The person should feel lucky because he was supposed to provide his own documents only, ancestors were exempted. On a serious note, it is shameful experience and hurts when green passport holders have to feel embarrassed about their own identity (if there is some of it left). Of course, it also motivates them to escape out of Pakistan to change their passports.

So true Faisal. I wonder what happened to Pakistani Passport Authenticity and Integrity. I know quite a few people who have dual Nationality and they prefer to use the other passport just for sake of travel convenience. Now then you also hear People traveling with Pakistani passport abroad facing all sorts of issues at immigration although they do have valid visas. We can only wish our Government makes the Visa process easier for citizens and also we get our green Passport Authenticity and Integrity back. Sohail

Totally agreed Sonia.

It's a very painfull experience to getting any country visa on Pakistani Passport. Even Bangladesh embassy create problems for Pakistani passport holders in getting visa specially for textile sector persons.

The honest truth is that no country wants to let in a Pakistani. With almost every single terrorist incident in the world in some way connected to Pakistan, this is only to be expected. Senseless comments by ministers, military officials only reinforce the stereotype.

So True !!! holding the green passport and standing in queue and cursing ourself that Why we have planned for a vacation . SO TRUE ! the anxiety, pain and tension that whether i have all the documents with me or not , and running like a rabbit and collecting all certificates, its terrible to think . The government or the decision bodies should definately do something !

Well the Big question is .. How would you change all this??

Personally, I think we should return the favor to whatever tourists that we get. Be unusually insane before letting them in, and then balance that out by being super nice to them when they get here. A rare commodity is a valuable commodity, but then again a cracked pots 10,000 years ago is still a useless bit of crockery, far better to upgrade to a stainless steel non stick one.

We all know the problem. The army is already on the job. Pakistan will soon overcome the irritants and the world will once again roll out their red carpet for the people from the Land of Pure. The green passport will cherish its lost glory.

There is no one to blame but ourselves. We brought this to us! with one hand our leaders go begging money and on the other hand they say, "we the Pakistanis are self sustaining people." The Pakistani people will continue to pay this humiliating price until we learn to stand up on feet and be self reliant.

Well said and nicely pointed out the major problem which we are facing. when ever they check this green passport, they treat us in a different way. I have gone through this experience of travelling with my friends from US and Europe. I was treated in the different way as compared to my friends. Once, one of my friend went to Greece with a valid Visa to attend the conference and they stopped him from boarding and they even said we do not believe in Pakistani Passport. Afterwords they allowed him to travel but the point is that why is it so? and when we will able to get rid of it.

This is what we have earned over the period of 60 years; thanks to all our politician (who still could not figure out as to what they want); and our military (whose appetite God only knows). God bless (oh no) God Help Pakistan.

True ! Very few countries would trust a Pakistani upfront. Given the mess inside Pakistan, which is a creation of it's own negativity, jealousy and hate.

Things keep on changing. After bad days the goods will surely come. Keep your fingers crossed. I would also go to the extent of saying that one day the european and other 1st world countries will request us to be kind enough to honour them with our visit but at that time we shall say a Big No. Seriously speaking the situation is horrendous. when we go to Pakistan Embassy we are welcomed by a a very bad smell emenating from the clothes of peasants/taxi drivers coming there to get some work done. Another most obvious thing is the lack of educated people. The majority of the people are the taxi drivers oo labour class. But having all that you feel that you are at home. Home is home whether it is bad or it is good, small or big. If it is dirty we are the ones that need to keep it tidy. if the people are not cultured or uneducated we are the ones to do our bit to introduce them to the world knowledge. However I have to say that when we have to make compromises to accept all these things because we are from the same community I would not blame the outsiders for keeping us at arms length. They don't have to go to root causes for the illiteracy and rough attitude.

why on earth they should any of you in , for God's sake. you are the biggest troublemaker in the world. You are so intolerant people. We do not want you in the west. STOP.

True words, but they make me laugh when some Indian says these words because Pakistan has entry in 20 countries without Visa but Indians can get no entry Visa in any country of world. Negativity? Jealousy? Hate? This is how you see Pakistanis? Yeah your words tell a lot about your reactionary behaviour. Your fear is creating a lot of illusions about us and about yourself.

Harish! It is nature of enemy that he tell honest truth. But I hope you are a friend. in fact we are not as bad as our neighbors are trying to portray us. The terrorist are not Pakistani and The war is not ours. I don't see any sense in your comments except your wish to show your hatred toward Paksitani and using word "senseless or nonsense" for Pak officials. Let's be constructive and stop blowing out your hatred, it will not help you.

Peter! thank you for your very tolerant words. Very peaceful tolerant comments about us. We will try to show yourself as you see us. I don't understand when will you people stop your double standard game.

Dear Jawad God is always blessing us. His blessings will never stop. It is because of G-d blessing that we are still surviving otherwise we have so many enemies in non Muslim countries and also in Muslim countries. We are in middle of enemies. They are doing their best to destroy us but it is just blessing of G-d. Muslims once rule the world and I assure you that Muslims will again rule the world with a leading Pakistani Flag

lol..nice one Adil.. I like the way you have acknowledge Peters ignorance..

It is not the hatred.It is trust that almost whole world has lost in pakistan.This is beautiful country and all peaople are not bad.There are few with vested interest has brought this condition.You young peaople has to change this.Now it will take ages to build the same trust what it was before 9/11.Pakistani leadership has to believe in their abality rather than begging US .Pakistan is strong enough to change the image.But you need to change the leadership first.

I must say look who is talking. I agree that there have been untoward incidents in which the name of Pakistan was used but I am sure I need not tell who has used atom bomb so far not only once but twice. We all know about the war against Iraq on the pretext to destroy weapons of mass destruction. How can anybody give any rationale for such heinous crimes against humanity. it is true that we can be stopped at the airport and we, willingly or unwillingly, come back to our country but there are countries that do not even take public opinion before striking at the innocent citizens of that country. How shameless on the part of those countries that are just bent upon destroying anything and everything that come in their way.

Hi Adil, Can you please give me the names of the contries, if that is here on the planet called earth, where you can travel without a valid pakistani visa.

