Mumbai terror a stumbling block on Pakistanis' travel plans

New Delhi, Jan 20 (PTI) Pakistani nationals planning a
visit to India long for an early return of normalcy between
the neighbours as they feel warm relations alone can end
travel hassles they face even in their own country.

The diplomatic stand-off post-Mumbai mayhem has
complicated the process of obtaining visa and travel
documents. Even if one manages a visa, the travails awaiting
in India are a wee bit embarrassing, said Bishop Joseph Coutts
of the Faisalabad Diocese in Pakistan.

"The worst (Mumbai siege) happened when things were
moving at the right direction. People-to-people contact was
very promising and it could have nurtured bonds and created a
better atmosphere," the Church leader, who was here en route
his ancestral town in Goa, told PTI.

According to him, prospective travellers to India from
the neighbouring country have to submit themselves to unusual
formalities. One has to even furnish the resident and identity
proofs of his/her host in India.

"The prolonged process has its bearing on the number of
isitors. The plane I boarded had passengers half its
capacity," Coutts, whose father was a Goan, said.

"There are deep bonds between people on either side of the
border. But, once we are in India, we are treated as aliens.
We have to run between police stations to prove that we have
no sinister plans."

Upon arrival in the country, one has to report to the
nearest police station. While leaving for any other state, the
procedure follows only to begin anew at the new place, Coutts
said.

According to him, the current unrest is due to extremist
elements.

"The young generation may not understand the cultural
bonds between the people of both the countries. But, the
oldies have a lot of sweet memories."

On the religious front, if you have any notion that
Pakistan is an "intolerant" country to minorities, it is
baseless.

"The church has all the privileges it enjoys in India.
There is no government intervention in the running of
educational institutions and hospitals. So is the case with
other minorities.

"There was scarcely any attack on Christians and
churches. The only exception was after the 9/11 when a few
extremists branded Christians in the country as supporters of
the US and vandalised three churches," the head of 1,60,000
Christians said.

In 2001, 14 Christians were killed as Islamic hardliners
attacked a church in east-central Pakistan's Bahawalpur in the
aftermath of attack on world trade centre. But this was an
exception to people's general perception on church and
faithfuls, he said.

In Pakistan, Christians are a microscopic minority
with little over two per cent of its population. PTI JO
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