140 ethnic Kazakhs to migrate from Afghanistan to Kazakhstan

By the end of 2002, 140 ethnic Kazakhs will have migrated from Afghanistan to Kazakhstan for permanent residence, the Head of Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry Consulate Department, Valikhan Konurbayev, has said on Tuesday. According to him, representatives of the most poor strata of the Kazakh Diaspora in Afghanistan should be the first to be subject to migration. Valikhan Konurbayev reminded those present that last year a special flight brought 143 ethnic Kazakhs from Afghanistan's Peshawar province to Kazakhstan.

The Head of Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry Consulate Department stressed that the doors would always stay open for those who want to return to their native land.

According to his figures, at present there are about 1,200 ethnic Kazakhs living in Afghanistan