LAHORE: Jailed former PM Imran Khan has announced yet another round of protest, this time a civil disobedience movement, asking the Pakistani diaspora to boycott remittances if his demands are not met by Sunday. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has launched multiple protests demanding his release, the latest being in Nov 2024.
In a long post on his official X handle Thursday, Khan, 72, put forth two major demands – release of under-trial political prisoners and establishment of judicial commissions for transparent investigations into the incidents of May 9, 2023 and Nov 26, 2024 – to hold talks with the Shehbaz Sharif govt at the federal level. “If these demands are not met by Sunday, the first phase of the civil disobedience movement – boycott of remittances – will be launched. “We will appeal to Pakistanis living abroad that the situation in Pakistan is evident to you, democracy, the judiciary, and the media has been stifled, and a period of oppression and fascism is ongoing. Therefore, we urge you to start the boycott of remittances,” he said in the post.
Police had arrested hundreds of PTI supporters who participated in the Nov 26 protest, which included a march to the capital, Islamabad, and a planned sit-in demonstration.