MANY South Asians who migrated to Western countries in pursuit of a better future expected to live in a just and fair society. While there may be some truth to this in a relative sense, the policies of these nations still carry traces of colon-ialism in various aspects of life; whether in employment, the justice system, or even visit visas.

A glaring example is the treatment of visit visa applications for Canada from countries like Pakistan, even if the applicant is sponsored by a Canadian citizen relative. The reasons for rejection are often so absurd that one wonders whether the application was even reviewed properly. Even a close family member’s wedding is not considered a valid reason for approval. However, rather than blaming individual visa officers, it is the system itself that embodies this colonial arro-gance; one that assumes that applicants from certain countries are unscrupulous unless they can prove otherwise, often based on subjective and arbitrary criteria.

This discriminatory approach has deep historical roots, stemming from a colonial mindset that once viewed non-white individuals as commodities to be exploited for economic gain.

Today, the immigration policies of these Western nations operate on a similar principle: they welcome immigrants, who are highly educated and skilled, indivi-duals whose education was funded by their home countries, because they provide economic benefits to the host nation. Besides, in financial terms, such immig-rants have a ‘positive net present value’.

That said, we cannot attribute all our struggles to external forces. Had South Asian nations, including Pakistan, managed their affairs better, many of us would not have needed to migrate in the first place.

Even those who moved abroad would have had the option to return, rather than being subjected to policies that keep families divided.

The Western countries may not resemble authoritarian regimes, like the one in North Korea, in their methods, but in effect, they achieve similar results, where one wields a gun, the other wields a pen.

Shakeel Nizamani
Calgary, Canada

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2025