The Exit Control Lists (ECL; ) is a system of

border control Border control comprises measures taken by governments to monitor and regulate the movement of people, animals, and goods across land, air, and maritime borders. While border control is typically associated with international borders, it als ...

maintained by the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

under Exit from Pakistan (Control) Ordinance, 1981. The people on the list are prohibited from leaving

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Priorities

1. Exit from Pakistan (Control) Ordinance, 1981, empowers the Federal Government to prohibit any person from proceeding abroad. Ordinarily, the following categories of persons are placed on ECL:- *(a) Persons involved in mass corruption and misuse of power/authority causing loss to the government funds/property. *(b) Government employees involved in economic crime where large government funds have been embezzled or institutional frauds committed. *(c) Hardened criminals involved in acts of terrorism and conspiracy. *(d) Key directors of firms having tax default / liabilities of Rs. 10 million or more. *(e) Only 2 -3 key directors of firms having more than Rs. 100 million loan default / liabilities. *(f) Names of persons if recommended by the Registrar, High Courts of Pakistan /

Supreme Court of Pakistan The Supreme Court of Pakistan (; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the Judiciary of Pakistan, judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Established in accordance witPart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it h ...

and Banking Courts only. *(g) Drug traffickers. 2. The on-line system is operational at the ministry linked with international airports at

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

Islamabad Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...

and

Faisalabad Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, second-largest city and primary List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, industrial center of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan ...

. 3. Any person aggrieved by the order of the federal government regarding placement of his or her name on the ECL, can under the law, file a review petition giving justifications for review and also can seek a personal hearing with the competent authority. 4. The ECL is reviewed periodically to assess the need for further retention of a person on the ECL. Pakistan's

Federal Investigation Agency The Federal Investigation Agency (; reporting name: FIA) is a border control, criminal investigation, counter-intelligence and security agency under the control of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan, tasked with investigative jurisdiction on u ...

(FIA) was responsible for control of the Exit Control List but now this responsibility has been shifted to the

Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...

and thus avoiding the previously experienced complications in this regard.

Controversies

In 2018, the government and Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) reached an agreement after which the latter ended its three-day-long nationwide protests against the

's acquittal of Asia Bibi who had been sentenced to death in 2010 for blasphemy. One of the points both parties agreed on was that the government would "initiate the legal process" to place Bibi's name on the Exit Control List. After Bibi's acquittal on October 31, the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) ordered their followers to protest and begin sit-ins across the country. The protests turned violent and saw destruction and vandalism of private property. However, the government stated that unless a person is declared a criminal, or there is another legal basis for action, the question of placing an individual's name on the ECL would not arise.

References

Human rights abuses in Pakistan Law of Pakistan 1981 in law Emigration policy Federal Investigation Agency {{pakistan-law-stub