ISLAMABAD: Irked by alleged lack of transparency in visa processing for Afghan citizens, a National Assembly committee on Monday called for plugging loopholes in the entire process from submission of visa applications to their approvals.

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, which met with Mohsin Dawar MNA in the chair, sought separate reports from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior and the FIA to identify the loopholes and subsequently root out corruption in the visa processes.

The committee chairman, while commenting on the opacity and corruption, stated that exploiting the vulnerabilities of Afghans was inhuman.

The members alleged that the sponsor and invitation letters on their official letterheads were completely disregarded while those who bribed the officials easily secured the visa within no time.

They said security concerns may be taken into consideration, however, the process should be transparent, relaxed and streamlined. A special invitee to the meeting, MNA Salahuddin, stated that corrupt practices caused a grave damage to bilateral relations.

Given the fragmented mandate of various government entities with regards to visa for Afghan citizens, the committee desired mapping of those responsible for visa approval and issuance. It was informed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was the issuing authority, however, the issuance was subject to clearance from other entities of the government.

It was added that visa issuance was subject to clearance from the intelligence agencies and the mandated period was 30-plus days. The committee was told that the Ministry of Interior issued only the student visa and maintained data repository.

Published in Dawn, June 27th, 2023