Pakistan Eases Visa Policy for Religious Tourism
By Elaine Pasquini
Washington: In a May 7, 2024, meeting with a delegation from the American Punjabi Society (APS), Masood Khan, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, assured the group that Pakistan’s “doors are always open to them.”
The occasion of the visit was to discuss the upcoming trip of APS members to Sikh religious sites in Pakistan . During their pilgrimage, around 115 members of the group are planning to tour Sikh gurdwaras (places of assembly or worship) in Lahore, Faisalabad, Islamabad, and Kartarpur.
Among the important gurdwaras is Nankana Sahib, established in the 1490s by the first Sikh guru and founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev. The site is situated approximately 75 kilometers southwest of Lahore. The gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, established in the 1500s by Guru Nanak Dev on the River Ravi in Punjab province, is considered by some to be the most prestigious site for Sikhs in Pakistan.
The ambassador said that the government and people of Pakistan fully understand and respect the religious sentiments of the Sikh community and that Pakistan’s government will continue to provide all possible facilitation to members of the Sikh community around the world during visits to their religious places in Pakistan.
Most importantly, with respect to the group’s upcoming visit to Pakistan, the ambassador stated that the visa policy regarding religious tourism for followers of many faiths had been simplified to provide them with maximum facilitation.
While the majority of the followers of Sikhism – the world’s fifth-largest religion – live in India and Canada, Sikhism has a long history in Pakistan. Today, the Pakistani Sikh community is small, with most living in Punjab province where the religion originated in the Middle Ages. Many also reside in Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
According to the US Census Bureau, some 500,000 Sikhs reside in the United States, although The Sikh Coalition, a national organization based in New York City, believes the population exceeds this number.
Gary Sikka, president of the APS, told Ambassador Khan that 100,000 Punjabi Sikhs belong to the APS, some of whom are from Pakistan.
The APS members visiting the embassy thanked Ambassador Khan and the government of Pakistan for facilitating the pilgrimage of the Sikh community to their religious places.
Members of the delegation who had previously visited Pakistan praised the hospitality of the Pakistani people, especially during their pilgrimage to Kartarpur. The hospitality captivates hearts, one member said. Pakistanis have always been extremely hospitable, he added.
(Elaine Pasquini is a freelance journalist. Her reports appear in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and Nuze.Ink.)
