India has urged the European Union to withdraw the special trade concessions given to Pakistan under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme.

Keeping up the diplomatic pressure on Pakistan after the recent killing of 42 CRPF soldiers at Pulwama, Sunil Prasad, Secretary-General, Europe India Chamber of Commerce, said there are serious concerns with respect to European Union’s continued GSP privilege to Pakistan, which is mis-using the status to enhance its agenda to promote terrorism and disturb peace in the South-Asian region.

The situation is damaging EU-India relations at a time when the two have a new vision to strengthen future relationship, the chamber said in a letter addressed to Cecilia Malmström, EU Commissioner for Trade. In the textile sector, in which Pakistan is the sole beneficiary of EU’s GSP, Islamabad has failed to enforce laws that would protect millions of garment workers in the country from serious labour rights abuses, the letter said quoting a Human Rights Watch report ‘No Room to Bargain’: Unfair and Abusive Labour Practices in Pakistan’ released last month.

The report had documented a range of violations in Pakistan garment factories including “failure to pay minimum wages and pensions, suppression of independent labour unions, forced overtime, insufficient breaks and disregarded regulations requiring paid maternity and medical leave”.

Last December, garment workers protested at a training institute in Lahore run by a major Pakistani brand, which abused a government incentive programme. Workers had alleged that the training institute operated as a factory, extracting free labour from trainees, the report said.

Pakistan’s commitment to fight terrorism is nothing but lies and it must not be allowed any longer by the EU, the chamber said. The time has come for the EU to seriously review its relations with Pakistan, in particular all options regarding EU's economic assistance and the GSP status, the letter said.