Afghan general bans Pakistani rupee in southern province

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – A senior Afghan police official regarded as one of the country’s most powerful men has banned the use of the Pakistani currency in the key southern province of Kandahar.

The police chief of Kandahar, Gen. Abdul Raziq, said he has declared the use of the Pakistani rupee in business transactions a crime. But he says he hasn’t yet decided on the punishment.

The rupee has been widely used in Afghanistan’s eastern and southern provinces bordering Pakistan. The Iranian currency is used in the western border provinces.

“I’m not against business, but I don’t want any other currency to be used in our country, especially the Pakistan and Iranian currencies,” Raziq told The Associated Press Sunday.

Raziq’s ban came into effect last week. Traders said it had an immediate effect, with the afghani strengthening in recent days.

“This is very good news, as people have been confused about what currency they should use and keep,” said Kandahar tribal elder and businessman, Ahmad Shah Khan.

He said the afghani had strengthened to 560 for 1,000 Pakistani rupees, from 630 per 1,000 before the ban. The official Central Bank exchange rate Sunday was 622 per 1000.

The afghani has also strengthened against the dollar, from 68 to 65 since the ban was introduced, traders said. The official rate is currently 67.5 afghanis to the dollar.

Azrakhsh Hafizi, the head of the international relations committee of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce welcomed Raziq’s decision and urged officials nationwide to adopt the ban of foreign currencies.

The use of the U.S. dollar in transactions elsewhere in the country, including the capital Kabul, should also be banned, Hafizi said.

“The central bank almost every week buys afghanis in the market in order to maintain the stability of the Afghan currency but if we used only the Afghan currency all over the country there would be no need,” he said.

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Associated Press Writer Mirwais Khan in Kandahar, Afghanistan contributed to this story.