On the direction of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Foriegn Miniser Ishaq Dar along with Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan and SAFRON Engineer Amir Muqam will leave for Bishkek today to engage with Kyrgyzstan authorities and address the Pakistani students' problems.
According to the 24News HD TV channel, video statements from Sindhi and Punjabi students stranded in Kyrgyzstan have also surfaced on Sunday, appealing to authorities and their families for immediate assistance.
Ghulam Murtaza Baladi, a student from Kundiaro, Sindh, contacted his parents via video link from Bishkek and emphasized the grave danger faced by Pakistani students and urged for their urgent evacuation. Ghulam Murtaza Baladi said that hundreds of students from Sindh and other areas are stuck here and should be helped.
Similarly, Arslan Tariq, a medical student from Arifwala, Punjab, described the dire conditions in Kyrgyzstan in his video statement. He reported that Pakistanis were being forcibly removed from vehicles and tortured, calling for the government's immediate intervention.
He also mentioned that no help had been provided by the Pakistani embassy and highlighted that students from Arifwala are among the victims of the violence in Kyrgyzstan.
According to the 24News HD TV channel, Pakistani students in Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek have been targeted on last Friday night by violent mobs resulting into reported death of three of them, according to multiple testimonies and videos on social media, prompting Islamabad's envoy to the country to urge students to stay indoors.
In a viral social media video, three students appear and one of them introducing himself as Mohammad Walid says that after a fight between locals and Egyptian students mobs attacked international students. Walid said six students had been killed, though he did not specify their nationalities. He said police were not helping international students.
According to some media reports, the attackers forcefully entered the hostels, broke the doors of the rooms and tortured and injured several students.
Contrary to the social media posts, the Pakistani Embassy in Bishkek on Saturday said so far they had received no confirmed reports of death or rape of any Pakistani student there.
Various social media posts also reported the incidents of mob violence at the hostels housing foreign students in Bishkek, along with the footages and imagery, with many appealing to the relevant authorities for immediate help to the Pakistani students.
Pakistan Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Hasan Zaigham said in his video statement that one Pakistani student among 14 foreigners sustained injuries as they came under an attack by local extremists on last Friday night.
Kyrgyz government has confirmed that there is no death of Pakistani student in the recent mob violences against international students. Moreover, Kygyz Ministry of Internal Affairs has also issued press releases stating that the situation is under control.
Pertinent to mention here that the first batch of Pakistani students reached the homeland from Kyrgyzstan safely on Saturday. Federal Interior Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi received the students at the airport.
Talking to the media at the airport, the interior minister said that the first and foremost duty of the government was to ensure the safety of the students. He said the safety and not the education is vital this time. Naqvi said instead of getting emotional, the government will do its duty. The minister interacted with the students and vowed to provide the youth with all-out support.
The students made a litany of complaints against the Pakistan ambassador's non-cooperation. The minister was told that the 'ruthless' behaviour of the envoy hurt the students. The students contradicted the envoy's video message too, saying the top diplomat lied to the nation over the Kyrgyz situation.