report in The Express Tribune, Nov 22, 2023PESHAWAR: Trade was halted Tuesday at border crossings between Pakistan and Afghanistan after Islamabad imposed stricter immigration rules on commercial vehicle drivers and crew, officials said. The Pakistan government has launched a massive operation against undocumented Afghans living in the country, alongside a crackdown on cross-border smuggling. Nearly 350,000 Afghans — many born in refugee camps in Pakistan — have returned voluntarily or been deported since the order…
Posts tagged as “trade”
report in Prothom Alo, Nov 21, 2023The United States has condemned recent violence against garment workers in Bangladesh protesting over the minimum wage and criminalisation of legitimate worker and trade union activities. “We are also concerned about the ongoing repression of workers and trade unions. Our principle, as we have stated before, is that government must ensure that workers are able to exercise their rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining without fear of…
By Bibi Amina Hakimi in TOLOnews Online, Oct 11, 2023 at 10:28 PMIran’s economic delegation has reached an agreement with Islamic Emirate’s officials and private sector representatives of Afghanistan on some issues in the areas of trade development. Iran’s Ambassador to Kabul Hassan Kazemi Qomi, said they have agreed to create an Iran-Afghanistan chamber, trade development, to provide of facilities in the transit sector and investment in the agricultural sector. “The creation of the Iran-Afghanistan…
by Anish Tiwari in The Kathmandu Post, Oct 3, 2023Beijing supposedly reopened the Tatopani-Khasa route on the Nepal-China border to two-way trade last May, but Nepali traders say they were given false assurances. “It’s only one-way trade,” said Sanu Maya Sherpa, a local trader from Bhotekoshi Rural Municipality-2. “We are not allowed to sell our products in Chinese cities.” The northern border was closed after the 2015 earthquake. Commerce resumed through the Tatopani border point…
by Liu Zhen in SCMP, Sept 21, 2023A new trading facility in a Tibetan village on the border with Nepal has been given the go-ahead, as China seeks to expand economic ties with its Himalayan neighbour. Construction work on the Lizi Port – which sits at 4,600 metres (15,000ft) above sea level – has been completed and it passed an inspection by the commerce ministry on Tuesday, according to Chinese state media. The inspection found…
by Kamrani Yousaf in The Express Tribune, Sept 13th, 2023.ISLAMABAD: Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan continued to persist on Tuesday as both the sides failed to make any headway in their talks to reopen the key border crossing that remained shut since Sept 6. “The status quo persists. No progress so far in talks. In fact, both sides are no longer holding talks for now,” an official source familiar with the development told The Express…
AFP report, Sept 11, 2023KABUL: Trafficking of the highly addictive stimulant methamphetamine in Afghanistan has surged in recent years, said a UN report published on Sunday, indicating an expansion of the drug’s production following the Taliban’s crackdown on the opiate trade. Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers have clamped down on the decades-old, lucrative trade in poppy tar — the psychoactive substance in heroin — since surging back to power two years ago. But while the heroin trade…
By Adam Khan Wazir in The News, Sept 2, 2023WANA: The protest of various trade unions for providing facilities and solving legitimate demands on the Pak-Afghan border Angoor Adda continues for the ninth day. The protesters include local leaders of South Waziristan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Trade Union, Fresh Fruit Union and Waziristan Transport Union and various other unions. In this regard, Taj Muhammad Wazir, who participated in the protest, said that due to…
report in The Daily Star, July 14, 2023US Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya has wanted to know from the civil society leaders about the protection of human rights defenders and trade union leaders. She also wanted to know about the security and protection of the ethnic minorities in the Chattogram Hill Tracts. The issues were discussed during a meeting of Uzra Zeya with five civil society and trade union…
By Damith Wickremasekara in The Sunday Times, July 9, 2023President Ranil Wickremesinghe is set to make an official visit to China in October, his first to that country since becoming the Head of State last year. According to Government sources his main role will be to look for new investments, reach trade agreements and resume funding for stalled projects. Expediting investments for the Colombo Port Financial City and discussions with the Exim Bank on resuming…
Battling trafficking
Editorial in Dawn, December 16th, 2023THE currency of human bondage, known as human trafficking, is the false promise of a better life through employment and even marriage in wealthy countries. Sadly, victims only realise that they have been trapped in a web of lies when they find themselves confronting forced labour, debt and sex work on foreign soil, which they have reached after treacherous journeys. Equally troubling is the fact that the sinister trade now…