Allowing a petition of an Afghan female Hazara soldier, who saved her life by fleeing to Pakistan after the Taliban takeover in neighbouring Afghanistan, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has declared that asylum-seeker “can’t be incarcerated as Pakistani law recognises the right to asylum”. The interior ministry recently said that action against foreigners residing illegally was being taken and 57 people have so far been arrested under the Foreigners Act of 1946 and transferred them to Adiala Jail. Finally, with the help of some intervention by The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Pakistan, she was bailed out by IHC and placed under the custody of the Secretary Interior and the supervision of the UNHCR. In its detailed judgment, the court has noted that there were no grounds left for prosecuting Azizi after her asylum application had been recognized by UNHCR. Gilani argued that in any case under Section 14(2) of the Foreigners Act, establishing criminal intent or mens rea through evidence must be considered a prerequisite.

Source: The Express Tribune September 17, 2023 10:12 UTC