Overseas Pakistanis have been coming
under some stick recently. The Election Commissions recent decision
that dual nationals will not be allowed to contest the upcoming
elections has been challenged in the Supreme Court.
The current PPP government first
suggested allowing overseas Pakistanis to caste votes a couple of
years ago and a consultation process was initiated. Recently, the PTI
moved a petition in the Supreme Court, calling on it to allow
overseas Pakistanis to vote.
So on the one hand, votes count but
standing in the same elections is to be allowed.
A question of patriotism
Living overseas is enough for ones
patriotism to be questioned. Having a second nationality doesn’t
help ones cause either. Some people say that,
“if you want to join politics, and
serve Pakistan then giving up a second passport is a small thing to
ask”
Perhaps, but what happens if you stand
in elections and don’t win? No one is going to compensate you if one fails. At the same time its also a small thing to ask for voters of a constituency not to vote for such an individual if they consider his or her second nationality unappealing.
Fast track corruption
The second line of argument goes
something like:
“All these dual nationals can pack
up and leave whenever they like. They line their pockets and leave”
Does that mean that people who have
only Pakistani nationality are less corrupt? Or conversely, does this
mean that overseas Pakistanis, because they presumably have
the opportunity to dabble in corruption are necessarily corrupt?
Essentially, they are being accused of being petty opportunists.
The
second argument that they can pack up and leave is the one that I
find most frustrating. Yes, I guess, people with second passports can
leave when they like. But then again, politicians in Pakistan , given
their social and economic status in the country are also quite mobile
internationally. To think that the colour of their passport effects
their mobility to the same degree as the average Pakistani is a gross
exaggeration.
If
people are behaving in a corrupt manner, they do so because they are
confident that they can get away with it. They weigh the pros and
cons and realise that the benefits of behaving in a corrupt manner is
greater than the perceived risk or costs. The nationality of the
individual is inconsequential to the extent that a foreign passport
does not give an individual immunity when prosecuted for a crime. The
fact that a Pakistani, overseas Pakistani or dual national knows that
he or she can get away with a crime in the first place determines his
or her ability to indulge in illegal activity. A second passport may
be a convenience, however, its the system that is at fault, not the
individual.
Men and women of a lesser God
Now when it comes
to overseas Pakistanis, not all overseas Pakistanis are equal.
The vast majority
constitute Pakistani labourers, who toil away in the Gulf, North
Africa and to a lesser degree in places such as Malaysia. Now these
workers, who primarily leave Pakistan in search of work, save a high
propensity of their income. In doing so, they remit most of it.
Thankfully, due to their efforts over the past few years, Pakistan
has managed to contain its Current Account deficit given the massive
inflows from such workers.
On the flip side,
these overseas Pakistanis are the ones that are conveniently ignored.
Before our grand Arab masters, the Pakistani state is unable or
unwilling to voice any concern over the treatment that is meted out
to them. For example, the seizing of labourers passports in the Gulf
is a common practise which breaks the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights. The city state of Dubai, which effectively went
bankrupt a year and a half ago, saw many managers and business owners
leave the city in a rush. In doing so, they left without returning
passports to labourers or clearing their wages. What did the
government of Pakistan offer to such workers? Nothing. The BBC's Panorama looks at migrant workers in the UAE:
I dont even blame
the government for such inaction. Dubai and the wider Gulf region has
become a playground for the upper-middle and upper economic class of
the country. The same people who buy second homes, work in managerial
positions and enjoy vacations in these cities have no qualms about
enjoying the fruits of the mass, systematic exploitation of their
fellow countrymen in a foreign land, while complaining about
corruption and injustice in Pakistan itself.
Return to
Pakistan, and its these same labourers who are welcomed by rent
seeking customs and immigration officials. When these same Pakistanis
leave the country, they have to pay of immigration officials due to
the “protector law”.
