More than 80 traders and money-changers were kidnapped last solar year in Kabul, Nangarhar and Herat provinces, with some being killed and others remained in captivity, a trader representative said on Tuesday.
Deputy head of the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Khan Jan Alokozay told in a press conference that on a daily basis one or two traders were kidnapped in Nangarhar and six moneychangers were killed during the last two weeks in capital Kabul alone.
He strongly warned security officials against their failure to ensure safety and security of traders, saying a failure in this regard would leave bad impact on the country’s economy and traders would start shifting their capital aboard.
Moneychanger Hajji Bahdar, a participant of the gathering, said a month back some unidentified gunmen tried to kidnap him in broad daylight and had the plan to kill him.
“They were in uniform and beat him on the Maidan Hawai road in Kabul and took away 50,000 USD in cash and wanted to kidnap me but due people rush, they could not do so.”
He urged the government to ensure their security; otherwise without security they would be obligated to leave the country.
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