A Special Protection Force would be constituted to provide fool proof security to the foreigners dwelling in Pakistan. It was decided in the high level meeting which took place to review the law and order situation under the chairmanship of Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
The government took the decision to set up a special force for the protection of foreigners after the series of attacks on the foreigner, especially Chinese nationals, in recent months.
The interior minister directed the capital territory police to give special heed to not only the red zone but also all the important offices and places in the federal capital.
The Counsel General of China deputed at Lahore also called on Interior Minister Naqvi and discussed with him about the security of Chinese nationals in Pakistan. During the meeting the minister apprised the diplomat regarding the security measures taken by the government for providing security to the Chinese living in Pakistan especially the officials working on the different projects. He assured the diplomat that safeguarding the Chinese nationals is the top most priority of the Pakistani government and special operating procedures(SOPs) have been issued to law enforcing agencies in this regard.
It is a fact that some international powers in connivance with the regional players are hatching conspiracies against the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and other important projects including Gwadar port and dams that are going towards completion in collaboration with China.
The conspirators, who have foreign funding to damage Pakistan’s interests have two major objectives of the sabotage activities that are to create a breach in the time tested friendship of Pakistan and China and secondly to make disturbance in the progress of these extremely important projects for bringing Pakistan’s economy right on track. So they are continuously trying to target the Chinese engineers and staff working on these projects for some time.
Though the measure taken by the government of making a separate force to guard the foreigners especially the Chinese nationals is in the right direction and it could produce good results but it a long term project as first of all the personnel of the special force would be recruited and then they would be imparted training. It will take a year or more that the protecting body would be get ready to take the assignment but the government should find short term policy to safeguard the Chinese from the suicide attacks by the miscreants. It is suggested that as far as the new special force would come into the field to take its duty, by then the commandos of Pak Army might be deployed along with the Chinese staffers working on the projects of national importance as well as their premises. Moreover, their travels should be restricted or in case of necessity, they should be provided bomb proof armed personnel vehicles for travelling.
The government should take the matter of security of Chinese engineers working on joint ventures seriously as the increasing attacks against them can disrupt the Pakistan China relations.