Overseas Pakistanis oppose ECP ban on dual nationals

LONDON: A coalition of concerned overseas Pakistanis is set to challenge a decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to bar dual-nationality holders from contesting elections in Pakistan.
At a debate at the Willesden Green Pakistani community centre, it was decided by an overwhelming majority that the ECP decision should be challenged at the Supreme Court level.
More than 200 people from different parts of Britain gathered at the town hall and expressed their resolve to oppose the ban. A Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, Burhan Khan, also participated in the gathering over the telephone.
About 20 Pakistani community leaders addressed the gathering but only two of them spoke in favour of the new ECP condition. All other opposed the ECP decision and resolved that every effort would be made to get the ban overturned.
The speakers said some dual-nationality holders might have been dishonest, but to punish millions of Pakistanis just because of a few corrupt was entirely wrong, and the ban was, therefore, unjustified.
They said the overseas Pakistanis contributed hugely to the Pakistan economy and were the nation’s foremost defenders outside of Pakistan and to “disown” them was inhuman and a “disservice” to the country. The speakers said there were not many among the overseas Pakistanis desiring to contest elections in Pakistan but stressed that the issue related to the basic democratic human rights of the Pakistani diaspora, who should not be “disowned” and “disfranchised.”
Burhan Khan told the participants that he had already instructed a lawyer to challenge the ECP ban. From the UK, Lord Nazir Ahmed, Tariq Dar and former Labour MP Muhammad Sarwar will join the Pakistani American Council and the Friends of Pakistan-Canada in this legal challenge. Lord Ahmed pointed out that the overseas Pakistanis remitted $14 billion last year and this year, $12.8 billion had been sent to Pakistan so far. “Hundis are not counted in this figure,” he said, adding that these remittances would go a long way towards sustaining Pakistan’s economy.
Later, talking to The News, Khan said the international human right and freedom provisions allowed a citizen of any country to enjoy benefits of a foreign state if such a foreign state allowed the citizen of other country to legally avail such benefits.
“It is a contradiction of the rights of a citizen who is allowed with all other rights as a citizen except taking part in the elections. The law cannot be prejudiced to bar any citizen from taking part in the election as long as he/she is citizen,” he argued. He said there were countries in the world, including Canada, which allowed an individual with dual nationality to take part in the elections.