Powerless passport

The Pakistani passport continues to solidly hang on to its ranking as one of the weakest in the world, thanks in varying degrees to economic and security problems at home and the mortifying conduct of some of our countrymen - and women - abroad.

For the fifth consecutive year, the latest rankings published by Henley's passport index show the Pakistani travel document ranked among the world's weakest, offering visa-free access to a mere 31 countries, compared to first-placed Singapore, with 193 countries, or last-placed Afghanistan, with 24 countries. While it is true that only a small fraction of Pakistanis will ever travel abroad, this is not a 'rich people problem', as some critics make it out to be. A strong passport is just as much a measure of our international standing as it is a source of convenience for businesspeople and tourists alike.

This diplomatic isolation is a direct reflection of persistent domestic instability and security concerns that plague the nation. Global trust is earned through consistent governance and security, both of which have been in short supply. Compounding the problem is a new wave of domestic unrest and rising anti-immigrant sentiment abroad. The geopolitical landscape also offers no solace. For different reasons, even the suggestion of free movement across any of our land borders seems laughable. Even last-placed Afghanistan, the only country in the wider region that ranks lower than us, is now a declared adversary.

There is no quick fix on the horizon. The path to restoring the passport's value is the same as the path to stabilising the nation itself: it requires internal cohesion, economic revival and durable diplomatic solutions. Until then, our passports will be little more than a fancy identity document that reminds us of the journeys we cannot take.