The Public Safety Minister is extending security reinforcements to Pakistan's authorities.
German Development Minister Svenja Schulze journeyed to Pakistan with the objective of examining factory working conditions. However, the focus shifted from her professional endeavors to a personal item outside the Pakistan Prime Minister's residence in Islamabad: a contemporarily fashionable red handbag. This handbag served as her portable repository, containing notes about the Supply Chain Act and refugee concerns from Afghanistan, as her ministry would later clarify.
The trouble started when she attempted to enter the residence of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, amidst the monsoon season's heat, around 30 degrees Celsius. The security personnel encountered an issue with her bag, leading to a brief handbag-related altercation. A ZDF correspondent recorded the scene, showcasing the Germans' eventual triumph over the seemingly confounded Pakistani security personnel.
Initially, the security personnel hassled the journalists, asking them to halt their video recordings immediately. Following this, they resisted allowing the minister, accompanied by a German mini-delegation, to carry her cherished red handbag into the premises.
In response, Schulze reportedly stated, "I have my personal belongings here," lifting her bag once more. The Pakistani security personnel persisted in their refusal, even suggesting she leave the bag behind. Schulze executed a graceful diplomatic maneuver, exiting the premises and returning to her vehicle. The German ambassador, Alfred Grannas, who was accompanying her, responded, "Thank you very much. Goodbye."
The security personnel subsequently relented. As Schulze descended the stairs with her handbag, the security forces called out to her, "Ma'am, please forgive us!" In the unexpected handbag dispute between Germany and Pakistan, Pakistan eventually yielded.
According to the German delegation, the meeting inside was amicable and fruitful. Prime Minister Sharif employed his German language skills and showed warmth and attentiveness, as per their reports.
The journalist also noted that it was an almost unprecedented privilege to be neither searched nor frisked, for presidents, chancellors, and ministers. The attempt to confiscate her handbag thus seemed especially disrespectful, given there wasn't a single example of a male minister having to defend his briefcase with such tenacity.
Svenja Schulze and her colleagues faced a handbag-related issue at the Pakistan Prime Minister's residence, with security personnel refusing to allow her to bring her red handbag inside. During the diplomatic incident, German Ambassador Alfred Grannas smoothly ended the situation with a polite goodbye.
After the handbag dispute, Svenja Schulze and her delegation had a fruitful meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who demonstrated his proficiency in the German language and his warm hospitality towards the visitors.
