Australians in Pakistan comprise

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

citizens residing in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, which includes expatriates and immigrants, as well as their locally-born descendants.

History

Australian officials and military personnel were present in the region during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

period, before the independence of Pakistan. Since the early twentieth century, Australian Defence Force soldiers have received military training at the Command and Staff College in Quetta. The first Australian attended the college in 1907. Notable Australian soldiers who graduated from the college include Field Marshal

Thomas Blamey Field marshal (Australia), Field Marshal Sir Thomas Albert Blamey, (24 January 1884 – 27 May 1951) was an Australian general of the First World War, First and Second World Wars, and the only Australian to attain the rank of field marshal. Bl ...

and Major-General

George Alan Vasey Major General George Alan Vasey, (29 March 1895 – 5 March 1945) was an Australian Army officer. He rose to the rank of major general during the Second World War, before being killed in a plane crash near Cairns in 1945. A professional soldie ...

Demographics

There were over 600 Australians living in Pakistan as of late 2001, based on registrations with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. By May 2002, this figure was at over 500. A small Australian community is based in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

, while the remaining are scattered in

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

and other cities.

Community

Many Australian expatriates work for multinational companies. There are currently over 80 Australian companies from different sectors with operations in Pakistan, including large firms such as

BHP BHP Group Limited (formerly known as BHP Billiton) is an Australian multinational mining, metals, natural gas petroleum public company that is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded ...

. A small number of Australians work for development agencies and non-governmental organisations such as

World Vision In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

. Others are social workers involved in various types of community work. For Australian expatriates living in Islamabad, the Coolabah Club attached with the Australian High Commission is a central social venue. The club has dining, swimming and recreational facilities, and a bar serving alcohol is also available for expatriates. The community celebrates

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port ...

and various other cultural festivities, which are hosted by the High Commission.

Organisations

The Australian community is diplomatically represented and provided services by the Australian High Commission in Islamabad. In addition, there is an Australian consulate in Karachi. There is also an Australian Cultural Centre in Lahore that is administered by Australians. The centre provides English-language courses and promotes cultural relations between both countries.

Notable people

Dav Whatmore Davenell Frederick Whatmore (born 16 March 1954) is a Sri Lanka born Australian cricket coach and former cricketer. A right-handed batsman, Whatmore played seven Test matches for Australia in 1979, and one One Day International in 1980. At ...

, coach of the Pakistan national cricket team. *

Summer Nicks Summer Nicks is an Australian television, film and commercial director, best known for writing and directing ''O21 (film), O21'', ''Shambhala'' and ''Sedition'' as well as writing and producing ''Seedlings (film), Seedlings'', ''Damaged'' and co- ...

, film director

References

{{Immigration to Pakistan