Foreigners under scrutiny in Pakistan

[sonicboom]

Foreigners under scrutiny in Pakistan

Wednesday, 02 March 2011 03:07


LAHORE: In the aftermath of the arrest of US national Aaron Mark DeHaven, who was detained in Peshawar for overstaying his visa, a nationwide crackdown has begun against foreign citizens living in Pakistan illegally.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) conducted a raid in Macca Colony in the Gulberg area of Lahore in which it discovered 28 foreign citizens, mostly Nigerians but also including one American, who were in the country illegally. All of the 28 have been presented before a magistrate in Lahore who ordered them detained pending further legal hearings regarding their deportation.

They had been taken into custody by the FIA which had charged them for violating the Foreigners Act of 1946. Under the law, the penalty for overstaying visas can stretch up to five years in prison and a fine. Entering the country illegally carries a penalty of up to ten years in prison and a fine of Rs100,000. These penalties, however, are rarely pursued and even in this case, the government is expected to coordinate with the US and Nigerian governments to arrange for a quick deportation.

Law-enforcement agencies have begun investigating the presence of foreign citizens residing in the country illegally and have begun receiving information that suggests that a large number of people are living in Lahore and its environs without proper documentation. The precise number of illegal residents is unknown at this point. The government has been concerned in recent weeks by the presence of foreigners in Pakistan, particularly in the aftermath of the shooting in Lahore by suspected CIA operative Raymond Davis.

The Interior Ministry has issued directives to law-enforcement agencies to find and deport any foreign citizens who may be in the country illegally.

As part of this crackdown, an American national, Aaron Mark DeHaven, was arrested in Peshawar for overstaying his visa.

On Monday, a court headed by a magistrate in Peshawar, rejected DeHaven’s bail application. Magistrate Qudratullah Khan Marwat in his short judgment said the record available to the court proved that the visa of US national Aaron Mark DeHaven had expired in October 2010 and his stay in Pakistan since that time was illegal. A US television has claimed that the Pakistan government had moved the US administration to release Dr Aafia Siddiqui in exchange for Raymond Davis, an operative of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) facing trial on double murder charge.

The United States had, however, turned down Pakistani offer, the television said in its report.

That television report, citing a US official, said that in its demand, Pakistani government had asserted that it wanted Dr Aafia Siddiqui to complete her remaining sentence in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, family members of one of Davis’ victims, Faheem, said they are open to exchanging Davis for Dr Aafia Siddiqui. Faheem’s family, including his brother Waseem, father and uncle, were addressing the media at the residence of Siddiqui’s sister Dr Fauzia’s residence in Karachi. They had arrived in the city to meet with Siddiqui’s family. Faheem and Faizan, killed by Davis in Lahore, neither were robbers nor had any criminal record, said Waseem. The weapons had been planted on them later to implicate them, he asserted. Before the Americans can even talk about repatriating Davis, they need to release Aafia, said Dr Fauzia.

Siddiqui’s mother added that it was the right of the families of Davis’ victims to ask for monetary compensation or demand Siddiqui’s release. Faheem’s family, however, said they would resist pressure by the US and Pakistan government to accept blood money as compensation.

Foreigners under scrutiny in Pakistan