Pakistan’s new Ambassador His Excellency Dr. Imtiaz A. Kazi talks about historic mutual cooperation between the two countries and further steps to increase brotherly relations

As Pakistan celebrates its National Day (Pakistan Day) on March 23 to commemorate its independence, Pakistan Ambassador to the Philippines Amb. Dr. Imtiaz A. Kazi talks about how the Philippines was one of the first and foremost countries to recognize their independence. He says, “From the opening of the first Philippine consulate in the capital city of Karachi in 1949, which was converted into a full-fledged embassy in 1956, we had a very good start in bilateral relations right from the birth of Pakistan.” He also notes the brotherly cooperation of the two countries at the SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organization in 1950s) and the Philippine’s consistent support for Pakistan’s quest to attain Full Dialogue partner (FDP) status in the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations).

Trade relations

Aside from lending mutual support in the international forae, the Philippines and Pakistan have also enjoyed mutually beneficial strong economic ties. “We have very excellent cooperation, and bilateral arrangements concerning exchange of goods in the shape of Joint Economic Commission (JEC). We have Pakistan Philippines Business Council, Phil-Pak Friendship Association and also a Pakistan Welfare association. We have several Pakistan nationals who went to the Philippines to study in the 1980s and 1990s and many of them settled here and developed enterprises and business ventures,” he says. Some of them are engaged in businesses like importing textiles, surgical equipment, and pharmaceutical products. “Many Pakistanis are owning and operating businesses here. In Subic Bay, we have a Pakistani group importing heavy cranes and other machinery from Japan.

Kinnow (citrus mandarin) from Pakistan, for example, has 15% share in the total annual imports of that fruit by the Philippines

The Ambassador notes that there is a big potential when it comes to trade, going beyond Pakistan’s rice and kinnow exports, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry as Pakistan produces some of the world’s quality pharma products at very minimal and affordable prices that are well-suited to a populous country like the Philippines to aid in its healthcare efforts. “Our surgical goods are also the best and we can export these here,” he adds.

According to available data, the Philippines exports to Pakistan include garments, paper products, cosmetics, dairy products, processed fruits, coconut products, tobacco, electronic components and machineries, iron, steel, cement, and chemicals. Of the Filipino products, he gives particular interest in coconut and palm exports and the textiles that are made using natural materials. He hopes that the current US$170 million annual trade figures can be improved considerably given the vast untapped potential.

Strengthening ties through leadership contacts

One of the ways that Amb. Kazi says can strengthen economic ties is through the exchange of visits at the heads of state-level between the two countries. In the past 74 years of Pakistan’s existence, leaders from both countries have exchanged visits to bolster bilateral relations. In May 1957, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Husseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy made an official visit to the Philippines which was reciprocated by President Diosdado Macapagal in July 1962. Pakistani Prime Minister Mohammad Khan Junejo made an official visit to the Philippines during the administration of President Corazon Aquino in May 1988, and Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto visited the Philippines in 1995 as a guest of former President Fidel Ramos. President Ramos visited Pakistan in 1997, the second Philippine head of state to visit Pakistan almost forty years after the first state visit by President Macapagal.

Amb. Dr. Kazi hopes that during his stay in this beautiful country, he will work hard to see that a State visit is made possible from the Philippine side at the President level (He, in fact, would like to see that President Rodrigo Duterte, who is highly admired in Pakistan for his war on drugs and his bold initiatives to restore peace and stability in the Mindanao Region, could take a visit as and when Pandemic-related circumstances ease out.

As he presented his credentials to President Duterte in Malacanang last December, the President recalled excellent cooperation between Pakistan and the Philippines specially ‘our sharing of intelligence and best practices to get rid of violence and extremism and in countering terrorism.’ This administration, he says, is admired in Pakistan for its sincere efforts “towards the restoration of peace and stability in the Mindanao region, which has brought increased trust and stability among the stakeholders, and significant prosperity for the people of the region and the country.”

President Duterte, during Amb. Kazi’s Credential ceremony had also fondly mentioned about visit on-board a Pakistan Navy Ship PNS SAIF in December 2017 when it paid a goodwill visit to the Philippines. He was accompanied by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and graced the occasion as a special gesture of friendship for Pakistan.

Historic, fraternal ties

Amb. Dr. Imtiaz A. Kazi notes that enhanced people-to-people contact will also help boost the relations between the two countries. While Filipinos and Pakistani migrant workers form bonds overseas in the Gulf countries what he calls “regional rendezvous”, he says more needs to be done. “Filipino workers whom I have met in Doha when I was stationed there from 2005 – 2007 are familiar with our basmati rice and Biryani. Same stories of fraternal exchanges I heard about Pakistanis when I met Overseas Filipino workers who had served in the UAE and Saudi Arabia and made friends from Pakistani diaspora there. According to him, there are about 2000 Filipinos residing in Pakistan, some of them working in multinationals, IT sector, construction, hospitality industry or domestic help. Around 200 Filipinas are married to Pakistanis and live in Pakistan. Likewise, there is a matching number of Pakistanis living in the Philippines. Many Pakistanis are married to Filipinas.” The Filipina wives of Pakistani nationals, he says, receive a lifelong card (Pakistan Origin Card) that offers them almost all the rights of Pakistan citizens.

Another way to promote cultural exchange is to invite Filipinos to visit Pakistan. It has become a popular tourist destination for adventure seekers who want to climb its mountain peaks or to experience a glimpse of its ancient civilization. Pakistan has tourist attractions including the Badshahi Mosque, the Wazir Khan Mosque, and the Sheesh Mahal in the Lahore Fort in Lahore City, the Shah Jahan Mosque in Thatta, along with the mountain ranges and valleys in the north that are popular with climbers. The British Backpacker Society (BBS) declared Pakistan as the world’s third best potential adventure destination for 2020. Amb. Dr. Imtiaz A,. Kazi adds that online visa application is open to 130 countries including the Philippines and that on average, one can enjoy as tourist in Pakistan and needs just US$150 for a 30-day stay in my country.

He adds that fostering closer relations will be advantageous for both countries, describing the relationship as a “brotherhood”. “There are so many things we can do together, we have so many commonalities, as both countries went through colonial rule, both struggled for independence and we have preserved our national security and territorial integrity. We have faced challenges both regional and internal.”

Amb. Kazi also says that both are populous nations of Asia — The Philippines has 110 million people while Pakistan has 220 million people and have our prowess and capabilities. “We are both hardworking and enterprising nations, with our engineers and scientists, and workers in the Gulf countries.” Religion is also a strength, he says. “Both are religious countries, and with Islam and Christianity, we share so many common values, which are humane and universal. Both are family-oriented nations.’

Looking ahead, Amb. Kazi says we are looking forward to strengthen what we have achieved so far and augment these relations in the days ahead. “Bilateral trade has lot of potential that needs to be availed. We are looking forward, that with better prospects of economic uplift in a post COVID-19 scenario and greater per capita income in both countries, scope of tourism would expand and we hope for more citizens from each other’s countries to visit our beautiful countries, know each other more closely and expand fraternal ties through these people-to-people contacts.