Congratulations. Please enjoy all perks the green passport carries.... By the way, why and what all these people with the prestigious green passport are complaining about.

Indians like Peter, Adil,Vikram, Harish and Nishanrt are all here to jump with glee and point out that there is added scrutiny and suspicion with a Green Pakistani Passport. This may be true but it applies equally to almost any Muslim country's citizen who is travelling abroad due to the reality and scourge of terrorism. Incidentally, Pakistan has been most active nation in stamping it out. How do you folks in India react to the detention and scrutiny of Indians who travel on a blue Indian passport? I've seen many Indian nationals, detained, questioned and refused entry.

Hats Off to you Bro!!! May your Tribe increase. Home is Home - very well said!!!

The names please...if its True, well then, that speaks about the country, however, please furnish the names of the countries.

We (Pakistani) are not welcome anywhere..................... Changing the passport will not help either. You will still remain, look, eat, live, wear like Pakistani. Trust me on that, I have been living away home for many years. We need our national pride back, how? We need to make right choices of leaders. Indian! Please don

Dear sister Ayesha You are right in saying that it is not against Muslims but against Pakistan only. You know why it is so? Because Pakistan has the potential to lead Muslims around the world. It is the only Atomic state in Muslim world. The only nations that born with Islamic ideology. We have one of the strongest army in Muslim world. Than why not only west lead by US and UK , but Israel and India are also against us. This is so true that we Pakistanis have potential to lead the Muslims. May I question you, why Turkey has not yet been taken into European Union? Don't you think it is just because of it's Muslim identity. Thinks in calm you will get the answer of what is happening around us.

I think people who live in the west find it very easy to judge everyone here in Pakistan. As in all green passport holders are

What about travel TO Muslim countries like UAE, Saudi Arabia? Why is it that the Green passport is less welcome even there compared to the Indian passport? And no. This is not a Muslim issue. I am an Indian Muslim and I do not face difficulty in traveling to UK and USA. Muslims from Indonesia and Bangladesh also do not face the challenges that Pakistanis seem to. Some introspection is called for instead of simply blaming the situation on Islamophobia.

Adil, Dawn Blogs are where concerned citizens of the world share information and exchange ideas - at least that's how I treat these pages. So it is our responsibility to check the validity of our assertions before posting them. And it is not such a tall order, with the advent of the internet search engines. I did the search and here are the results, and that would answer Ahmed Khan (Indian)'s question. Pakistani citizens enjoy no visa requirement or visa on arrival in about 47 countries and territories, Indian citizens enjoy the same privilege in about 67 countries and territories.

sorry. You can not travel to even Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia and UAE without a passport. Nor is it easy for you to travel to your country's best friend China.

Economy of Pakistan has nothing to do with this situation. The matter came to this stage because every major act of terrorism around the world has been found to have a link to persons and organizations based in Pakistan.

It is indeed unfortunate that Pakistanis have to suffer many kinds of problems when they want to travel abroad. Many Indians too, especially Indian Muslims also are subjected to such behavior. For the mischief of a few misguided, rouge elements, innocent and well meaning people too have to suffer. Will Pakistanis continue to suffer this kind of discrimination, Is it not high time for the Paksitani Civil Society and well meaning and thinking elite of Pakistan to seriously introspect and think about ways and means to overcome these problems by positive action which can inspire confidence?

Hey Adil What do you mean by ruling the earth.. Stop blaming everyone except yourself. If you want to rule the world, rule your own people well. Have Peace, Law and eradicate poverty. And why do you want to rule. Be happy and have fun. Cheers

Today, here I read DAWN English. The entire paper i,e. news reports, columns by prominent writers, sport news etc etc give a sad glimpse of what is happening there. Individuals travelling abroad carry the image of the country where they belong. Different countries have different rules and regulations for travelers. Up-to-date documentation is the major source of identification. So, keep them clean and readily available. Don

Even being born in Pakistan, is a black mark against you if you are travelling. I am a Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, and I am grilled like a common criminal every time I travel , because my place of birth is Pakistan , and I have a couple of Pakistani entry stamps on my passport. Like a poster mentioned earlier, we have only ourselves to blame. Almost every terrorist incident , has some connection to Pakistan, and our country has become so dangerous and unstable, that, we can't even host a cricket match, or any other sporting event against a visiting team.

Guys I think its time to chill out. Try to be constructive with your criticism, and if someone's looking for an argument just ignore it.

Well Shah they do treat us differently , we ourselves are to blame. I am currently studying in Hong Kong right now, and the stories I've heard about some of the things that pakistanis in foreign country just makes me mad. It gets worse when they are extreme in their way of thinking and try to impose their view on others. I was approached by a beirded man in Hong Kong who did not speak or understand both English and Cantonese. This man told me that my primary reason of being here is to invite people towards Islam. We should be preaching by example not like this. And its all because of illiteracy. People just can't think straight. It saddens me that i have to clear up many misconceptions about my country..

Like

The documents asked by the embassy, in this article, are basic proof a traveler from a developing country in Asia would submit if they apply for a visitor visa to Europe or US. There is no need to cry! After all it is their country and they are responsible enough to not let it become an easy place for terrorists to come, live and go. Forging an indian or pakistani passport is much easier than a UK or US passport.

Honestly, Its not the green passport that puts the well educated, hopes for the best Pakistani. Its the lack of world knowledge, its the illiteracy, its the country that has turned into a huge trashcan, all due to its own people. The majority of the people of Pakistan have the attitude of we are happy in our lives, why should we care about the rest of Pakistan, or about anything that does not pertain to us. In the states, we have problems just like any other country, but the people here care for one another. You see a woman being abused we do not turn our cheek, we reach out to her. We see a street that has litter we start a program to clean it. This is what causes the shame in the green passport, and because of what seems to be a growing negative population, the green passport gets the heat for it. Change your People, change your ways. I too am American Born Pakistani by heritage, and I lived in Pakistan for two yrs after marriage, my ex husband, my in laws saw me to be crazy when I wanted to use my education to help the nation of Pakistan, they saw it as nothing more then trying to ask for trouble. Its this mentality that stops the growth of Pakistan, and the shame of those that want better for themselves, and their land. One day InshALLAh, Pakistan will stand strong with educated, and well versed people.

