Date: Thursday, March 31, 2005 6:28:46 PM EST
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, March 31 (UPI) -- Protesters shut down businesses in several Pakistani cities Thursday to reject the domination of the country's largest province over others.
Pakistan has four provinces of which Punjab is the largest and controls the country's armed forces, bureaucracy and industry.
On Thursday, the Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement, which represents the provinces of Baluchistan, Sindh and Northwest Frontier, had called for a general strike against Punjab's increasing influence.
Riot police dispersed stone-throwing protesters in the Frontier's capital, Peshawar, which borders Afghanistan. In Baluchistan, which also borders Afghanistan, activists marched on the streets and forced shopkeepers to close their shops.
Businesses in the third minority province of Sindh also remained closed and there was a partial strike in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city and the provincial capital of Sindh.
In Karachi, transport companies pulled buses off the roads after protesters set fire to some vehicles. --
Copyright 2005 by United Press International.
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