PTI founder Imran Khan on Thursday warned that the first phase of the party’s civil disobedience movement — boycotting remittances — would kick off from December 22 if his “legitimate demands” were not met by the government.

Earlier this month, the former prime minister had warned of a civil disobedience movement from Dec 14 if his demands about the release of political prisoners facing trial and the formation of a judicial commission to probe the events of May 9, 2023, and November 26 were unmet.

His sister Aleema Khanum had said on Tuesday that Imran had warned that he would ask overseas Pakistanis to halt remittances if the government failed to meet his demands. PTI lawyer Chaudhry Faisal Hussain said a day ago that Imran had asked the party leadership to wait till Sunday before going ahead with the campaign.

A statement issued on the incarcerated ex-premier’s X account today shared the “important message” from Imran.

Reiterating the demands, the statement said the first phase comprising boycotting remittances would begin from Sunday if Imran’s demands were not met.

“We will appeal to Pakistanis living abroad that the situation in Pakistan is evident to you; democracy, the judiciary, and the media has been stifled, and a period of oppression and fascism is ongoing. Therefore, we urge you to start the boycott of remittances.”

The statement said that the party’s offer for negotiations was ridiculed and it was framed as if the PTI had surrendered. It added that the offer for talks and delaying the civil disobedience movement was made in the “broader national interest”.

“If the government shows no interest, we will not force negotiations upon them. Our offer should never be seen as a sign of our weakness. If the government still wants to prevent the civil disobedience movement, they must contact us regarding our two demands or convince us that these demands are unconstitutional and cannot be addressed.

“I have invited a negotiation team for a meeting in jail and provided their names. Now, we will see whether the government allows them to meet with me or not,” the statement said.

Following Imran’s arrest on May 9, 2023, from the Islamabad High Court’s premises, riots erupted across the country that went on for at least 24 hours. At least 10 people lost their lives and hundreds sustained injuries, while approximately 40 public buildings and military installations were damaged.

The state then launched a severe crackdown on his party, rounding up thousands of PTI workers and almost the entire top-tier leadership, with many still facing court proceedings under serious charges.

Meanwhile, a day of pitched battles between security forces and PTI protesters across the federal capital last month ended in a hasty retreat of the party’s top leadership and supporters from the Red Zone in the early hours of November 27 as an end to its “final call” nationwide protests.

The PTI claimed that at least 12 party supporters died in Islamabad as a result of firing by law enforcement agencies. The government has repeatedly refuted the allegations, asserting that security personnel were deployed “without live ammunition”.

The threat regarding a curb in remittances comes in the wake of the current account recording a fourth consecutive surplus of $729 million in November, marking the second-highest surplus since July 2013, while the surplus for the first five months of the current fiscal year approached one billion dollars.

Remittance inflows are expected to rise by $5 billion by the end of the current fiscal year, with the government anticipating a total of $35bn in FY25, compared to just over $30bn in FY24.

Bankers and currency experts attribute the increase in remittances mainly to the crackdown on illegal currency businesses, which has forced remitters to use banks and other legal channels to send their money.