COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR AMBASSADOR TAHIR-KHELI (MAR

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISLAMABAD 000830

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/21/2017
TAGS: AMGT ASEC OTRA OREP AFIN PK
SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR AMBASSADOR TAHIR-KHELI (MAR
9-19)

REF: STATE 17010


1. American Embassy Islamabad warmly welcomes and grants
country clearance for the visit of Ambassador Shirin
Tahir-Kheli, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State for
Women's Empowerment to Pakistan from March 9-March 19. The
purpose of visit is to meet with Pakistani officials,
politicians, and members of civil society on issues of
women's empowerment. Details on hotel arrangements and
meeting requests will be sent in a subsequent email.


2. Control Officer for the visit will be Political Officer
Divya Swamy. Ms. Swamy's contact information is as follows:
Embassy: 92-51-208-2921, Mobile: 92-300-501-8813, Email:
SwamyDL@state.gov. The Embassy's main switchboard number is:
92-51-208-0000 and can be reached 24 hours a day.


3. Visas: Everyone arriving in Pakistan must/must have a
valid visa. If you do not have a valid visa, you will be
denied entry.


4. Hotel Security: Islamabad and the three constituent
consulates in Karachi, Lahore, and Peshawar are high-threat
posts. Employees assigned to Pakistan are unaccompanied and
receive danger pay. The Department of State Travel Warning
for Pakistan asks U.S. citizens to defer non-essential travel
to Pakistan because of the continued high security concerns
about terrorists in Pakistan. The Embassy approves only
essential official travel to Pakistan. All official visitors
to Islamabad must adhere to Embassy security standards and
procedures. The potential for continued threats to Americans
in Pakistan from Al-Qaida and other extremist elements
remains real. A suicide bomber killed two Consulate
employees at the U.S. Consulate in Karachi in March 2006. A
grenade attack against the Protestant International Church in
Islamabad killed two Embassy members and injured several
others in March 2002. American, Western, and Christian
targets continue to be threatened and attacked.
Anti-Americanism remains strong among certain elements of the
population.


5. Public Transportation: for safety reasons, Americans are
prohibited from using taxis and all public transportation.


6. Health: The Embassy Health Unit has provided the
following information to aid visitors and temporary duty
employees in Pakistan:


A. Facilities: There are health units at the embassy and
each of the three consulates. The Islamabad Health unit is
staffed by a Regional Medical Officer, a Foreign Service
Nurse Practitioner and two RNs. It provides routine medical
care and basic laboratory services during the workweek. It
does not supply medications for chronic medical conditions;
these must be brought with you. The facilities in Lahore,
Karachi and Peshawar are extremely limited in the services
they provide and are staffed by part-time local medical
providers. Official visitors traveling to or working at
those locations should bring all personal medicines with them
including over-the-counter drugs.


B. Access: Access to the Health Units at all Mission Pakistan
posts other than good samaritan, care is limited to American
citizen employees and contractors who are eligible for Health
Unit services. Good samaritan care is emergency care
designed to stabilize a patient until s/he can reach or be
reached by local medical practitioners.


C. Food and Water-borne Illnesses: Visitors to Pakistan are
at high risk for water-borne and gastrointestinal illnesses.
Careful attention to the choice of food and beverages helps
to reduce the risks. Avoid salad bars and buffets while
eating at local restaurants; a la carte items are your safest
bet. Meat, eggs, and vegetables should always be thoroughly
cooked or steamed. Safe foods include steaming hot dishes,
rice, pasta, cooked vegetables served hot, and bread
products. Foods that are moist and served at room
temperature, especially peeled fruits, salads, sauces,
egg-based foods, mayonnaise-based dishes and buffet offerings
are risky. Avoid ice cream as well.


D. Drinks: Safe drinks include hot tea, coffee, and
carbonated beverages. Assume all tap water is contaminated
contrary to notices occasionally posted in some hotels or
elsewhere. The only exception to this rule is the tap water
on the embassy compound. Commercially available water
bottled in Pakistan has been found to be inconsistently safe
for consumption. Bottled water sold in our commissary has
been judged safe. Be sure the seals have not been broken.
Remember that freezing does not make water safe, so avoid ice
cubes unless you know they have been made from potable water.
Personal portable water purification systems are available
commercially at nominal cost and can easily be transported in
luggage as they are no larger than a tall mug. These devices
protect against bacteria as well as viruses and protozoa.


E. Malaria: Malaria is endemic to various regions in
Pakistan, and the risks of infection vary depending on
location, altitude and season. During the rainy season all
visitors are advised to take prophylaxis, especially those
traveling outside the major metropolitan centers or who make
frequent trips between the consulates and Embassy. Mefloquine
is the preferred prophylaxis and should be brought with you
during travel as it is unavailable in country except at the
mission health units. Doxycycline is an alternative and is
available in country. In conjunction with medication,
visitors must also take measures to reduce contact with
mosquitoes, such as wearing clothing that covers most of the
body and using an insect repellent containing DEET.


F. Immunizations: Visitor immunization records should be
reviewed by the Department's Immunization Clinic prior to
departure. For short-term visitors the following
immunizations are recommended: hepatitis a, hepatitis b,
typhoid, and tetanus in addition to usual childhood
immunizations. The rabies series is also recommended for
Pakistan and should be completed before arriving in country.
The Health Unit in Islamabad can provide most vaccinations
except smallpox, which is only available in Washington. The
consulate health units can provide a limited number of
vaccinations depending on type needed and health unit
staffing.


H. Emergency Medical Services: Emergency medical care is
extremely limited in Pakistan even in major cities. The
health units keep up-to-date lists of available facilities in
cities in which the embassy and consulates are located.
Travelers should arrange for medical evacuation insurance
either personally or through their sponsoring agency prior to
their arrival in country.


I. Automobile and Pedestrian Safety: Overseas automobile
accidents remain a major cause of death of expatriates abroad
and Pakistan is no exception. Further, vehicles in Pakistan
are driven on the left side of the road, which adds another
dimension to automobile and pedestrian safety if you are not
used to this traffic pattern. Avoid driving at night if at
all possible. Use seat belts in both rear and front seats,
and insist that your driver maintains a safe speed. Stay
alert crossing streets and intersections, especially after
dark.
BODDE