Pakistani Christians Face New Boundaries with Passport Renewal Ban for Asylum Seekers
In a directive issued by Pakistan’s Ministry of Inside on 5th June 2024, residents who’ve utilized for or obtained asylum overseas at the moment are barred from renewing or acquiring new passports, leaving 1000’s of Pakistani Christians stranded with out important documentation.
This coverage, signed by Federal Inside Minister Mohsin Naqvi, instantly impacts asylum seekers and refugees throughout Southeast Asia—primarily in Thailand, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka—the place they sought refuge from spiritual persecution, strict blasphemy legal guidelines, and societal discrimination.
Persecution Overseas: A Renewed Menace
The directive, framed as a nationwide safety measure, prohibits the issuance of recent passports to any Pakistani citizen granted asylum standing overseas. Moreover, asylum seekers’ present passports will not be renewed, and beforehand granted paperwork are being systematically revoked.
The Ministry argues that this coverage goals to curb unauthorized migration and discourage what it sees as an abuse of asylum provisions. Nonetheless, rights advocates contend that the coverage unfairly targets weak populations, notably Christians who fled Pakistan, to flee imminent threats to their security and freedom.
For 1000’s of Pakistani Christians now residing in Thailand, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka, the directive has intensified their vulnerability. With out legitimate passports, these individuals face elevated difficulties in accessing important companies. Youngsters’s training and healthcare, which had been already restricted for refugee populations, have now turn out to be even much less accessible. Furthermore, the coverage has positioned many in authorized limbo, proscribing journey and trapping them in international locations missing long-term residency rights or social protections.
The United Nations Excessive Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has been gradual in processing resettlement functions for a lot of asylum seekers from Pakistan, delaying their integration into extra steady environments. In response, some asylum seekers have been capable of relocate by means of non-public sponsorships to international locations like Canada, Australia, and Hungary.
Nonetheless, the current passport coverage disrupts these efforts, creating a brand new impediment for these trying to relocate legally by means of sponsorship applications. With out legitimate passports, affected asylum seekers face issue securing visas and entry permissions even when permitted for personal sponsorship.
Authorized Issues and Worldwide Criticism:
Pakistani Christians stay in an unsure state of affairs. Many have fled their homeland attributable to spiritual persecution and the inflexible enforcement of blasphemy legal guidelines, which pose extreme threats to Christians. This new coverage has ignited widespread criticism, with many highlighting potential violations of worldwide human rights legal guidelines.
Because of fears of persecution, the 1951 Refugee Conference and its 1967 Protocols underscore the significance of confidentiality and safety for asylum seekers. The current transfer by Pakistan’s Ministry of Inside might contravene these pointers by leaving asylum seekers with out important identification and probably exposing them to additional dangers.
America and varied human rights organizations have expressed considerations, arguing that the coverage may severely affect the suitable to asylum for these dealing with persecution based mostly on faith, political opinions, or different grounds.
