Save the Children, whose work includes water purification projects in Sindh, Pakistan, was allowed to reopen after it was closed June 11 by the Pakistani government. Photo courtesy of U.K. Department for International Development.
ISLAMABAD, June 24 (UPI) -- Pakistan reversed its ban on the Save the Children humanitarian organization, allowing it to reopen offices closed two weeks ago.
The group, the largest international charity at work in Pakistan, was ordered closed on June 11, its Islamabad headquarters closed by police and its operations through the country stopped. Pakistani Interior Minister Chaudry Nisar Ali Khan said the following day it operated "contrary to its charter and agenda for years." No charges were specified.
The closure came amid a broad clampdown in Pakistan on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs); Save the Children in Pakistan, among others, are accused of "working against the interest of the country," a broad indictment suggesting some groups are covers for espionage operations.
The reversal of the ban comes after two major donors of humanitarian aid to Pakistan, the United States and the United Kingdom, expressed concerns about Save the Children in Pakistan's closure.
Both the U.S. and U.K. governments also expressed concerns with government funders, such as the U.S. Agency for International development, which typical relies on organizations such Save the Children to implement programs, and much of the United States $5 billion in assistance to Pakistan, between 2009 and 2014, was funneled through NGOs.
"We have raised our concerns about the important contribution of NGOs to development while recognizing the sovereign right of Pakistan to regulate such organizations," the British High Commission said in a statement Monday.
Monday, Khan said the London-based global charity could reopen 13 offices in Pakistan, noting, "We got information that the number of their offices is excessive. It wasn't that they were working against Pakistan's interests."
"We are still waiting for the official government communication, but we welcome the government's kind gesture," said Saeed Ahmed, spokesman for Save the Children in Pakistan.
