Pakistan expels Save the Children’s foreign staff
The Interior Ministry had told the aid group that its six foreign employees had to be out of Pakistan within two weeks, said Ghulam Qadri, the group’s director for programme planning and communications.
The ministry gave no reason for the decision, he said. Interior Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
Save the Children and other aid groups have come under government suspicion because of media reports they had come into contact with a Pakistani doctor, Shakil Afridi, who helped the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) hunt down bin Laden.
“The allegations that have appeared in the media that Afridi worked with Save The Children and that Afridi was introduced to CIA by our staff, there is no truth to these allegations and no concrete evidence to support them,” said Qadri.
Bin Laden was killed in May last year when US special forces raided his hideout in the northern Pakistani town of Abbottabad. Pakistan, while a US security ally, objected to the secret US raid as a violation of its sovereignty.
Afridi was arrested soon after bin Laden was killed.
Afridi ran a vaccination campaign in Abbottabad and used cheek swabs to try to gather DNA from bin Laden’s children, who were staying with him in his hideout, one former Pakistani security official familiar with the case said this year.
It was unclear whether the CIA used the swabs to determine if the children were those of the al Qaeda chief. After his arrest, Afridi was vilified by many Pakistanis for what they saw as his treason for helping the United States.
He was sentenced to 33 years in jail this year.
Save the Children has been working in Pakistan for more than 30 years, employing more than 2,000 Pakistani staff.
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Now that Pakistan has successfully dealt with the alleged killers of OBL, will they do something about dealing with the killers of their own citizens?
Indian Foolishness
(1) One man's terrorist is another man's hero. (2) If being civilized means being like India, then please, let this civilization pass. (3) Thank you.
@ABKhan: Foot+Mouth I knew you were wrong but, I decided to go ahead and look it up which took me less than 30 seconds to make it a bit more concrete so you can't try to soften the fall... Here's a quote and a URL for you. Both the same page. "Our work would not be possible without individual donations made by people like you." http://multimedia.savethechildren.org/donate/
What was it you said again? Epic fail?
@ABKhan: I beg to differ!!! So many months after the investigations in the issue, the result is Shakil Afridi behind bars (the person who provided help in getting the most wanted terrorist in the world) , Save the children staffs punished (for having contacts with Dr. Shakil Afridi) but no action against people who were actually behind providing logistic support to Laden and supported the most wanted terrorist in having comparatively comfortable life near the capital Islamabad. I think any civilized country will assume that the law enforcement agencies in the country (including Police, Intelligence agencies and Judiciary) is not imparting its expected responsibilities properly. I don't know why bringing people, who provided all kind of supported to Laden, to justice is taken as a dumb idea!!! But one thing is sure, if this would have happened in any other civilized country, the case would have been different and there supporting Laden would have been considered an retarded idea.
@FU: Thanks brother for the fitting reply!!!!
@kaalchakra: Read my comment again. In it I said "host country" meaning Western countries.
@FJ: OMG you dont even know Save the children doesnt accept individual donations. Epic fail
@Indian Wisdom: Retard argument........ When have world started taking decisions on the bases of other cases? I am sure in India no criminal get prosecuted because someone else in the past was not trialed. I only heard you guys were dumb but now its proved.
well there may not be a concrete evidence to support it but it definitely is the truth!!!
kick out all spies
A painful but correct decision it will help restore shaken confidence of people on those NGOs who are working sincerely for the welfare of those who need.
A just cause cannot justify the breaking of law and compromise on agreed principles, NGOs need to be extra cautious on this.
@Indian Troll:
"What would India do if they find some NGO helping someone spying in India for whatever reasons?"
Here, "whatever" is the key. If bin Laden or a top global terrorist is hiding India, India should give a big reward and recognition to the NGO for helping catch or eliminate the terrorist.
So those who gave shelter to that global outlaw should get government jobs, right?
@kaalchakra: "Still, one wishes the staff of the NGO were all rounded up and put behind bars for life so no one will ever again think of hurting Pakistan by collaborating with outsiders. " Maybe this is your sense of humour - but it is not funny. While obviously government would not do the absurd thing you are stating, the vigilantism that we see in the streets is precisely because of the deliberate inflaming of public passions that educated people like you do. If Pakistan continues to alienate who actually wantt to help Pakistanis, the price will be paid by Pakistanis not others. Already Red Cross has literally wound up its operations in Pakistan becausee its workers are not safe.
What would India do if they find some NGO helping someone spying in India for whatever reasons?
such a shameful decision
So why is it unusual for a charitable organization which provides free health care having contact with a Doctor --- are you going to investigate all of the Doctors these organizations have had contact with? Just because your embarrassed that you were caught hiding the most wanted terrorist on the planet doesn't give you carte blanche to target NGO's who are providing services your govt has neglected - using money donated by "foreigners" who also seem to care more about the children of Pakistan than your own govt/military.
Butt
If the government wishes to put behind bars for life my bothers and sisters - all self-respecting people who refuse to submit to the hegemony of and become slaves to Uncle Sam , it is most welcome to do so (if it survives for a day).
Good move from the government of Pakistan. These foreign aid workers are always up to something fishy.
@kaalchakra: Would you also like your brothers and sisters to be all rounded up and put behind bars for life so no one will ever think of hurting the host country by collaborating with Pakistan?
osama was a terrorist and an aly of talibans, pakistan is against these terrorist in this war so why is pakistan complaining now, they shud be happy that somebody who has put not pakistan into destruction bt also the world peace as well
@antanu: Uncle Sam is not our God. It is yours as your beg them to open the skies and pour you the money for the sustenance of your country. Without this "God" your are nothing.
For the first time in a long while that other than not giving in to Indian blackmail regarding the Mumbai drama, the government has something praiseworthy. Still, one wishes the staff of the NGO were all rounded up and put behind bars for life so no one will ever again think of hurting Pakistan by collaborating with outsiders.
@Hassan: YOUR american fathers
Its hilarious to see that a citizen from the country which was part of SEATO and CENTO and allows its land to be used as US bases,became the ally in war on terror and receives aid money for almost every yr since its inception call US as a founding father for a NAM founding member who is a close aide to Soviet and didnt have any deal with US before 2000
They do good work Expel the army also then
Why this move all of a sudden? This makes no sense whatsoever. But then things dont happen with a "sense" here.
So Laden is more serious matter than Children?
NO, not good news
@Indian Wisdom: YOUR american fathers
@Indian Wisdom: And what about american fathers failure of 911? with all the best technology, human resources and and the money? Warn't the Taliban Holy Warriors and Heros in the 80 when they were fighting american cause? Lesson for us Pakistanis to kick out all these spies who breach our trust.
I don't know why have we taken this long to do it. I would have preferred two or three of their personnel wasted down the drain. John Perkins tells the good enough about these 'saviours of humanity" in "Confessions of an Economic Hitman". If Osama was terrorist, so is Uncle Sam and that too of far greater magnitude.
It is a step in the right direction. While personally I feel Shakil Afridi should be given Nishan e Pakistan, he and the NGO involved have put at risk of polio millions of children throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan by politicising the program.
OMG I give regular charity to 'Save the children'....I will double the amount now ;)
Why you're expelling them charge them for spying and hang these US agents.
It is absolutely fine if this charity was used as decoy to employ Dr Afridi. However, Govt should work out WHO will provide now service to children that is left unattended? Otherwise most vulnarable children will be the ones who will suffer!
and what about people who provided support to Laden in Abottabad or who were not able to detect his presence near the military academy????