The Transformation of the Afghan Refugee: 1979-2009

In the last 30 years, the social and linguistic articulation of the Afghan in Pakistan and Iran has gone from muhajir [refugee], to migrant, and even to terrorist. This article provides an overview of that transformation to demonstrate that it depends more on external factors rather than any fundamental change in the conditions structuring Afghan migration. Examining the migration regime operating between Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran further confirms the problems of a refugee/migrant dualism.