PM Shehbaz orders five police officers punished after attack on Chinese nationals

Pakistan's prime minister has ordered at least five senior police officials be punished for negligence after a suicide bomber killed five Chinese engineers at a major dam site last month, the country's information minister said Saturday.

The attack in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province forced Power China and the China Gezhouba Company to suspend work on two dam projects after the bombing killed the five workers and a Pakistani driver, sending their van into a deep ravine.

Hundreds of Chinese people are employed at the Dasu and Diamer Bhasha dam construction sites, located around 100 kilometres (62 miles) apart in the mountainous region.

Minister of Information Attaullah Tarar said a committee appointed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif identified a regional official, three district officials and the director of security at the Dasu dam project for their "negligence" in fulfilling their duties.

"The prime minister has ordered immediate action against these officials," Tarar told a press conference in Lahore, without specifying what their punishment will be.

"The prime minister himself will be monitoring the security of Chinese (nationals). Those individuals who have shown negligence will be set as an example."

Tarar said security matters regarding Chinese citizens would be "treated with utmost seriousness and any lapses will not be tolerated."

Operations by Power China have resumed at Diamer Bhasha while operations at China Gezhouba Group Company at Dasu remain closed.

Pakistani police have detained more than 12 people, including Afghan nationals, in connection with the bombing.

Beijing is Islamabad's closest regional ally, frequently offering financial assistance to support its often-struggling neighbour and pouring more than $2 trillion into infrastructure projects.

However, Pakistanis have long complained about not receiving a fair share of the jobs or wealth generated by the projects.

The security of Chinese workers is a major concern to both countries, with nationals frequently targeted by militants hostile to outside influence.

Last week's attack came just days after militants attempted to storm offices of the Gwadar deepwater port in the southwest, considered a cornerstone of Chinese investment in Pakistan.

Economy is showing signs of receovery

Ataullah Tarar said that positive results regarding the economy started to emerge.the minister said that Bloomberg expects Pakistan's growth and decline in inflation as positive change is taking place in the business.

Global journals including Bloomberg are trying to promote the positive trend related to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government, said Ataullah Tarar.

He said that the output of large-scale industries rose the most in 21 months last month.

The Information Minister said that Shahbaz Sharif has experience in dealing with financial institutions.

He said that positive news is also coming from Pakistan Stock Exchange and new business records are being made every day.

Talking about terrorist attack on the Chinese in Dasu, he said that Shahbaz Sharif immediately visited the Dasu site while meeting the Chinese ambassador and constituted an inquiry committee after attack, he added.

The Minister said that Chinese security is an important issue and according to the preliminary inquiry report of the Dasu incident, RPO Hazara, DPO Kohistan, Commandant Special Unit have been removed from their posts and ordered to take action.

The story of the Guardian newspaper exposed the Indian terrorist ambitions, he further said.

Ataullah Tarar urged the international community should take notice of this matter.

Pakistan is desirous of peace but it should not be considered as weakness, he said.

The Information Minister said that dues of media owners will be paid in the next few days.

With input from AFP.