CODEL TIERNEY COUNTRY CLEARANCE

UNCLAS ISLAMABAD 000189 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OTRA PARM ASEC OREP AMGT AFIN PK SUBJECT: CODEL TIERNEY COUNTRY CLEARANCE REF: STATE 06212 ¶1. Post warmly welcomes and grants country clearance for the visit of CODEL Tierney on February 2, 2009. ¶2. Control officer for the visit will be Deputy Econ Counselor Martha Patterson. She can be reached at the following numbers: Embassy: +92-51-208-0000; Office: +92-51-208-2690, Direct +92-51-208-2927; fax: +92-51-208-2380; cell +92-300-501-2773 email: pattersonme@state.gov. ¶3. Visitors must/must obtain separate post clearance if they plan to visit any of the three Mission Pakistan consulates (Karachi, Peshawar, Lahore) or any other areas under the jurisdiction of the consulates. Most travel outside of Islamabad will require separate post clearance. Post clearance for the consulates should be requested via cable to the consulate(s) on the planned itinerary. ¶4. Visas: Everyone arriving in Pakistan must/must have a valid visa. If you do not have a valid visa, you will be denied entry. If you will be in Pakistan on TDY for more than 30 days, ensure that you have a multiple entry visa that shows "Work at the U.S. Embassy" or "Official Business" as the purpose of your visit. If your visa does not contain this language, your visa cannot be extended or renewed while in Pakistan and you will have to physically leave the country to renew or extend it. ¶5. Electronic Equipment: Official travelers on temporary duty, including non-State personnel, must coordinate the transport of any USG provided electronic or photographic equipment (to include laptops/electronic notebooks),and receive RSO authorization prior to introducing the equipment into the Chancery. No connectivity is allowed to State's unclassified or classified networks. Personal electronic or photographic equipment as well as camera/video capable cell phones are not permitted in the Chancery. ¶6. Security: Islamabad and the three constituent consulates in Karachi, Lahore, and Peshawar are critical-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 terrorism in Pakistan. The Embassy approves only essential official travel to Pakistan. All official visitors to Islamabad must adhere to Embassy security standards and procedures, and those staying more than one week must attend a security briefing held every Tuesday at 10 a.m. TDY travel outside of Islamabad requires RSO clearance. Travelers to the consulates must follow RSO consulate security 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. In September 2008, the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad was bombed. More than 60 people were killed and many more were injured. American, Western, and Christian targets continue to be threatened and attacked. Anti-Americanism remains strong among certain elements of the population. For further information about travel to Pakistan, U.S. citizens should consult the Department of State's Consular Information Sheet for Pakistan, available via the internet at http://travel.state.gov. All DOD military and civilian personnel on TDY, TAD, or PCS orders to Pakistan are required to notify the Force Protection Detachment (FPD),U.S. Embassy Pakistan, of their travel plan/itinerary. Notifications must be made well in advance of arrival in country, principally if FPD support is needed. Upon arrival in country, DOD personnel are required to check in with FPD to receive a current threat briefing, as well as to be reminded of applicable force protection countermeasures. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in either denial of current or future country clearances. FPD email addresses are as follows: FPDPakistan@state.sgov.gov and FPDPakistan@state.gov. ¶7. Hotels: Due to the recent bombing of the Islamabad Marriott and the resulting security situation, Mission Pakistan cannot place any visitors in commercial hotels in Islamabad; all will be housed within current USG assets. While those quarters provide adequate sleeping accommodations, they cannot duplicate hotel facilities and services. Travelers will need to be prepared to do without the commercial services that are ordinarily provided by hotels. ¶8. Public Transportation: For safety and security reasons, Americans are prohibited from using taxis and all public transportation. The Embassy requires that official visitors use its motor pool. Emergency telephone numbers: American Embassy Islamabad 92-51-208-0000 Marine Security Guard (24 hrs) 92-51-208-2338 Regional Security Office 92-51-208-2203/2204 American Consulate Karachi 92-021-520-4200 American Consulate Lahore 92-042-603-4000 American Consulate Peshawar 92-091-526-8800 ¶9. Embassy Motor Pool Services: Post maintains a 24-hour motor pool. ¶10. Health: The Embassy Health Unit has provided the following information to aid visitors and tempoQry duty employees in Pakistan: 10A. 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. 10B. 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. 10C. 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. 10D. 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. 10E. 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. 10F. All TDY travelers are urged to take annual flu vaccination before international travel. Tamiflu, the flu treatment drug, is not available in country. If travelers wish to obtain supplies for travel, they will need to consult their local provider in the U.S. for a supply prior to travel to Pakistan. 10G. 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. 10H. Automobile and Pedestrian Safety: Overseas automobile accidents remain a major cause of death of expatriates abroad and Pakistan is no exception. State Department and Mission policy require the use of seat belts for both rear and front seats. Insist that your driver maintains a safe speed. Stay alert crossing streets and intersections, especially after dark. PATTERSON