On Friday (5th April), the Chief Minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province, Maryam Nawaz, blamed Chinese nationals living in Pakistan for not following security protocols. She made the remarks targeting Chinese nationals days after five Chinese engineers were killed in a suicide bombing in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Apart from not following security protocols, Maryam added that the Chinese nationals also get “resentful” when they are asked to follow security protocols.
Notably, Maryam Nawaz is the daughter of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. After the recently concluded elections in February 2024, she became the first-ever woman chief minister of a province in Pakistan.
While addressing her maiden Apex Committee meeting, Maryam said, “The Chinese living here do not want to follow security discipline. They are resentful when they are asked to follow security protocols. They don’t want to come under any discipline as they fret over it.” Referring to Chinese nationals, she added that this might be uncomfortable for you (Chinese nationals) but we value you.
Conspicuously, her remarks aimed against Chinese nationals have been blacked out by the Pakistani media to not ire relationship with Beijing, however, the same can be heard 20-minute into the official video of the meeting uploaded by PMNL’s official X handle.
The apex committee meeting was also attended by Corps Commander Lahore Lt Gen Syed Aamer Raza and other senior military officers.
During the meeting, Maryam stated that her government would provide foolproof security to the Chinese nationals working on development projects in Punjab.
The meeting condemned the killing of Chinese engineers in Bisham. Last week, five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver were killed in a suicide bombing. The incident took place when they were travelling between Islamabad and a hydroelectric dam construction site in Dasu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The bus was attacked in Bisham city of Shangla district.
This was the second suicide attack on those involved in a China-backed project in the region since 2021. After the suicide bombings, the Chinese company overseeing the project halted its civil construction operation and laid off hundreds of employees at a hydropower project in Pakistan.
Notorious as a terrorist-sponsoring nation against its adversaries, Maryam argued that terrorism has taken the shape of difficult warfare while presenting Pakistan as a victim of terror.
She said, “Terrorists got digitalised and we need to be ahead of them on such platforms. Besides, terrorists have the latest weapons and technology. They have the US weapons that they got in Afghanistan. The weapons coming from Afghanistan are a big challenge for the law enforcement agencies.”
She admitted that Pakistani youth are also being brainwashed and recruited by terrorists. She further pointed out, “And social media is one of the major tools being used for the purpose.”
Meanwhile, on Friday, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed all the security agencies to ensure foolproof security arrangements for the Chinese nationals working on various projects in the country.
In a statement, Shehbaz Sharif said he had decided to “personally review the meetings with respect to the overall security of the country, especially the security of the Chinese citizens”.
He also claimed that Pakistan’s war against the menace of terrorism will continue till its complete eradication from the country.