ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has blacklisted and expelled the Asia coordinator of global press freedom group the Committee to Protect Journalists.
CPJ executive director Joel Simon called the expulsion of Steven Butler “baffling” and “a slap in the face” to those concerned about press freedom in Pakistan.
Butler was refused entry at the airport in Lahore despite having a valid visa and was returned to the United States. Butler said he was told he was on “a stop list of the Interior Ministry.”
The Pakistani government had no immediate comment Friday.
Butler was planning to attend the Asma Jahangir Conference-Roadmap for Human Rights in Pakistan. The conference this weekend is named for Pakistan’s renowned human rights activist who died last year.
Pakistan blacklists, expels global journalists’ group leader
Pakistan blacklists, expels global journalists’ group leader
- Steven Butler was told he was on "a stop list of the Interior Ministry" despite having a valid visa
- He was flying in to attend the Asma Jahangir Conference-Roadmap for Human Rights in Pakistan
Pakistan says $50 million meat export deal with Tajikistan nearing finalization
- Islamabad expects to finalize agreement soon after Dushanbe signals demand for 100,000 tons
- Pakistan is seeking to expand agricultural trade beyond rice, citrus and mango exports
ISLAMABAD: Tajikistan has expressed interest in importing 100,000 tons of Pakistani meat worth more than $50 million, with both governments expected to finalize a supply agreement soon, Pakistan’s food security ministry said on Tuesday.
Pakistan is trying to grow agriculture-based exports as it seeks regional markets for livestock and food commodities, while Tajikistan, a landlocked Central Asian state, has been expanding food imports to support domestic demand. Pakistan currently exports rice, citrus and mangoes to Dushanbe, though volumes remain small compared to national production, according to official figures.
The development came during a meeting in Islamabad between Pakistan’s Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain and Ambassador of Tajikistan Yusuf Sharifzoda, where agricultural trade, livestock supply and food-security cooperation were discussed.
“Tajikistan intends to purchase 100,000 tons of meat from Pakistan, an import valued at over USD 50 million,” the ambassador said, according to the ministry’s statement, assuring full facilitation and that Islamabad was prepared to meet the demand.
The statement said the two sides agreed to expand cooperation in meat and livestock, fresh fruit, vegetables, staple crops, agricultural research, pest management and standards compliance. Pakistan also proposed strengthening coordination on phytosanitary rules and establishing pest-free production zones to support long-term exports.
Pakistan and Tajikistan have long maintained political ties but bilateral food trade remains below potential: Pakistan produces 1.8 million tons of mangoes annually but exported just 0.7 metric tons to Tajikistan in 2024, while rice exports amounted to only 240 metric tons in 2022 out of national output of 9.3 million tons. Pakistan imports mainly ginned cotton from Tajikistan.
