On Monday, the Prime Minister, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, pledged to provide unwavering security protocols for Chinese nationals employed in the Dasu Hydropower Project and throughout the nation. He also vowed to exact harsh punishment from those responsible for the Besham tragedy that occurred on March 26.
Six persons were killed on Tuesday when a vehicle-borne suicide bomber in the isolated Besham district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa targeted a convoy of Chinese engineers.
From Islamabad, the Chinese engineers were traveling to their camp in Dasu, which is the district capital of K-P’s Upper Kohistan district. Near Lahore Nala on the Karakoram Highway, a vehicle carrying explosives collided with their car from the opposite direction.
The bomb pushed the Chinese engineers’ car off the hilly road and into a deep ravine, killing all six people inside, including the driver, a Pakistani, and five Chinese engineers.
Speaking to a group of Chinese nationals employed on the power project today, PM Shehbaz said that the government would see to it that those responsible for the incident on March 26 received severe punishment, hoping that this would serve as a warning to others and prevent them from committing such heinous crimes in the future.
The prime minister stated that the only reason he came in Dasu was to convey his heartfelt condolences and thoughts to his Chinese brothers and sisters over the tragic event that happened on March 26 and resulted in the deaths of five Chinese and one local.
He stated that killing innocent Chinese people and a Pakistani national by terrorists was a despicable crime done solely to sabotage and undermine the unique bond between Pakistan and China.
Senior officials were also present, along with federal ministers Amir Muqam and Attaullah Tarar, Chairman of WAPDA Lieutenant General (retd) Sajjad Ghani, and Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong.
The prime minister called it a plot by Pakistan’s adversaries and described it as a heinous crime by those who took advantage of every chance to damage the friendship, which was growing and progressing swiftly and becoming stronger every day. “This is the reason adversaries seize every chance to inflict harm and drive a rift between the two iron brothers,” he continued.
In order to provide the finest security measures for Chinese families and citizens, PM Shehbaz pledged that the government would not cut any corners and would seize any chance.
The premier added that he had visited the embassy right away following the occurrence to convey his government’s and the people of Pakistan’s condolences to the Chinese leadership and people.
He said that on the same day, a joint investigative team was also created, and its report was due at any time. He also promised that they will move quickly to implement the investigation committee’s findings in full.
Additionally, he mentioned that on March 27, there was a high-level security meeting where the topic of improved collaboration with the province governments about extra security measures was discussed.
The prime minister declared that the adversaries of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be decisively destroyed and that the friendship between the two countries would advance together.
Speaking on the event, Ambassador Jiang Zaidong stated that the prime minister had promised Chinese people of their safety during his visit to the embassy.
In addition, he thanked the Pakistani government and people for their show of support and said that they were prepared to collaborate in order to strengthen their strategic alliance with Pakistan.
A 30-second pause was also held by the group in memory of the victims of the terrible event.
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