Aid group shuts all offices

Washington expresses concern over expulsion of ‘Save the Children’

islamabad — A local worker with the international aid group Save the Children says the group has shut down all its offices in Pakistan after the government shuttered its main office in Islamabad, raising fear among other organisations whether the government could target them next.

The worker said on Saturday that the group “voluntarily” closed its offices on Friday in Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore Quetta. .

The move came after Pakistan’s government on Thursday shut the group’s main office in Islamabad for allegedly violating its charter.

The decision drew international criticism, but Pakistan says it will not allow any non-government organisation to work against its interests.

Meanwhile, the US warned Pakistan it was only hurting itself after the aid group was expelled with Islamabad threatening to throw out more foreign aid groups.

Pakistan has in recent years accusing several aid groups of being covers for spying operations, and has repeatedly warned them to restrict their activities, vowing stern action for any “suspicious” activity.

Washington expressed concern at the move and said several nongovernmental organisations “have reported increasing difficulty doing business in Pakistan.”

“This has had a significant negative impact on international partner efforts to support government of Pakistan priorities,” said State Department spokesman John Kirby.

The statement came hours after Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Pakistan’s interior minister, said parliament was debating whether to expose what he said were the “many” foreign NGOs bent on undermining Pakistan.

“Many NGOs are working against Pakistan and we are deliberating on exposing them in the parliament,” Nisar told reporters.

“Non-government organisations working against the country’s national interest will not be allowed to continue their work in Pakistan.”

A police officer stands guard outside a sealed ‘Save the Children’ office in Islamabad. —

Aid groups have complained in recent years that increasing government restrictions on their activities has hampered their efforts to help vulnerable people in a country which still has huge numbers who live in poverty.

They say their work in so-called “sensitive” areas such as southwestern Balochistan — the country’s poorest, least developed province — have been particularly affected. Without naming any organisations, Nisar said some NGOs had been operating without proper regulation and had worked in Balochistan when they had permission

Non-government organisations working against the country’s national interest will not be allowed to continue their work in Pakistan

interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan

only to work in Islamabad. In 2012, the government expelled the expat staff of Save the Children, which has worked in Pakistan for over 35 years and employs 1,200 Pakistanis. That move came after Pakistani intelligence services accused the charity of links to doctor Shakeel Afridi, who the CIA allegedly used to carry out a fake vaccination programme as they searched for Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden. Save the Children has always vehemently denied any link to either Afridi or the CIA. “Pakistan’s international development partners respect the government of Pakistan’s need for full transparency from INGOs (international NGOs) involving their activities within the country,” Kirby said in a statement.

“We also agree INGOs must operate within a relevant legal and regulatory framework. “For that reason, we urge the Government of Pakistan to standardize and streamline a transparent process that will allow NGOs, including Save the Children, to work legally in Pakistan.”—