Ashrafuddin Pirzada
TORKHAM BORDER: Hundreds of daily wagers and porters on Monday staged a protesting sit-in in Torkham against the strict conditions and visas for labourers who frequently cross the border.
A number of local bodies representatives and leaders also attended the sit-in staged on the busy Torkham border. The protesters marched on Torkham border and held banners and black flags in their hands.
Speaking on the occasion and Mazdoor union office bearers including Farman Shinwari and Barakat Shinwari, Kalimullah Shinwari, Zarqeeb Shinwari and Qari Nazeem Gul Shinwari said that authorities should relax the travelling conditions imposed at the Torkham border. They condemned the harsh attitude of authorities toward the poor porters.
They said the Torkham authorities should issue tokens for those who frequently cross the border. Barakat said that Frontier Cop(FC) personnel severely torture daily wagers and porters including small children who work to earn for their families.
The protesters also demanded of the government to allow the crew members of each truck to enter Afghanistan. The protesters threatened to continue their protesting sit-in until their demands were not accepted.
Meanwhile, local elders and labourers in a press conference condemned the immoral and harsh behaviour of Federally Investigative Agency(FIA) officials who tried to stop participating in the daily wagers protest in Torkham. Jamat-e-Islami Ameer Muqtadar Shah and Kalimullah Shinwari said that it was their moral and political right to participate in every public event.
They said alleged FIA officials at Torkham border that they used immoral attitude toward them and allowed them to meet the high-ups to resolve the issue peacefully. The tribal elders and political workers said that they would not tolerate their insult and would give an All Political Party protest in Khyber if action was not taken against the FIA officials posted at Torkham Nadra office.
