Child labor is one of the troubling core problems of the South Asian countries, particularly Afghanistan and Pakistan, where a cold-blooded insurgency has paralyzed the already weak system. The insurgents, who fight in the name of religion, have undoubtedly proved their strength in waging wars, but they have, unfortunately, never worked for or talked about problems like child labor and violence against women.

 In the first photo, taken in Peshawar in March 2009, two school-age children work hard to earn bread for their families. In the same time, social and political developments and changes have brought a new hope to some of the war-hit people. In the second photo, two children joyfully browse the contents of their laptop computers distributed to them by One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project, in Isteqlal High School, Jalalabad, Afghanistan. (Photos by Abdulhadi Hairan)

After many efforts by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), the government of Pakistan eventually announced to extend the stay of Afghan refugees for more three years in the country that itself faces a flow of IDPs due to the rising militancy and a war-like situation.

Najmuddin Khan, the Pakistani Minister for Refugees’ Affairs, made this announcement in Islamabad on Thursday and said the deadline that was going to expire by the end of this year will now be extended until 2012; the security situation in Afghanistan would have been hopefully improved by then.

 The government had issued the registered Afghans in Pakistan refugee status cards valid until the end of 2009. According to news reports, the Minister said the decision will be announced formally after an upcoming tripartite meeting of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the UNHCR, in Kabul.

 Though many people expected this decision, yet it was the cause of immense satisfaction for those who did not want to return to Afghanistan right now – some because of the deteriorating security situation and some due to personal reasons.

 Besides this good decision, which was a legitimate right of the Afghan refugees living in the country for almost two decades, we demand the government of Pakistan to order its police not to treat the helpless Afghan refugees in uncivilized way. Several reports suggest that the police have been beating and humiliating the Afghans just because they are Afghan refugees. That is the worst impression of Pakistani state that the returning Afghans carry with them.