Protest staged in support of overseas Pakistanis

TIMERGARA: The Lower Dir chapter of Jamaat-i-Islami and local people on Wednesday staged a protest demanding the government to take notice of the miseries and hardships of stranded overseas Pakistanis.

Led by JI workers and former lawmakers outside the Timergara Press Club, the protesters were holding banners and placards inscribed with slogans in favour of overseas Pakistanis. The rally was addressed by former MPA Saeed Gul, JI Riyadh president Haji Ameer Zaman, president Anjuman-i-Tajaran Timergara Anwaruddin, Yaqubur Rehman and others.

They alleged that overseas Pakistanis in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and other Gulf countries had been facing numerous issues while the government and its embassies had been doing nothing to address their grievances.

Later speaking at a news conference, the JI leaders said that expatriates had been confined to their residences abroad for the last three months. They said that dozens of Pakistanis had died due to Covid-19 or other diseases. They said the bodies of expatriates were lying in morgues and the government had failed to bring them back home.

The JI leaders demanded the government to announce special packages for overseas martyrs and arrange special flights for bringing the bodies and stranded Pakistanis. The speakers said that overseas Pakistanis were now unable to afford their stay abroad due to financial conditions.