Quetta: Thousands of miners have stopped work and many have fled Pakistan’s restive Baluchistan province since insurgents killed 10 Hazara workers at a colliery last month, officials said Thursday.
Labour organizations and government officials said up to 15,000 workers had downed tools since the murder of the Hazara group, forcing around 200 mines to close and slashing production.
More than 100 mines were “still non-functional,” said Abdullah Shehwani, the provincial head of coal mines.
More than 40,000 workers toil in hundreds of small mines in Baluchistan province — the country’s largest and poorest region, which is rife with ethnic, sectarian and separatist insurgencies.
Militant groups regularly extort protection money from colliery owners or kidnap workers for ransom. Failure to pay often results in deadly violence.
Refugees or economic migrants from Afghanistan make up a big part of the workforce — especially from the marginalized Hazara community.
Ten Hazara miners were kidnapped by gunmen from a remote colliery in early January before being taken to nearby hills where most were shot dead, and some beheaded.
It prompted huge protests among Hazaras, who make up most of the Shiite population in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan and less than 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the Afghanistan border.
Their Central Asian features make them easy targets for Sunni militants, who consider them heretics.
“Local workers ask for high pay and owners have to pay them compensation, in case of any accident,” Habib Tahir, provincial chief of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, told AFP.
“Afghan refugees... work in the coal mines for low pay.”
But Behroz Reiki, president of a mine owners’ association, said the current situation was also causing grave hardship for local communities.
“A closure of a coal mine means no jobs for the security guards and other employees — those who work in other sections, including drivers, helpers and others,” he said.
Atif Hussain, an official from the government’s mines department, insisted security had been beefed up.
“We have provided special security to the Hazara workers,” he said, adding: “Now they move in a police escort.”
Some mines had re-opened after government forces increased security, said MirDad Khel, the head of a local coal miners’ association, but many miners were still scared.
“Fifty percent of the workers are still reluctant to return... they are still jobless,” he told AFP.
“They don’t have money even for their day-to-day expenses — even for one meal.”
Pakistan coal miners reluctant to work after Hazara killings
https://arab.news/yr6p2
Pakistan coal miners reluctant to work after Hazara killings
- Thousands of miners have stopped work, many have fled Baluchistan province since insurgents killed 10 Hazara workers at a mine last month
- Labour organizations and government officials say 15,000 workers had downed tools forcing around 200 mines to close and slashing production
Pakistan PM takes notice of passenger offloading issue, forms committee to streamline immigration
- Several passengers complained last month of being offloaded at airports despite having genuine travel documents
- Committee comprising IT minister to be led by minister for overseas Pakistanis, submit report to PM within three weeks
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has taken notice of reports of arbitrary offloading of Pakistani passengers at various airports and has constituted a 14-member committee to streamline immigration procedures, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis said this week.
The development took place after several passengers last month complained they were being offloaded at various Pakistani airports despite carrying valid travel documents, drawing public ire on social media platforms.
These reports coincided with Islamabad’s crackdown on illegal immigration, which gained significant attention in Pakistan after the arrest of several Pakistani and foreign nationals at airports with forged documents in recent years.
As per a notification by the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis seen by Arab News dated Dec. 15, Sharif has formed a 14-member committee comprising the federal IT minister, state minister for overseas Pakistanis, and secretaries of both ministries. The committee will be led by the federal minister for overseas Pakistanis.
“A committee comprising the following members has been constituted to deliberate upon and implement measures for eliminating and minimizing human discretionary elements in the issuance and renewal of the Protectorate of Emigrants (POE) stamp for bona fide emigrants proceeding abroad,” the notification reads.
A POE stamp is a mandatory government endorsement on a Pakistani passport that is required by a citizen traveling abroad for employment.
The committee’s terms of reference (ToRs) include suggesting a “workable and end-to-end digitized process” for online issuance of POE stamps. It has also been tasked to undertake measures to develop a system to facilitate the online renewal of POE stamps.
The committee will suggest a mechanism to monitor workers’ satisfaction with the issuance, renewal of POE stamps and related immigration clearance arrangements.
“[Provide] recommendations for any other related measures which can improve the existing POE arrangements and bring them in line with international best practices,” it added.
The notification said the committee will finalize its findings within three weeks and submit a report to the prime minister.
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi last month urged authorities not to offload passengers with valid travel documents.
Pakistan has also intensified its crackdown against individuals accused of exploiting visas to solicit money in Saudi Arabia.
Officials have warned the practice is damaging the country’s image and could affect genuine visa seekers, including religious pilgrims.