Mr. Vankirk, Pakistan has now joined the esteemed list of 14 countries ( Like Yemen) whose nationals will now be strip searched at all the US airports. This respect has been accorded to a country which at one point of time a very good friend and an ally of the US. Pakistanis and Pakistan feel that the entire world is conspiring against them ! for God sake Why!!! There are other Muslim countries as well.. Why isnt the world conspiring against them. So before blaming other for your problems, Pakistan should look inside. Please dont derive a sadistic pleasure from seeing Indians refused an entry. We travel on our passport with pride and no one questions an Indian if he has valid documents.

It is not just Pakistani passport holders. Most visa applications are a total pain, expensive, time consuming and hugely frustrating. Getting a visa for India issued in the UK is now a complete joke, Air India routinely have to re-book people onto different flights as a result. Having a Pakistani visa in your passport is more than enough to get white boys from the UK treated with great suspicion in the USA, even if only transiting and not allowed to leave the airport.

Wow, was this an honest revelation of your thoughts ?! Adil, I think we were discussing the intolerance, with some sort of a racist attitude; shown by others towards Pakistani nationals. I personally against any kind of discrimination committed to anybody just because he/she belongs to a particular nation/religion/creed or color. What you've said though, sorry what you dream - that of Islamic Hegemony, Pakistan's Global rule etc etc., justifies - rather demands a much stricter background check for any sort of entry in free & secular world. If an educated Pakistani is having such a feudal,archaic & intolerant mindset, it doesn't cast a good image of other common citizens. Why for havens sake, you are not ready to be human beings first. No body is out there to destroy you, stop hallucinating please!

Being a Pakistani, and have lived abroad and in Pakistan as well. I would like to say that unfortunately we have not given a good name of our selves abroad. I agree there are good and bad people everywhere but as pakistanis, we have been always part of troubles and not solutions abroad. I agree with Sonia, we should change our passports at the very first opportunity that knocks on our door.

We Indians too feel the insecurity of double glances in airport queues. In the US the scrutiny is about terrorism and equally about immigration. In European countries we feel there is a little less scrutiny once they know we are from India. The western Europe and US authorities' mail fear is the challenge in weeding out illegal or fraudulent documentation. Now a days even for the techies, documents are being double checked and people are known to be sent back. The color and faces are the same and hence the glances for all of us are the same.

Suspect the "Muslims will again rule the world" nonsense is part of the problem. Religious fanatics/terrorist feed on intolerance.

I am 28 years old guy living in US. I want to go visit my family in pakistan but I prefer to sit alone in my apartment than to say an unwilling good bye to my career and get stuck in visa clearances in pakistan - and humiliation by the hands of homeland security and airports all over the world. I know pakistan is going through a rough phase and its by no means a permanent situation - but unfortunately things won't quite go uphill just yet - at least in my life time. I'll be either long gone or too old to even bother about these things. I wish we were living in a world where people take other people as humans first and then anything else. And by the way people like peter do not represent majority of sane individuals in west. They are also being played by their politician, they just don't screw their own people unlike our politicians.

Indian should be the last one laughing on this situation. It is true Indian get visas much more easily but when they are aboard they are treated like untouchable. See the situation in Australia, US, UK and many other places where Indians are treated badly. Also, when Pakistanis are aborad they are not seen as Pakistani they are seen as an Indian and often they get the treatment that was incorrectly targeted. In West, people are really worry Indian taking over jobs and speading in their communities like cancer, According to one of my white friends, this Indian mass immigration is going to turn their beautiful cities in Slum Dog cities. My point is: Indian brothers should not be celebrating this, since the world sees Pakistanis and Indians from same angle. Same people who write hateful blogs are best friends they meet outside of their countires. Why hate?

The article gives out a feeling that the measures the West take at the airport are unjust. Surely the innocet travelers are the victims. But so do the victims perished in the twin tower disaster in September 1I. Worst, the architect of the twin tower disaster in New York was caught in Karachi, Pakistan. Each time, whenever a Pakistani feels overwhelemed at the airprot in the West, he or she must wonder why the mass murderer had managed to find refuge not in Paris, in London, in Lisbon, in Madrid but in Karachi, Pakistan. Another lesson Pakistani had to observe is how to react to disaster. Ever met a Pakistani who had been able to come to terms with the depth of the disaster of the year 1971 when the country split in half with millions slaughtered?

Well for the solution I have only one advice for Pakistan. Be introvert, accept your mistakes, stop blaming others for your troubles, stand up on your own, believe in yourself and the world will start believing in you.

This is called self consolation....

Adil, After reading your reply, I am convinced you deserve what you are treated with.

Unless Pakistan does not treat terrorsim differently on east and west border....

Adil , When did Muslims rule the world? Please give me a date? And tell me how is signifies and relates to current situation in Pakistan? Secondly, why Arabs, Turks don't face such problems faced specifically by Pakistanis? As, you have mentioned in your comments above, that 20 countries allow Pakistanis to enter without Passports? Please name them and give valid sources to validate your notion? or its just that, for the sake of argument, you come up with your own cooked-up facts, which you throw here and there?

I

Regarding our green passport, we must be proud and show others that we are proud.Our ruling class, mostly consisting of frauds, thieves and dishonest people are mainly responsible for the insult and we must make sure that a person having dual nationality should not be allowed to hold a public office, MNAS, MPA or adviser or ambassador. NAB should be made an independent entity and not under the control of Executives. They must not bear no one. Certainly if minster is tried he gets a clean chit from the court . If we change our system I assure you things will change. We must stand firm on our feet

No country wants to let a Pakistani in? I just visited prague and holland, and then back to the states, i was welcomed and treated with the utmost respect. you have no idea how polite they were with me in holland and in prague especially. I obviously dont look as foul and gross as your average indian movie star, so maybe that could be a big reason. A PROUD PAKISTANI

Well written. I am sure it is not just the Pakistani green passport but also the name in it....let us say some 'John Major' or 'John Smith' is carrying a Pakistani green passport....I am really curious to know how he/she would be treated .. :) Not that we find anyone with that name carrying a Pak passport ... unless he/she is eccentric and has moved from UK or USA or from some other western country to become like 'Jihad Jane'. Ok.. what about a 'Khan' carrying a US passport or an Afghani Pashtun carrying a British passport ? Or a catholic westerner just dressed like Osama ? hehe ...there would be chaos at the airport ... Well jokes apart...it should be really embarrassing for Pakistanis travelling abroad (I have never travelled abroad)... even to Bangladesh let alone western countries.. Man, feel real sorry .... How is this gonna change ? Even if you are allowed to travel abroad, it must be embarrassing in a social gathering to admit that one is from Pakistan ...Will this ever change ?

