Traders call for release of Afghan goods held in Karachi

KABUL (TOLOnews): A number of businessmen once again called on the Islamic Emirate to put pressure on Pakistan to solve the problem of their goods being held in Karachi.
More than 4,000 containers of transit items in the port of Karachi have been illegally stopped by the Pakistani government, they said.
“More than 4,000 containers are stopped, and I think three containers of my own are now in the same place, and there are a few other containers that were on the way when we returned them to China,” Zalmai Sarwari told TOLOnews. The Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI) said that Pakistan is trying to defeat the Afghan economy by imposing illegal restrictions on goods of merchants.
“Unfortunately, this unresolved problem is increasing day by day, we are going to have to pay $1 million a day, and the situation is that they want to hit Afghanistan economically,” said Khan Jan Alokozai, head of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce. At the same time, a number of drivers in Islam Qala port and Dogharon of Iran have stopped their vehicles because of the high cost of transportation.
“We drivers in Herat province were forced to go on strike so that they don’t take turns with us, not reduce the costs inside of Iran, and to not solve the problem of the small markets,” a Driver said.
The head of Faryab’s Chamber of Commerce and Investment in Aqina port called for equal time-sharing for cars in neighboring countries and Afghanistan as the solution to this challenge. “In a month, distribute 1,000 foreign vehicles [transit permits] to 1,000 foreign vehicles and reach an agreement with Iran and Turkmenistan to allow 1,000 of our vehicles to enter,” said Abdul Majid Niazi, head of the Andkhoy-Faryab Chamber of Commerce and Investment. The challenges of stopping Afghan merchants’ containers in Karachi port and problems with drivers in Iran’s Chabahar port come as Afghanistan conducts the most trade with Pakistan and Iran.