Pakistan High Commission

The Pakistan High Commission (PHC) is responsible for offering services such as supplying passports and identity cards for Pakistani or dual citizens abroad. It was founded in 1947, after the partition of India, and its founding High Commissioner was His Excellency H. I. Rahimtoola, who served between 1947 and 1952.

In the wake of Pakistan’s independence, the PHC employed well-networked individuals to attract Muslim businessmen in Britain who could strengthen the Pakistani economy. Abdul Malik Chaudhury Bakht, a businessman based in Manchester, began his career working for the PHC. He migrated in the winter of 1947 to work as a translator for the PHC and was sent to Lancashire to write letters and offer advice to soon-to-be industrialists working in the textile industry. These businessmen, who were early investors in the Pakistani economy, accrued significant wealth because of their association with the newly founded state.

In co-ordination with its consulates, the PHC has also historically supported community-led Pakistani associations. The PHC worked to create unity between Pakistani communities settled in different towns across the UK by encouraging the creation of strong organizations that could work on their behalf. In developing strong connections with local Pakistani organizations, the PHC and its consulates were able to streamline the distribution of information to British Pakistani households. In addition, the PHC used local connections to distribute a booklet on living in Britain, covering topics such as hygiene and employment.

The function of the PHC, to meet the needs and represent the interests of Pakistanis in Britain, has at times been subject to critique. In 1968, for example, the organization was heavily criticized for its inefficiency. At a press conference in February 1968, Mr M. M. Hussain, leader of the Pakistan People’s Association of Great Britain, said the inability of the PHC to meet the demand for passports resulted in the creation of a black market, where some Pakistanis were paying ‘agents’ up to £80 in order to obtain their passports quicker. The Leeds Pakistan Muslim Association, however, expressed full confidence in the High Commission, condemning ‘a few self-styled leaders’ who, they claimed, tried to tarnish the image of the PHC.

In addition, as a diplomatic branch of the Pakistani Government, the PHC became an important site for British Pakistanis to channel their support or criticism of the political changes occurring in Pakistan. On 8 July 1968, for example, the Pakistan Student Federation held a meeting to protest the imprisonment without trial of 2,000 political prisoners under the presidency of Ayub Khan. This was followed by a march on the High Commission, which resulted in students invading the building. They remained there for two hours, until the police arrived.

During periods of conflict on the subcontinent, the PHC has tried to galvanize support amongst Pakistanis in the UK and helped raise funds to support war efforts. For example, during the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, the Huddersfield Examiner reported that the Huddersfield Pakistan Muslim Society – which had 100 members – was in touch with the PHC as it raised funds and organized marches, with some of its members pledging to go back to Pakistan in order to fight in the war.