Pak Cabinet clears special CPEC business visa regime for Chinese investors

Pakistan Federal Cabinet on Tuesday approved a special China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) business visa to facilitate Chinese investors in the country.

Federal Minister for Planning Asad Umar informed about it in a media briefing along with Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhary about the decisions taken in the cabinet meeting held with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair on Tuesday, reported Pakistan Today.

Fawad Chaudhary said that "this will enable Chinese investors to get their visas within 48 hours and get the security clearance in 30 days".

However, in Pakistan, the hype created by the government through projecting the CPEC as a panacea for all problems is rapidly losing steam.

Struggling local businessmen lament that Chinese investors are cornering key domestic industries, state assets and businesses to the detriment of Pakistani players and interests.

Chaudhary also said that the Cabinet appreciated the economic team for steering the country towards stability despite the challenge posed by COVID-19 and the flawed policies of previous regimes.

Fawad Chaudhary also said that the forum approved the formation of a committee to review the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan's (TLP) application for lifting the ban on it, reported Pakistan Today.

After reviewing the application, the committee will present its recommendations to the cabinet.

In April, anti-France protests broke out in Pakistan where the supporters of now banned TLP took to the streets to protests against France over caricatures of Prophet Muhammad. The protests soon turned violent and exposed the grim security situation in Pakistan.

During the violent protests, hundreds of protesters and police personnel were injured and thousands of TLP activists and supporters were arrested and booked for attacking law enforcement personnel and blocking main roads and highways.

Several police vehicles were torched, buildings were attacked and policemen were kidnapped and tortured by the activists of the TLP across the Punjab province, with at least six policemen killed and over 800 injured.

The banned party, led by cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi gained popularity over the issue of blasphemy among the masses, specifically concerning Mumtaz Qadri, the killer of former Punjab governor Salman Taseer over blasphemy accusations.

Surprisingly emerging as the fifth largest party of the 2018 general elections, the party even defeated the ruling Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the recently held National Assembly elections in Karachi, thus showing its immense popularity in Pakistan.

Experts note that the recent anti-France protests led by the TLP are not a good sign for Pakistan, which is already on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey-list over terror financing.

The international body has kept Pakistan on the grey list, and with the incidents and violent protests by TLP, experts say it will be again hard for Islamabad to fight its case.

( With inputs from ANI )