Political opinion or the opinion of a news agency about a country is meaningless. Unless you have lived among Pakistanis, your opinion about them is a product of ignorance. If i was idiotic enough to believe everything i saw on tv, i would think every Indian is a drama queen seeing as how they love their soap operas so much.

Well, my indian friends, look at whats happening to you in Australia. hey, they even detained shah rukh khan and your defense minister " GEORGE FERNANDES" so yeah, go ahead, be proud of your blue passport. My green passport gives me courage to stand up and fight back.

What you will never understand is that we love our Green Pakistani passport no matter what anyone says- we will happily endure anything to use that Green passport. It is ours and represents our country ! Yes everyone from any Muslim country is probably profiled but we are not so easily swayed from our sense of identity. We may be subject to more checks as is anyone from Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia or Morocco but we don't mind. Enjoy your Indian passport and try to figure out why you too are stopped despite carrying an Indian passport. Could it be you are just another foreigner from a developing country- this is as much the reason as is anything to do with terrorism!

@Adil, pity you, you are completely blessed by, not Allah but great Zoin hamid. he he heeeeee

You have been hating us since 1947 so what trust are you talking about that we need to rebuild. Do not portray your deep rooted hatred as our fault. None of the 9/11 culprits were Pakistani. We are being singled out because of vested interest of nations such as US, Israel and India who are occupying muslim land and invovled in daily killing of innocent muslims for decades. It is in their vested interest to portray all muslims as evil and Pakistan is at the forefront of their onslaught due to its strategic location and its position militarily.After destroying Iraq and then Pakistan they will go after Iran to wipe out any Muslim with an iota of ability to defend themselves. This is the new world order that the crusaders want to put in place and india and Israel are eager participants. India was the first one to offer the US bases after sep 11 on the condition it included Pakistan as a target with Afghanistan. This is what indian intentions were and continue to be.

It's true, but we should not feel discriminated, it's been 4,5 years since we have started using Computerized Passports, hence slowly the amount of Fake passports and visa issue is shortening up, also the Afghan war has hurt Pakistan badly, No Country in the world you will find who has given Afghan nationals Refugee as Pakistan has and the figure is 3,4 and millions, Afghanis using Pakistani Passport is on the rise as well. On the contrary i believe there is some extra check for Pakistanis, which is off course good for the safety of man kind in current circumstances, though recently my relatives applied for visit visa to Australia and the amount of time taken was not much and even they give them Multiple visit visa with out applying yes they possessed Pakistani Passport :-)

Completely agree , every time I travel with Pakistani Passport immediately the treatment at most places (not exclusive to US) is beyond pathetic. You will feel as you are entering with criminal record , and my only crime is I am born in Pakistan. Frankly, this is in part because of situation we have in Pakistan , but more so because of zero diplomatic effort from Pakistani Govt. Any country issue visa to Pakistani citizen should honor and treat them respectfully , if you cannot do so , don't issue the visa. I don't want to go off topic and will not comment on various posters random senseless points , but just want to say go and read UN list containing name and origin of group involve in negative activities , surprisingly our neighboring country with biggest tattoo of democracy has 60 of these group.

I am proud to have a green passport, even with its issues. That is because it identifies me as a Pakistani, and that's all i need.

Very well said sister. It's on us how we portray ourself and what we contribute towards society in changing the image. We must have to contribute positively in all respect in our society. Only through this collaborative efforts we be able to change the image. Let me also share it that only through media we can change this image of ours. If you see India or USA, both the countries have higher crime rate but their media only portray Hollywood and Bollywood image that shows them as modern and civilized country. Our media can also play same role we intent to do so. Media need to be more responsible and sensible.

very well said, Indians have very bad image in Australia.

Well, we understand that for most Pakistanis travelling would be a big problem, but please remember there are many people globally who feel better safe than sorry.

Exactly at which time during the last sixty years of Pakistan's existance did the world roll out a red carpet for Pakistan. By claiming that Pakistan is the land of the pure are you implying that all others are impure. You are not making a statement by ranting and venting out your illusions.

Well you already are, remember Daneil Pearl. Plus Pakistan can't afford to mess around with the West, not with the billions in charity that is being dolled out by the West.

Pakistan is know to aid and abbet terrorist in countries all around the world. The question is that why are you in a denial mode now.

True depiction of the reality! They also want to finger print, foot print, thumb print, full body scan, search your shoes, pants and God knows what more for their own safety!

C'mon Guys and Gals, This Green Passport is our identity and I'm proud to own it. So, should you.

Come on guys and girls. This Green Passport is our identity and we are proud atleast I am to be associated with it.

Whether you realize it or not, Arabs and Iranians suffer more discrimination at the immigration counters in North America and Europe. I have seen it myself.

The world knows the intelligence and ability of Pakistanis. When my parents came to North America they were sponsored by a US company that was hunting for talent in Pakistan. Despite the scourge of terrorism in all Muslim coutnries, people understand the capability of Pakistani workers. Take a look at Pakistanis settled in Western countries and how they excel in education, business and the work force. Almost everywhere, most Pakistanis are gainfully employed, pay taxes and contribute to society. Contrast this with other immigrants to the West like Somalians and Afghanis who generally live on social assistance and are a burden on the social system. I agree with Neil, once Pakistan finishes the job of sending the foreign inspired criminals packing, we can restore our honour and prestige to where it was before!

Don't kid yourself, I've seen that anyone coming from a developing country, India included, is subject to greater questioning and checks. I know this as a fact for North America and Europe- people from developing nations are subject to the same scrutiny.

Education and better economy is the only solution!

