Remove former military trial convict from no-fly List, Australia requests Pakistan

In a letter addressed to the Pakistani Foreign Office, the Australian government through its high commission in Islamabad has formally requested the government of Pakistan to revoke travel restrictions on Hassan Askari, a Pakistan-origin Australian national who was sentenced by a military court in October 2021.

While Askari’s charge was never made public, his lawyers and family have repeatedly spoken to the international media. His sister, Zehra Mehdi, told Australian media that he wrote a letter criticizing former army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa for extending his term instead of retiring.

"Yes, to some extent, but not to the extent of what happened," she told Australian journalist Hamish Mcdonald when he asked whether Askari knew his letter could be dangerous. Askari’s letter quickly circulated within the military. He is the son of retired Major General Syed Zafar Mehdi Askari.

Former Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa at a Pakistan Day parade on March 23, 2022. Ghulam Rasool / AFP

In the letter seen by this correspondent, the Australian High Commission in Islamabad formally requested Pakistan's Foreign Office to intervene in the removal of its nationals from Pakistan’s no-fly or exit control list.

Hassan was arrested on October 2, 2020, for penning critical letters about Bajwa which he addressed to retired and serving army generals and judges. A year later in October 2021, he was sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment by a military court for inciting mutiny within the army. He returned home on July 14, 2023, after three years in prison.

Sources say that Askari had attempted to leave for Australia from Lahore, and it was at the immigration counter of the Lahore airport that he was informed that his name was on a no-fly list. Hassan then contacted the Australian High Commission (AHC) in Islamabad which has now sent a formal communication seeking the foreign office's intervention in the matter.

Pakistan's spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mumtaz Zahra Baloch did not confirm the AHC's request, telling Nukta, “The matter of the [exit control list] does not come under the purview of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The issue of civilians being tried in military courts has been discussed widely in Pakistan after a presser by the army spokesperson. Speaking to a private TV channel, Defence Minister Khwaja Asif said it was likely that former prime minister Imran Khan may be tried in a military court for the May 09, 2023, unrest.

Khan's lawyers have filed a petition against a trial in a military court.

Hassan Askari was court-martialed during Imran Khan's tenure as prime minister.