Protesting fishermen block Karachi port, channel closed for second day

KARACHI (Reuters) - Protesting fishermen blockaded Karachi port, assembling their trawlers across the main channel on Wednesday.

The fishermen from Sindh province were protesting restrictions on them entering the waters off neighboring Balochistan province. “I hope talks to resolve the issue will resume on Wednesday afternoon,” Mahmood Maulvi, advisor to the Prime Minister Imran Khan on Maritime Affairs, told Reuters.

An earlier round of talks failed on Tuesday.

"If this continues there are fears that some ships might return to the high seas," Muhammad Idress, president of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), said in a statement. "This causes huge losses to the economy and business community," he added.

They were also protesting over a lack of basic facilities like power and water, and the restrictions on their movement and access to the sea resulting from the high level of security for the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that runs through the province.

To end the month-long protest, the provincial government agreed to most of the demands.