Those using Pakistani rupees should be punished: People

A number of people have reacted to a report in a Pakistani newspaper that said business deals in Afghanistan should be based on Pakistani rupees, stressing that no one should use the Pakistani currency and those using it should be punished.

Daily Jang, a Pakistani newspaper in a report quoted the country’s finance minister, ShawkatTareen as saying that Afghanistan faced shortage of dollar reserves and that would be the reason Afghanistan would make transactions in Pakistani rupees.

The report said that Tareen made the statements after International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank suspended payments to Afghanistan.

Raha Press also reported that transactions in Afghanistan would be probably made based on Pakistani rupees.

After these reports, Afghans launched a social media campaign titled ‘Afghani is our national identity’.

Most of the social media activists shared slogans, ‘We are residents of Afghanistan, Afghani is our national identity and using Afghan currency is our national responsibility.”

Abdul Kareem, in a tweet said, “I will build my country myself, so I will use the currency of my own country. Every transaction in Afghanistan should be on Afghan currency.”

Another social media user, Mohammad Sayeed, addressing the Taliban, said, “Survival of Afghani is totally depended on you, if Pakistani rupees replaced the Afghani here (Afghanistan), its responsibility would be upon you and Afghans will hold you accountable.”

A number of pro-Taliban people also reacted to the issue.

Hammad Afghan, one of them, in a tweet said, “If you want to enlighten your future and make a rich Afghanistan, you should promote our national currency (Afghani).”

Sheikh Abdul Hamid Hammasi, also a pro-Taliban Afghan, said, “If anyone values national identity and Afghanhood, then they should use Afghan currency for transactions…”

He said that Taliban should make it clear to all officials, businessmen and people that they would be punished if they used Pakistani rupees.

A number of other people held similar views and said those using foreign currencies should be punished.

Pajhwok Afghan News also shared the issue with Pakistani finance minister and Taliban spokespersons, but no one responded so far.