The root of the problem is not with Pakistani passport, it's the Pakistani system. Let me explain, I am living in Europe for 10 years (yeah, not the UK, real Europe exist outside UK!!) and have traveled extensively on my Pakistani passport, so much so that I changed 4 passports in 9 years cause the pages ran out quickly to get a new Visa. Now, I have acquired another citizen, yes legally, and yes after paying taxes and giving best part of my youth to Europe. I never blame(d) Pakistani Passport, it's the Pakistani system where it came from, why? 1. Pakistani Passport contains not much details (the Machine Readable Passport are fairly new, I never owned one cause the embassy didn't have the equipment!!!!) 2. Related to first point, the birth certificates are not standardized, in developed countries the whole family information is available via birth certificate, in Pakistan every region issues different types of certificates. 3. Passport is hard cross check and validate against an integrated system in Pakistan. 4. Authenticity of Pakistani passport is very difficult to verify (its common to find afghani and others using Pakistani passports, yes I came across certain people!) 5. Passport authority and embassies have no real collaboration, in fact embassies rely completely on passport service in Pakistan. 6. Pakistanis generally are not aware of the local immigration laws 7. Most of the Pakistanis doesn't respect the local customs 8. Rumors are true -- the general reputation of Pakistanis are unfortunately more true than we think, I eavesdropped on a "desi looking" guys in Barcelona, they were from Jehlum and talking about "how much and when to pay to get the visa from another guy". (apologies to Indian friends, but most Indians are in the same boat as per my experience) 9. Majority of Pakistanis I have seen anywhere outside pakistan, from Europe to US to South America, they all either talk about "tricking the local immigration and get fake visa or papers" or "hardcore religious fanatics". 10. Pakistanis (just like most of south asians) rarely mix with other cultures and as a result gets negative reviews due to closed mentality. Furthermore, there are other related factors which are responsible for overall bad reputation; for example, visiting a Pakistani embassy is like going to a flea market, random, chaotic, extremely and I repeat EXTREMELY UNPROFESSIONAL, no real information about the local laws, hand written manual passports (except few capitals) and on top of the list, instead of helping Pakistanis they create problems and obstacles. The reason I am mentioning this is that passport, foreign office, general reputation they are all linked together. So yeah, when the Pakistan's government structure will shape up, and immigration and foreign office will be handled professionally, the reputation of Pakistani passport will return automatically.

Can you please say what about Pakistan you are proud of ?

Forget about USA,UK or EU country.Try traveling to Yemen, Egypt, Algeria, Kenya or Morocco with a Pakistani Passport and a valid visa you are stopped at the Airport for hours for security checks. Problem is our Government is weak and they know what is happening but are doing nothing Alternatively people from these countries when they visit Pakistan they are treated as honored guests and given a red carpet treatment. It is really a shame.

Very well said mate.

Only the almighty god rules the world.

Who are you kidding- you know that an Arab or Iranian is subject to much more profiling and abuse than even a Pakistani at US and European customs. The answer is simple- most of the terrorist attacks against the US are not by Pakistanis but by Arabs. Iran, Yemen and Somalia has become synonymous with terrorism in the United States but Pakistan is still seen as an ally. Yes our government can do a lot more to make our passports more user friendly and to prevent foreigners like Afghanis, Arabs and Central Asians from using our passports. As for Pakistani hospitality at treating foreigners like guests, it's part of our culture. The only thing is that other nations abuse our hospitality for their own purposes.

Let's face it, most of the criminals planning terrorist attacks are citizens of Muslim countries- even if most of the criminals are not Pakistani, we get lumped into the Muslim world by association. The Indians here have to get a grip on what's going on- yes citizens of Muslim countries probably get more checking but Indians and all people from poor third world countries are checked regardless and their entry is limited. A Middle Eastern or Central Asian looking person from Central or Northern Pakistan will more likely fit the bill of terrorist than an South Indian or Sri Lankan looking fellow. This is only logical. This is the reality in the current world climate but I would still say that most immigration people I've dealt with have been very decent and professional.

Hello, by the way , that actor(???) answers for a particular name Shah rukh Khan. a Khan , got it. So west ,always gets suspicious about a Muslim, a Muslim from South Asia, a Muslim from Pakistan ,in there order of increasing screening . And for your information , your best ally US has placed Pakistan in the the worlds best dozen plus 2 i.e 14 countries like Yemen, Tanzania etc etc for immigration clearance check. Enjoy the company

I'm Proud of all the things about Pakistan! and if you think those who disgrace this fine nation are Pakistani's then you, my friend, are very much mistaken!

After reading all these comments I have something to say which is "I have a Blue (US) Passport and every time I come to Pakistan I am treated oddly too. Even though the Passport carries a LOT of weight the immigration officer at the Quaid-e-Azam Intl Airport will treat you in such a manner that will leave you wondering as what the heck have I done wrong to this person. If you enter on a non-pakistani passport you are requested to wait in a line which is much shorter that the regular one but you will only get attention when the immigration officer is done socializing with other ppl around him or if he is done with his chai. So if anyone who has a green, red, yellow etc coloured passport really doesn't matter. The immgiration officer is the chaudhry of the day and it's entirely upto him to either be a rasist or just a normal human being".

@March, "but most Indians are in the same boat as per my experience" this is not exactly true ... let me give you clear picture of things are done ..actually not only in india but almost everywhere these days .. four of us friends went to US consulate to get visa .. we are from the same town , going to same US university .. actually we applied for the same becuase we are best of friends and wanted to study in the same place.. two of us got visa right away, which was myself (i am christian and one more who is a hindu), the other guys status is still not known(both are muslims) since they just said we will return your passport after further processing ... its been 3 months and still they dont know when they r getting their passport back and they unfortunately could not make it for the spring semester.. i came to US and got to know that its the same case for 6 of the indian muslims i met here.. i thought this was specific to india but its true for guys from lebanon too( may be many more countries which i dont know of).. now i am seeing it in ur country(here since everyone is a muslim, it might pertain to the whole country) ... and in india too if you are a muslim from an outside country they wont easily give u visa ... the world today follows one rule for the safety of its borders that is " not every muslim is a terrorist, but more than often every terrorist is a muslim"... i know i will get some rude comments after i post this ..but people who have experienced this will agree with me.

