Afghans in Tajikistan
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Various estimates | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Dushanbe | |
| Languages | |
| Dari, Pashto, Uzbek, and other languages of Afghanistan |
The population of Afghans in Tajikistan consists largely of refugees from the various wars which have plagued Afghanistan. They form the vast majority of all refugees in Tajikistan; the other refugees in the country include a few Uyghurs and Iraqis.
Tajikistan first passed a law on refugees in 1994, bringing them into partial compliance with the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the which amended it. However, during the 1990s, few Afghan refugees chose Tajikistan as their destination; most were people associated with Mohammad Najibullah's fallen Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and Republic of Afghanistan administrations. Aside from political motivations, droughts were another major driver of migration. By May 2001, the Committee of Afghan Refugees claimed there were 4,000 refugees in Dushanbe alone, while the Tajik government put the figure at three to four times that number. These early refugees were primarily ethnic Uzbeks and Tajiks from northern Afghanistan.
With the onset of the U.S.-led attacks on Afghanistan in 2001, the refugee outflow intensified. However, Tajikistan closed their southern border, leaving many refugees trapped on islands in the Panj River which forms the border between the two countries. Tajikistan was the last country bordering Afghanistan to officially close their borders to people without visas, following similar moves by Iran and Pakistan which had both already admitted in excess of one million refugees. The Tajik government cited their own chaotic internal situation caused by the 1992-1997 civil war and lack of funds to provide for refugees as justifications. Tajikistan's richer fellow ex-Soviet Central Asian countries Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan also closed their borders to Afghan refugees. By early 2002, 14,000 still remained in Tajikistan. The whole group were repatriated to Afghanistan proper later that year.
As of 2006, estimates of the number who remained in Afghanistan ranged from 1,000 to 20,000. From January 2008 to December 2009, the UNHCR estimates that an additional 3,600 Afghan refugees arrived in Tajikistan, fleeing violence and lawlessness resulting from the Taliban advance into northern Afghanistan's Kunduz Province. Among the refugees are an increasing number of educated English-speakers who fear persecution for their ties to Western non-governmental organisations in Afghanistan; Pakistan has become a less-popular destination for them due to the increasing political instability there as well. There has also been a shift in the geographical and ethnic origins of refugees, with an increasing number of people from central and southern Afghan cities such as Helmand, Kandahar, and Kabul. However, ethnic Tajiks still make up a large proportion—an estimated 70%— of the latest wave of refugees. The UNCHR expects that another seven to eight thousand Afghans may seek refuge in Tajikistan in 2010.
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