ISLAMABAD: Protest caravans of a Pakistani religious party entered the federal capital on Friday, planning to stage a sit-in against the rising cost of living and additional taxes imposed in the latest budget presented last month, as the government formed a negotiation committee to engage with its leadership.
The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) party, led by Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman, announced the sit-in in Islamabad to forcefully call for a reduction in the power tariff amid soaring inflation and to review Pakistan’s agreements with independent power producers.
The party’s caravans entered the capital from different directions, as the district administration closed the Red Zone — a sensitive neighborhood of the city housing top government offices and the diplomatic enclave — with shipping containers and all other main routes leading to the Parliament House.
“We are ready for negotiations, but don’t disrupt public life,” Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said while addressing the situation in a news conference.
He said the government had formed a three-member committee to talk to the JI leadership, which included him and two senior members of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.
“The government’s three-member committee will talk to you. Amir Muqam, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry and I will negotiate with you,” he continued, naming two other members of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.
“Whenever you express willingness, we are ready for the negotiations,” he added.
Meanwhile, JI’s spokesperson in Islamabad said the party would continue with its protest.
“Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman will be joining the sit-in at Zero Point shortly,” Aamir Baloch told Arab News, mentioning a major intersection in the city where various key roads and highways connect with each other.
He said thousands of JI workers had already reached the area to stage the sit-in despite the government’s “brutalities.”
“The police have arrested dozens of our peaceful workers from D-Chowk,” he said, referring to another spot in the city located near the parliament building. “The government wants to incite the peaceful protesters through such strong-arm tactics. It will be responsible for any law and order situation if our workers are not released immediately.”
Police in the capital have deployed additional contingents, including its personnel with riot gears, to prevent any untoward incident. The Rawalpindi-Islamabad Express Highway has also been closed with the shipping containers near the Zero Point bridge where the JI protesters have gathered.
Baloch said the party leadership would announce their agenda after reaching Zero Point.
“One thing is for sure,” he continued. “We are here to stay and will definitely stage a sit-in to press the government to meet our legitimate demands regarding inflation and taxes.”
Government forms negotiation committee as Islamabad faces sit-in by religious party over inflation
https://arab.news/y98qv
Government forms negotiation committee as Islamabad faces sit-in by religious party over inflation
- Jamaat-e-Islami workers have reached a key intersection in the federal capital to hold their demonstration
- They want the government to address the cost-of-living crisis, remove additional taxes in the federal budget
Pakistan, global crypto exchange discuss modernizing digital payments, creating job prospects
- Pakistani officials, Binance team discuss coordination between Islamabad, local banks and global exchanges
- Pakistan has attempted to tap into growing crypto market to curb illicit transactions, improve oversight
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s finance officials and the team of a global cryptocurrency exchange on Friday held discussions aimed at modernizing the country’s digital payments system and building local talent pipelines to meet rising demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, the finance ministry said.
The development took place during a high-level meeting between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal bin Saqib, domestic bank presidents and a Binance team led by Global CEO Richard Teng. The meeting was held to advance work on Pakistan’s National Digital Asset Framework, a regulatory setup to govern Pakistan’s digital assets.
Pakistan has been moving to regulate its fast-growing crypto and digital assets market by bringing virtual asset service providers (VASPs) under a formal licensing regime. Officials say the push is aimed at curbing illicit transactions, improving oversight, and encouraging innovation in blockchain-based financial services.
“Participants reviewed opportunities to modernize Pakistan’s digital payments landscape, noting that blockchain-based systems could significantly reduce costs from the country’s $38 billion annual remittance flows,” the finance ministry said in a statement.
“Discussions also emphasized building local talent pipelines to meet rising global demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, creating high-value employment prospects for Pakistani youth.”
Blockchain is a type of digital database that is shared, transparent and tamper-resistant. Instead of being stored on one computer, the data is kept on a distributed network of computers, making it very hard to alter or hack.
Web3 refers to the next generation of the Internet built using blockchain, focusing on giving users more control over their data, identity and digital assets rather than big tech companies controlling it.
Participants of the meeting also discussed sovereign debt tokenization, which is the process of converting a country’s debt such as government bonds, into digital tokens on a blockchain, the ministry said.
Aurangzeb called for close coordination between the government, domestic banks and global exchanges to modernize Pakistan’s payment landscape.
Participants of the meeting also discussed considering a “time-bound amnesty” to encourage users to move assets onto regulated platforms, stressing the need for stronger verifications and a risk-mitigation system.
Pakistan has attempted in recent months to tap into the country’s growing crypto market, crack down on money laundering and terror financing, and promote responsible innovation — a move analysts say could bring an estimated $25 billion in virtual assets into the tax net.
In September, Islamabad invited international crypto exchanges and other VASPs to apply for licenses to operate in the country, a step aimed at formalizing and regulating its fast-growing digital market.