That last statement was quite rude and disrespectful.

How do you know that Fani is a "sister"? And can you point to some statistics that show India & the US have higher crime rates? If you can't please stop making ridiculous assessments

So ultimately your point is that you are better looking than an Indian movie star ! And therefore you are received with utmost respect ! Tell these stories to the kids in your neigbourhood - They might believe you !

this is not due to green color, this is not due to name Pakistan this is only cuz Alhumdolilah we are Muslim and our ideology islam is threat to their ideology. this is only due to the holder of this Green passport is a citizen of the only Islamic nuclear state. this is how they treat us, to break us, to humiliate us, to depress us, so we would break apart and leave our country.. just like iqba said: teray chanay waloo ki na yee dunya naa woo dunya yahan jenay ki pabundi, wahan marnay ki pabundi JazakAllah khair

My friends i hope that this mail will not make any of you to get angry and feel negative for us the people from West.Reading your high quality forum i'd like to add few words,and i hope that these should be usefull for you the people there to understand more our concerns and fears. I am a Greek citizen and for long time now people from your country are arriving to my country,usually by sea,on daily basis.I can understand that as proud people you have your selfestimation and you are proud,but come for few min in my position.Imagine thousands of Europeans arriving in your country and most of them are from the lowest levels of Europe.They have fake papers,or no papers at all,the only who they can offer is cheap labour,they live 15-30 persons in each room and when you are near them you really want to close your nose because you can not breath.The public buses where they are and are passing from their areas smell the worsed,and you can find them washing car's glasses to all over the city begging for few money,or selling lighters,etc at the crossroads.Also these Europeans have a high rate in criminality,they are first in rapes and whenever they find the opportunity they break the Law.These people has no problem to poo in public places,usually there where the kids are playing,or to small areas with green.You can see them going arround the city having exactly the same clothes as the day who they arrive and you can see clearly the luck of respect for rules and principles of the society who host them.So tell me dear friends.How do you feel about them?How you should all react to them?

MILLIONS of people have said this for billions of time. Pakistan will never change. They will keep looking at every other thing through the religious point of view.

very tolerant indeed....

True! My friend who is in Media firm stays in Dubai, traveled to Pakistan for some business related work from Dubai, although he is christian but when I invited him to Europe for tourism, he was interviewed twice by embassy and stopped at immigration for 3 hrs. They even called me to confirm if I invited him. So having not only pakistani passport but visa is great pain ,,,, .

We have a great culture, traditions, and a nation with boundless potential. That's why Pakistanis are so proud of having our Green passport!

Dear Bro, First focus to save Pakistan then think about world.

Shahrukh Khan interview by immigration (not detained) because he has muslim name so got profiled and media blew things out of proportion.

True, Pakistani passport is a disgrace. So what have you done to change the perception ?

Nobody hates you,they pity you.

Sorry Ayesha but that is not true. Arabs hate each other too, ofcourse it all depends on how you define an Arab. However that's a different story altogether and I will go with the current assumption that all those who speak Arabic are arabs. If you happen to go to Saudi Arabia or any of the gulf countries they will never speak well of Lebanese, Egyptians, Morrocans or even Syrians for that matter. Likewise Egyptians hate Lebanese and the Lebanese and Syrians hate them back. Ofcourse when it comes to choosing between an Arabic speaking person and a suncontinental person, Arabs will choose Arabs. White Europeans are the all time favourites in Arab countries, especially in the gulf states. Therefore don't think that the Arabs are good with each other. It is an illusion that the so called Arab world exists. So called Arabs have vast differences in their cultures and outlooks and so there is no comparison. Religion is often used to artificially cobble people of different backgrounds together, but it rarely works and is often a failure.

Maybe so but Arabs do not have trouble to going to each other's countries. Pakistanis despite being Muslim are treated poorly even by immigration of Gulf countries.

Our Country is weak, our politicians are not sincere. This is not happening with Indians and Bangladeshis.

We use Sunnah dress in Australia. My wife and daughter are in Burqa. We do not have any problem in this country. We have not lose our identity.

As long as you are not traveling. Be proud and be associated

My friend law is law in Australia irrespective of who you are. The ministers walk and shop around as normal citizens without any Chamchas around them. Does it happen in Pakistan or India?

There is nothing wrong with the green passport. The problem is with both our Govt which is weak and the people who abuse it. We both need to mature up and work towards making Pakistan a great country. No body else could get the honour, respect and dignity that we deserve back to us.

Faisaal the point that you have enlightened is very true and also an embarrassing one for our country as well as for the people of Pakistan. But I personally believed that all these treatment that we are facing now a days is due to the bad governance. The screening process which we are facing, infact not only us but all the major Muslim countries even SAUDI ARABIA, the major oil producer of the world is not even raising her voice against this shameful act. What I want to say is that if the Muslim rulers are not rising their voices against this dreadful act then we should personally restrain ourselves from traveling abroad and condemn this act. (like the two ladies which did at HEATHROW airport). and I am 100% sure if we boycott this and wont travel to such countries where screening is done then i am very much sure that this step will really make the WORLD to think about this and will definitely lift dis ban.

Atomic bomb, lol. Get over it, there are better things to life than atomic bombs and guns.

An isolated example. Honestly it is a fallacy. When you say that the world rolled out a red carpet then you literally mean that Pakistan was given a preference or was considered superior in some ways to some other countries which was never the case.

Peter well said,I fully agree with you.

I partially agree with the author about the passport related issues that Pakistanis are currently facing around the globe and one has to go through extra procedures and security checks when traveling abroad. But I reflect that the issue is old

I think your job is to complete your education and get on with your life, religion is a matter of personal choice. That bearded man is wrong and you should never have listened to him. The country breed of Pakistanis are especially hardcore and fanatical about their views and they wish they don't tolerate any view that is contrary to their own.

Arab countries treat everyone with disdain excluding white Europeans and Americans.

AOA! I like your article but its not only Pakistan even inside Pakistan with your own passport when you are getting in the airport they treat you like you are from another planet.

