![[FILE] A paramilitary soldier stands guard on the road linking Pakistan and Afghanistan in Chaman, Pakistan. EFE/FILE/Matiullah Achakzai](https://i0.wp.com/efe.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/rss-efe5d3daf85999cd7ce7e012852e90e5676f587c17cw.jpg?fit=1920%2C1159&ssl=1)
Islamabad, July 21 (EFE).— Protesters announced on Sunday to call off their nine-month sit-in near the Chaman border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan after the government reversed a tighter visa regime for cross-border trade, a protest organizer said on Sunday.
The government, however, has not officially confirmed the reversal of its October 2023 decision, which required passports and visas for small traders crossing the border daily, aimed at curbing illegal border crossings and trade.
Previously, residents along the border could cross using only their identity cards, and thousands would engage in cross-border trade from both sides.
Olus Yar Khan, a spokesman for the sit-in, said the protesters’ demands had been met after nine months of struggle.
“Residents of Chaman Boldak will now be able to cross the border using their (government) identity cards. The Chaman sit-in will be remembered as a symbol of freedom.”
Khan recalled that three people lost their lives in firing by security forces during months of protests.
Provincial government spokesperson Shahid Rind neither confirmed nor denied an agreement between the government and the protesters. “The government has not issued any statement on this (matter) so far,” he told EFE.
However, a provincial government official, speaking anonymously, acknowledged an agreement between the state and the protesters. The official did not divulge details.
Last year, protests erupted after the federal government mandated passports and visas for border crossings, impacting daily informal trade and sparking the sit-in.
According to Khan, 30,000 to 40,000 people cross the Chaman-Spin Boldak border for business daily.
He noted that thousands of families, agricultural lands, and even graveyards were affected by Pakistan’s imposition of the new visa policy.
Last month, tensions escalated in Chaman with violent clashes between security forces and sit-in participants, resulting in injuries to 56 demonstrators and 12 security officials.
Protesters also blocked the Quetta-Chaman National Highway, disrupting Afghan transit trade and other traffic for a month.
Chaman, located in Balochistan, is the second busiest border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan, following Torkham in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. EFE
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