ISLAMABAD: Federal Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan has said that the lifting moratorium on death penalty will not affect GSP Plus status granted by the European Union to Pakistan.
Addressing a press conference, he said that European Union supported Pakistan in war against terror and there was no legal condition of imposing ban on death penalty under United Nations convention.
Dastgir said the government of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had informally imposed a ban on death penalty which continued during their entire tenure.
Khurram said the GSP Plus incentive scheme had been voted to law for 10 years. “Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has constituted a committee to establish treaty implementation cells in provinces for execution of human rights conventions ratified by government of Pakistan,” he added.
Briefing the media about impact of the GSP Plus status on the country’s exports, the commerce minister said that Pakistan’s overall exports to European Union had increased by $909.07 million in nine months. Pakistan’s exports to EU had increased to $5.67 billion during January-September 2014 (after getting GSP Plus status) from $4.76 billion of the corresponding period last year, showing an increase of 19.09 percent.
Khurram added that export of country’s textile products to EU enhanced by $708.02 million in nine months of the year 2014. Pakistan’s textile products exports to the European Union rose to $3.963 billion during January-September 2014 (after getting GSP Plus status) from $3.255 million showing an increase of 21.75 percent. Similarly, exports of footwear and leather to EU also increased after receiving GSP Plus status.