Your comments are a matter of your own opinion,factual or otherwise.How ever they are not validated by independently corroborated facts.Suggest you do so before making emotional comments.I used to hear comments like yours from Pakistani students whilst at university in England.

I am impressed by Pakistani's pride in their country even when whole world is treating them unfairly. I am an Indian and ashamed of my country men's stupid comments, it is ignorant to think we are treated any better. In westerner's eyes we are all same people and want us to stay back in our own countries.

Look Pakistani's are not being targetted unfairly. There is a reason behind what is happening. However I do agree that Indian's are treated no better than Pakistanis in by people in the West. Deep down many western people still have deep rooted prejudiced about the 'uncivilized agorbinal" from the east. However Sub constinental people also have to take a part of blame on themselves for encouraging such stereotypes to be perpetuated, more so in the case of Pakistanis.

lol, yes they are Pakistanis too. You might call them bad Pakistanis if you like, but Pakistanis they still are.

Treated? I don't know then why you are feeling pain? People in west mistreat us But you feel pain for us? I have never been mistreated any where in the world.

Do you even know that passports are getting delayed due to some technical issues in the machines?? I got my passport on time and i can give you so so many examples who got their passports in time ... so please stop spreading false news ... Plus i can give you so many examples who got their multiple entry visas for US recently .. and some more countries .. i live in kuwait and i know there are some issues with green passport but this is just because of our GOVT which is week. Right now even in kuwait visit ares blocked for 13 nationalities including Pakis and there is no reason for it .. so if our embassy would be strong they could take action and ask for the removal of ban.. in the end i m proud to have this green passport whatever it takes.. One thing for you other than cursing paki passport holders its better u start working on the betterment of the our govt and these situations ..

They are not jealous of your nuclear weapons. Western countries are too far away to be a target. ALL terrorist incidents beginning with 9/11 to 26/11 has had a Pakistani connection. It is obvious that west does not takes any chances with security. Remember it is the same reason why it is so difficult for Indians and Pakistanis to go to each others countries. They have to fill even more forms to get a visa and can't go anywhere.

I guess Australians also have a very bad image in India. And it will hurt them more because India is one of their largest trading partners. Where are you?

Pakistanis are respected as individuals, not as citizens of their countries, as one would respect for example Japanese.. As far as your comment on Indian movie stars is concerned, they may not be as good looking as you according to your standards, they are certainly infinitely more successful and popular than most people in your country.

When i said, "most Indians are in the same boat as per my experience

I am sure those 20 countries do not matter in the world. Can you give us the names? I know a Pakistani who is trying to get a tourist visa for Australia for his mother(I feel for her), but it is rejected every time. My parents got the visa in just 1 week.

well said ... Agreed...you got a point

long live pakistan

and I see you wrote you a proud Pakistani ......... can you please let us all know what are you proud of in Pakistan?

We have one of the lowest literacy rate in the modern world with no set progress and development in plan, so really the west is not threatend by us. They know how far we are from then in terms of development. Reality check, please! We need to empower, educate our masses in this fast maving world.

I agree with you. Its something we feel belong too. However, it still is sad how we are treated.

Raheel, I very much agreed with you that author has over exaggerated the issue here. I also respect the affection that you have with your Green Passport

i have travelled a lot on Pakistani passport before and even after 9-11, mostly on business travels to Europe/asia. for last one year, i have the blue passport and i get more questions when coming back to my newly adopted country. yes Green passport draws extra attention, but soon the blue passport will draw much more attention, so be ready all blue passports holders.

Shah Rukh deliberately blew the issue to promote his movie My Name Is Khan, otherwise so many times he has visited the US never he complained about anything.

well well well all this pain can be pacified with a thought that it's their job to do it ..... and it's our job to get it done the way they want as they are the hosts we are visitors to their countries same holds true about obtaining Pakistani visa for all foreigners rules are rules we ought to comply with them rest about fees if you don't have the potential to pay just don't travel without having regrets :)

From your reply I assume you consider the UK/US passport purely a document of convenience, to be used as and when required.Presumably the concept of loyalty to the country whose passport you carry and use has not crossed your mind.It is precisely this concept of ''Iwill still be Pakistani----------even if I have a US or UK passport'',that rankles with the English people and make them doubt your loyalty.

Mr. Kadha, I am not going to write anything about the thoughts and feelings behind the last sentence. I will let the others judge those. But the sentence itself is totally, besides being untasteful, uncalled for because it has nothing to with the context. I hope you don't carry the same attitude with your friends and family. If you do, I wish them luck because they need it.

You too!

Since you changed passport people feels you are terrorist, nothing do with blue. everybody in western world knows which colour is valued more that is guranteed.

I think its not about Pakistani Green passport alone, If we look historically most of the under developed countries required no visa until early eighties to several developed nations at the time, this is also fact that more developed and economically good Muslim/developing countries still has this facility offered to them. i.e Malaysia, and many middle eastern states. Even if we leave current terrorist links, the real deep rooted problem is the economic conditions that forces residents from poor economies to move for better opportunities, I don't think its always a Pakistani Passport and similar. yes its true the nothing has been done on media to counter all the bad image building of Pakistan, when even suspects without proven televised across the globes and once it got all the bad image at high level, nothing mentioned when those suspects were wrongly accused and released without charge, i.e Pakistani student in UK, Pakistan immigrants killed by Europeans at border and declared them Al Qaeda members just to get some US attention. etc. there is some impact cause of this, but real problem still lies in economic condition of a country. be it a Pakistani, or Mexican entering US! while Singapore, Malaysia and Gulf rich sates get entry visas to many countries. so its not Muslim link, its all about business and economy and probability of a person going back to its country without staying for economic reasons.

I guess there is an option to have dual nationalities ... getting a US or UK passport doesnt make you non pakistani .. i will still be pakistani and will die pakistani even if i will have US or UK passport.. To clear one thing for you, i wont get a US or UK passport just because there is a disgrace in having Paki passport .. hope this will clear your mind about the way i think about this issue

When white guy knows that the other guy is Indian then he is only worried about Job where as as soon as white guy knows that other guy is Pakistni, he is worried about his life.. One real incidence, I was travelling with my Indian office collegue in Taxi at Exeter St Davis in UK, a white taxi driver asked us whether we are Indians or Pakistanis.

