Trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan through the Chaman border crossing came to a standstill on Tuesday as participants of a month-long sit-in, protesting against Pakistan’s stringent visa regulations, blocked the highway to Kandahar.
The protesters, part of the All Parties Traders Alliance, set up barricades, preventing vehicles loaded with goods from crossing the Friendship Gate, the authorized border crossing between Chaman and Spin-Boldak. While the protest impacted trade, the movement of illegal immigrants to Afghanistan continued unaffected.
The Balochistan caretaker Information Minister, Jan Achakzai, acknowledged the border was open for Afghan refugees returning home, citing security officials’ information that trucks carrying goods were using alternative routes. The government engaged with the Traders Alliance leaders for negotiations, assuring them of alternative employment for those involved in “illegal business” across the border.
The Traders Alliance, backed by various political parties, has been protesting for a month against the decision to regularize the Pakistan-Afghanistan crossing with a one-document regime, enforced on November 1. The alliance demands the withdrawal of this policy, advocating for people to use their national identity cards for crossing, while the government insists on passport and valid visa requirements.
Despite the government issuing over 200 passports in the past week and 1,200 tokens for passport applications, the deadlock continues. The Afghan government, in response, has reportedly halted the entry of commercial vehicles from its side. At the Torkham border, trade was briefly suspended when Afghan drivers were denied entry without documents, but it resumed after a seven-hour halt following discussions between the two sides.
