Activist Gulalai Ismail ‘Escapes’ to New York, Applies for Political Asylum
New York: Rights activist Gulalai Ismail escaped Pakistani authorities last month and has reached the United States, where she has applied for political asylum, the New York Times reported on Thursday.
The US publication said that the 32-year-old is currently residing with her sister in Brooklyn, New York.
She has not disclosed how she managed to leave the country. All she revealed was: “I didn’t fly out of any airport.”
“I can’t tell you anymore,” NYT quoted her as saying during an interview. “My exit story will put many lives at risk.”
According to NYT, no government officials were willing to make a public comment on the matter. Security officials said that they had suspected Ismail had left the country.
In November last year, the Islamabad High Court was informed that Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had recommended putting Ismail’s name on the Exit Control List (ECL) for her alleged anti-state activities abroad.
Following a petition by Ismail challenging the government’s decision to put her name on the ECL, the Islamabad High Court had ordered the removal of her name from the list.
The court, however, had allowed the interior ministry to take appropriate action, including confiscation of her passport, in the light of recommendations made by ISI.
According to the NYT report, Ismail had remained a fugitive since late May. “Security services were searching for her in every corner of the country, raiding her friends’ houses and closing in on her family.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
