Plea for Afghan border's reopening

The president of the Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), Mian Zahid Hussain, has said terrorism cannot be defeated through closure of the Pak-Afghan border. Terrorism is deep-rooted in Pakistan and requires a comprehensive plan and its swift execution, and the government should pressure Afghanistan to prevent terrorists from using their border. Issues like poverty, unemployment, lack of health facilities, illiteracy and lack of justice are some of the major causes of the militancy, he said.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that exporters on both sides of the border are facing heavy losses due to its closure, and therefore the authorities should allow a brief opening of the border.
He said that exporters of perishable items are in a fix because their exportable items are rotting, while more than two hundred tons of sugar is loaded on containers awaiting delivery to the other side of the trade. Around 3,000 containers that were due to cross the Torkham border have been stranded in Peshawar,, and 2,000 containers are stuck near the Chaman border, he said, adding that the closure is hurting economic and social ties.
Similarly, around 500 trucks carrying vegetables,, fruits,, brown sugar and other perishable food items are stranded on both sides and food loaded on vehicles is decaying due to the closure of the border crossings. Mian Zahid Hussain said that the border shouldn't be closed without prior warning to exporters and transporters, because the closure results in unemployment of thousands of labourers.
In future there should be prior intimation on border closures to those dealing in Pak-Afghan trade for prevention of losses. If that is not done the business community will lose interest in exports to Afghanistan, he said. He demanded that the authorities allow movement of food-laden trucks to their destinations under the supervision of the Army, urging the government to use diplomatic channels to create pressure on Afghanistan to rectify its direction. Pakistani exporters are facing more losses than their afghan counterparts, he said.