PESHAWAR: Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry said that on the direction of Prime Minister Imran Khan, federal ministers – Asad Umar and Zubeida Jalal – will visit Balochistan for talks with protesters in Gwadar to resolve their issues.
Addressing a news conference in Islamabad after the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Chaudhry said that the ministers will submit a report to the prime minister. He said that the month-long protest was also discussed in the cabinet meeting.
‘Haq Do Tehreek‘ continues from November 15 in Gwadar, a coastal city of Balochistan. They have made 19 demands including provision of clean drinking water and prevention of illegal fishing. Taking notice of the protest, the Prime Minister has said that action will be taken on the legitimate demands of the fishermen of Gwadar. “Strict action will be taken against illegal fishing by trawlers. I will also talk to the Chief Minister of Balochistan,” the PM wrote on Twitter.
Fawad Chaudhry said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had already taken notice of the Gwadar issue and had directed strict measures in this regard. Chaudhry claimed that the government has spent even more on drinking water projects in Gwadar than Islamabad. He informed that Rs700 billion “Southern Balochistan” package has been announced for development of backward areas of Pakistan’s largest province.
“Despite the large sums of money being paid, if the problems are not being solved, there is a need to re-examine the system,” the minister said. He added that both the Federal Ministers will visit Gwadar and submit a comprehensive report on the matter to the Prime Minister.
Talking about Afghanistan, the Information Minister said that visa policy for Afghanistan has been relaxed and the period for obtaining a visa has been reduced from 30 days to 15 days. He said that the procedures of international NGOs working in Afghanistan have been simplified so that they can visit to Afghanistan on time. He added that Afghan nationals traveling to other countries would be given seven-day transit visas.