Govt may change decision on fate of students in China.

Byline: Iftikhar A. Khan

ISLAMABAD -- A day after the government announcement that Pakistani nationals will not be evacuated from novel coronavirus-hit China for the fear of the epidemic spreading across Pakistan, the Senate was informed on Friday that the decision was not final and as and when the situation warranted they could be brought back.

'It is not a definite decision and if the situation changes, we will evacuate the Pakistani students on its basis,' Leader of the House in the Senate Shibli Faraz told the upper house of parliament amid criticism by senators belonging to different political parties against the government's earlier decision.

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza on Thursday told a presser that the government had decided not to evacuate the Pakistanis from China for fear of the epidemic spreading across Pakistan.

Mr Faraz explained to senators that the situation was being closely monitored.

He said Pakistan's ambassador to China Naghmana Hashmi was a competent officer and she was in touch with the Pakistani community on a 24/7 basis. About the concern over financial problems being faced by the students, Senator Faraz said 840 dollars had been deposited in the bank account of each university student in China so that they may order food online.

PM aide's statement on evacuation of Pakistanis stranded in virus-hit areas not final, Senate told amid criticism

The senator insisted the government would strive for keeping the young Pakistani students in China out of harm's way. He said the Chinese government was taking all-out steps to contain the epidemic and save lives irrespective of their nationalities.

The issue had been raised in the House by Senator Usman Kakar of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party. He said the remarks of the PM's aide on health affairs were a cause for alarm for the families of the Pakistani nationals stranded in China. Mr Kakar said there were around 28,000 Pakistanis, including between 8,000 and 10,000 students, stranded in China.

Senator Kakar said the Pakistanis stranded in China must be brought back and kept at special observation centres for a specific time. 'Such a bar on their return is nothing short of an act of murder,' the senator remarked.

Parliamentary leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in the Senate Mushahidullah Khan said the matter was of utmost importance, as the coronavirus had emerged as a global threat.

He was of the opinion that quarantines should...