LAHORE, May 6: Film exhibitors called off a proposed strike of cinema houses after a meeting with Tariq Aziz, the principal secretary to President Gen Musharraf. The industry announced last week that it would go on an indefinite strike from May 6 if its four-point charter of demands was not accepted.

A four-member delegation headed by Zoraiz Lashari met Mr Aziz, who is also the secretary of the National Security Council, and presented him a memorandum for the president.

Mr Lashari told Dawn from Islamabad on Thursday that the meeting "has been a success as Mr Aziz expressed concern over the declining film industry." Quoting Mr Aziz, he said he had assured the delegation that he would arrange their meeting with the president and ask Information and Culture Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad to pay attention to the problems of the film industry.

Shaukat Awan, the coordinator of the action committee of cinema owners, Jamshed Zafar, the president of the Pakistan Film Producers Association, and Riaz Malik, exhibitors' chairperson from Karachi, were other members of the delegation.