Your state of brain has another name: Sleep Walking... If Pakistanis were really sleeping, their western ally would have wake them up but if you are acting to be in state of sleep ... no friend or foe can wake you up.....There is article about this in Dawn blog.... you need to read it -- it is nation of sleep walker from NFP

Did you read reply as given below by Ayesha...And friend don't worry about my pain....worry about your green passport and it's conseqences...as given in this article and blogs by your Pakistani friend....you should be worried about their pain as a fellow citizen....

vankirk, You may be proud of your green passport but not many many Pakistanis...I have seen most Pakistanis in UK changing from Green to Red at the first opportunity... So don't say we Pakistani are proud of green passport, say about yourself....most Pakistani lived abroad wants different colour for their passport...

I have a green passport and am proud of it. But my sense of pride is hurt when I am asked questions to produce on immigration counter at foreign (especially EU) airportS all the necessary documents that had been vetted already by their concerned embassy ,along with the heavy visa fee . Also despite the fact that i pay heavy taxes to the UK goverment but dont get the same treatment at airports.

@Fani. Lets assume that you are all talking sense. Then, why do you and your fellow countrymen need "green" passport at all? Why do they go outside for work, employment, business and then crib about having green passport? (The crux of this article) Reality Check : West scan people to "minimize" the risk. From a sampling space, you will never find a Japanese or Greek involved in any kind of terrorism. So, these ethnicities are removed from scanning. The "probability" of finding a terrorist is high if the person holds "green" passport with Muslim background. So they are scanned. And another reality is that Pakistanis go outside Pakistan for work, employment, etc. It is natural that they feel targetted. Small advice - Remember - The scanning and discrimination is the price you pay for earning more that what you would have in Pakistan. This is the "cost" of safety, money, standard of living which you enjoy in Western countries. If you dont want to pay the cost, dont immigrate. On a lighter note - Pakistanis may have been targetted @ US and UK airport for using incorrect grammar.

@Faisal: Dear i m not giving you the lecture.. plus i m not spreading the false news even .. if i am living in kuwait i m not saying anything bad as well .. because if i could nt do anything better for Pakistan i dont have any right to say as well .. and that is exactly you are doing .. Plus dont tell me whats going on in Saddar passport office, my father and my grand mother recently went through the whole process.. so plzzz 1st go and experience this thing personally then talk about these things .. And living in kuwait doesnt take your right to remain a pakistani .. by the way do you even know if i do anything for Pakistan from here or not .. dont act as if someone cant do anything for pak if he is outside Pak.. @Advani Sb.: i dont have any US/UK passport and even no plans to have it ... can only reply if and if i will have it ever :)

good point ariana

@ Raheel Umm you live in Kuwait and are trying to give me a lecture on nationalism? Why don't you return to Pakistan?? It needs people like you to as you said "start working on the betterment of the our govt and these situations .." By the way, the issue at hand is not being over exaggerated...as per my knowledge there are more than 800,000 passports held up in the queue for renewal, a simple visit to the saddar passport office in Karachi or any passport office will open up many eyes as to what is going on. We all value the green passport...that is precisely the point of highlighting what people are going through these days to own one and to use one to travel on.

I liked all the comments on this topic ;-) best, Lala

You seem to have missed out the most obvious.

Until I landed at the London airport for the first time, I felt proud of my country and myself. I felt that achieving a good schooling and a degree from a renowned institution would help me stand out even in another country. However to my disappointment that wasn't the case. The immigration people don't care about your education but more about the color of your skin and more importantly about the color of your passport. This was over 15 yrs ago and things haven't changed much since. After years of struggling at the airports, long waits, special registrations I thought there is light at the end of the tunnel. However even after getting dual citizenship things didn't change much. The problem is that when people see your place of birth some red flags go up. I do have to admit that beyond the airport most of the people in the west are very open minded. I've seen more discrimination in the muslim world; and not just the south asians but the Arabs as well. Pakistan is a great country and I love my countrymen. However its the bad fish that gives our country a wrong name. I the Gulf airports u see lines for GCC, Western passport holders and then others. We don't find that in Pakistan...its Pakistani passport holder and then others. Oh but I forgot...there is that line for the VIP's (the rich and famous!) though that actually we don't even see standing in lines.

Here we go again...self-rigteousness at its best. Ever heard the phrase "They hate us because of our democracy and freedom"? Ever wondered why the green passport gets a much worse treatment at the brotherly Islamic countries than in the West. Saudis should have no problem giving you residency due to your Muslim background.

Good time to turn adversity to our advantage - Stop going abroad, and travel within Pakistan. There are many beautiful place to see. Of course our security situation puts a dampner on it, but not everywhere is like that.

The delay in issuing of passports is true, at least in Faisalabad area. The manager asks for a bribe of Rs. 2,500/- per person if you want to renew your passport three months before expiry. One needs this kind of service to apply ahead of time, as required by many embassies. So, the problems with passport issuance are real and so are the ordeals of passport holders.

The whole debate is made me understand that problem is not Pakistani nationality but Problem is Our Image which is built negative in the eyes of other.

So true, this is all because we are Muslims and being a Muslim we should be prepared for all the hurdles of life like a Muslim.

I have travelled with this Passport not to western countries but Asian. I felt proud when I got this green document. and that's All

haha! means you try to aware people about changing behaviour while having blue passport. You know Pakistani people strictly follow the Proverb in Urdu " SUNO SUB KI KARO APNI".

Very well said - if you are visiting them you have to follow their regulations. But it should not be so humiliating as US is doing right now.... If we do the same for them ? I guess we may soon.

Nope. It is the behavior of Pakistanis (e.g. militants) and the actions of the Pakistani state that give a negative image is the problem.

I had to smile at this comment. I am an Irish citizen. I hold an Irish passport. We have to produce similar documents to get passport here. Including birthcerts for parents and proof of address. If our passport office is not on strike we might get a passport on time to travel. But to open a bank account here is even more difficult. We need our passport or a driving license to open an account and its illegal for us to have money in an offshore account. I think our countries have a lot more in common than we thought.