UNSETTLING STABILITY: THE SECURITIZATION OF AFGHAN REFUGEES AND THE REGIONAL POLITICS OF FORCED MIGRATION IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

In the aftermath of the Taliban's return to power in 2021, Afghan displacement has re-emerged as a pressing regional challenge, with Pakistan once again becoming the primary host for forced migrants fleeing insecurity, repression, and economic collapse. This paper critically explores the changing Pakistani reaction towards Afghanistan refugees based on the two theories of Securitization Theory and Regional Security Complex Theory (RSCT). It states that there is a redefinition of the way the state of the governance of refugees has been, since the state has started to securitize Afghan refugees by legalizing, mass deportation, and militarization of the borders, the governance of refugees has turned into one of managing the threats instead of border protection.

By using policy analysis and regional patterns, and also the historical background, the paper examines the way in which discursive and institutional practices constructed the Afghan refugees into security subjects who must be treated with exceptional means, which destroy not only the rights of refugees but also regional cooperation. The paper also outlines the major institutional lapses, such as the lack of a coherent regional system of cooperation in terms of refugee management, the inefficiency of the processes of multilateral intervention, and the increased disparity between asylum regulation in South and Central Asian regions.