from the legal troubles she endured over the past couple of weeks. She soon will also be free from an uncertain life of a refugee as she will be on her way back to her own country as soon as next Monday where she still is a beloved image and a national icon."

Pakistani officials told the media that Gula was arrested by Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) after a two-year probe in Peshawar, near the border of Afghanistan.

Pakistani authorities claim the arrest was due to her having had a fake ID.

A court in Peshawar on Wednesday rejected her bail application and she was sentenced to 15 days in prison, a fine and deportation.

Gula was 12 when photographer Steve McCurry captured his iconic image of her living in a refugee camp for Afghan nationals in Peshawar, Pakistan. Her image was first used on the cover of National Geographic.