ISLAMABAD: Terming a Foreign Office (FO) statement on the United States decision to impose a visa ban on seven Muslim countries “insufficient”, the main opposition Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) wants the government to emphasise upon Washington that such actions can prove counterproductive in the ongoing war against terrorism.

Talking to Dawn here on Saturday, PPP spokesman Farhatullah Babar said though the party had not yet discussed the issue, it believed that the government needed to use all diplomatic and political channels to highlight the possible negative effects of the decision taken by the new US administration.

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khurshid Shah, in a statement, also termed the Foreign Office’s response “lukewarm”, saying that the government needed to adopt a “proactive approach”.

Taking an ambivalent position, the Foreign Office in its first official reaction to the US administration’s visa ban had stated that it was America’s right to decide who could enter the country.

Answering a question about the travel restrictions imposed by US President Donald Trump through an executive order on people from the seven Muslim countries, Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria, during a weekly briefing, had said it was every country’s sovereign right to decide its immigration policy.

Mr Trump’s decision has been widely condemned and is facing legal challenge within the US. Experts believe that it also contravenes international law.

The spokesman had also underscored the importance that Pakistan attached to its relations with the US, saying that “Pakistan and the US have longstanding and cooperative relations in diverse fields and we look forward to further strengthening these ties”.

PPP’s Khurshid Shah expressed the hope that the US would review its “hasty decision”, which negated “the principles of justice, democracy and peace”. He said it was strange that the US was taking such decisions without any provocation from the Muslims or any country. He regretted that the US was taking an “aggressive posture”, instead of working for promotion of peace and elimination of violence and terrorism. He was of the view that such steps would tarnish the image of the US all over the world.

“The Statue of Liberty is crying over these actions of US President Donald Trump,” Mr Shah said, adding that the country should learn a lesson from the wars in Vietnam and Afghanistan that the problems could not be solved through wars.

Farhatullah Babar was of the view that such actions of the US would “inflame terrorism, instead of extinguishing it”.

Mr Babar said it was true that every country had the right to formulate its immigration policy, but the countries required to demonstrate “sanity and maturity” while making such decisions. “Mr Trump should realise that the mass exclusion of the Muslims from the US will not ensure the country’s internal security,” he said.

Mr Babar was of the view that the Pakistan government should appeal to the new US administration to review its decision. Moreover, he said the government should avail all political and diplomatic options to convey the sentiments of the general public and the Muslims over this decision.

The PPP senator said that stating that it was the sovereign right of every country to formulate its policies was not sufficient. He also hinted that the opposition parties would raise the issue in the coming Senate session, expected to begin in the next few days.

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2017