Most people think
that all the people working in the Gulf are happy to do so, should
consider that a few years ago the UAE government launched a scheme
where they offered free tickets to workers who wanted to
leave. The number of people who came forward was so large, that they
had to eventually stop the entire project due to its cost and the
poor press it received. If everything was so hunky dory the
government of the UAE wouldn’t have paid the founder of Blackwater to hire and train mercenaries from Columbia, Angola, Namibia and South Africa as a rapid reaction force to put down any labour protests.
No, these overseas
Pakistanis, have little hope of support from their host governments
or their governments, but nevertheless the Pakistani state is
grateful for their remittances. Effectively, the savings of poor
labourers overseas, cross subsidises the tax dodging opulence of the
Pakistani upper class, for without their remittances, the Pakistani
economy would be in a much, much worse state at present.
Giving these
Pakistanis the right to vote is little consolation given the
injustice and exploitation they face. However, when we talk about overseas Pakistanis, we are not thinking about the poor labourers. Instead, we are looking at those living in the West. For they, supposedly have sold their souls to a foreign master. However, the Pakistani state selling Pakistanis into second class citizenship in the Arab world is well...just brotherly relations.
The “Western” Pakistanis
No, the problems
and the question of loyalty really comes up when we talk about
Pakistanis who have dual nationality with Western countries.
Pakistani-Brits, Pakistani-Americans etc. Another point that
Pakistani commentator like to take up over and over again is to quote
the American oath of allegiance. In all its glory:
I hereby declare, on oath, that I
absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and
fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of
whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I
will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United
States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I
will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear
arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I
will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United
States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national
importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and
that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or
purpose of evasion; so help me God.
People complain that how can someone
who has taken this oath be patriotic towards or have Pakistan's best interest at heart? That is utter
nonsense. We live in a globalised world where people move not because
of changing nationalistic sentiments, but because of economic
opportunity or familial pressure. If someone takes this oath that
does not make them any more American or any less Pakistani. If you
believe that this is infact the case, then you should also believe
that when a girl marries a boy and moves to her boys household, her
love for her parents and siblings is compromised. You then, should
also believe that if a non-Muslim, in school in Pakistan, happens to
sit through an Urdu class and comes across a chapter related to Islam
and reads through it, he or she will become more Muslim and his or
her faith in their religion is also compromised.
Why do British-Pakistanis support
Pakistan in a England vs. Pakistan cricket match? I am sure they have
sand God Save the Queen at some point in their life or attended a
civics class in school?
I am not saying that overseas
Pakistanis will always be patriotic towards Pakistan. I am sure they
are now third or even fourth generation British or American
Pakistanis, who probably have no link with Pakistan at all and no
attachment. However, what I do disagree with are the nonsensical
arguments that are made to disenfranchise overseas Pakistanis.
Citizenship for another age
The primary function of oaths and
citizenship was to make sure that they were always men that could be
called upon to fight a war if need be. Through conscription,
individuals could be drafted into military service. However, Pakistan
doesn’t draft citizens into the military. And we are not fighting
battles for local chieftains (or are we?).
The issue here isn't about the colour of
ones passport.
To move beyond questioning ones
patriotism, same sensible rules can be established for overseas
Pakistanis who may want to participate in elections.
More important than citizenship is
residency. For example, the UK along with many EU countries allow non-EU citizens
to vote in local or city elections. An overseas Pakistani may be
asked to reside in Pakistan for a qualifying period before being
allowed to stand for office. He or she should make a declaration of
income and assets, and if liable show a history of paying taxes in
Pakistan.
The issue here is not about excluding
individuals from running from office. The issue here is that
constituents are being deprived of choice on the ballot. If the
voters of X, Y or Z want to vote for an overseas Pakistani that’s
their choice. What however, needs to be discouraged is for potential
candidates not declaring dual citizenship, not because there is
something wrong in having a second passport, but because that may
raise questions on what else he or she is hiding.
In a
future post I hope to talk about the economics of overseas Pakistanis
and the role immigration plays in supporting our economy. However, in
terms of politics, disenfranchising individuals should not be our
goal, to serve some warped understanding of patriotism. On the one hand
lobbying for overseas Pakistanis to vote, while denying them the
right to stand in the same elections is setting dual standards and
denies voters a full spectrum of choice.
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