Growing travel restrictions

Growing travel restrictions

By: Abdel Aziz Dimapunong

In a memorandum dated last Friday, November 24, 2006, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez of the Philippines said he had received confidential information about illicit human trafficking of Indians using Manila’s international airport. Because of the report, the memorandum ordered all immigration and airport officials to monitor and conduct surveillance on the entry of Indians, Pakistanis and Afghans to this country.

In another airport only four days before the order in Manila, six Imams in USA were investigated by police and airport authorities in Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The six Imams in USA were already aboard Flight 300 of US Airways when they were asked to leave the plane last November 20, 2006. This was a report featured by the Philippine Daily Inquirer last Wednesday, November 22, 2006, with a source from the Associate Press, Minneapolis.

According to the report, police assistance was called upon when the Imams of USA refused to leave when asked to do so by the captain and the airport security. When finally they were taken off the plane, they were investigated before being released. According to Omar Sahin, one of the Imams, they were humiliated “in a very disrespectful ways”.

According to the spokeswoman of the US Airways the incident was triggered by an anxious passenger who slips a note to the flight attendant, only raising (unfounded) concern. After the investigation, nothing wrong was discovered.

The Council on American Islamic Relations in Washington, through its spokesman, Mr. Ibrahim Hooper, expressed anger at the detention. In this same way, the Manila-based International Islamic Civilian Relations officially expressed today its disappointment with the captain and the flight attendants of Flight 300 US Airways.

Only one day before the Minneapolis incident, I wrote a blog about profiling Muslim identities. In that blog I wrote: Was Moses a Muslim? Yes, he was a Muslim. Non-Muslims call him Moses. The Muslims call him Musa Alaihi Salam. Many Muslims bear the name Musa. Many others are named Moses or Moshe. What difference does it make? What is in a name? And then I said that variations matter in some major cities of the world, more specifically inside international airports.

The incident at the airport reminds me of a joke about an immigrant at one of the free ports of North America when it was popularly known as the land of the free.

This is only a joke but I shall not deliver the punch line. At the beginning of its history North America was well known as a land of the free. Entry to this new world was sought after. It was then very easy to become an American citizen (Many Filipinos also became American citizens). In those days (according to this joke), only three questions were asked for an immigrant to enter into the land of the free and be among its citizens. The following is a transcript of one of those interviews. Again this is only a joke without a punch line.

The immigration officer asked an immigrant: “What is your name?” The immigrant replied, “My name is Abram.”

The officer said, “If you can answer just three questions, you become a citizen of North America, the land of the free”

First question: “Who was Christopher Columbus?” Abram replied: “Sir, he was Christoval de Colon, a maritime explorer.” The officer rephrased the question for clarity: Who was Christopher Columbus in relation to America. Abram replied: “Sir, Don Christoval Colon discovered America.” The officer replied: “That’s correct.”

Second question: “Who was George Washington? Abram replied: “Sir, George Washington was the first presidente of North America. He founded the Count”. “That is correct, “the officer said.

Final question. The officer said, “If you can answer this final question, then you are welcome to the land of the free. You become a proud American. You shall have your homestead as far and wide as your eyes can see. You will also have freedom of religion. You can be a Christian, a Mohammedan, a Buddhist, or whatever you choose.

The final question was: “Who was Abraham Lincoln?” Abram replied, “Sir, he is my namesake. He is Ibrahim or Abram for short. In my place, he is known as Abe de Linc.” The officer rephrased the question: “Who was Abe Lincoln to the Americans? Abram replied: “To be specific sir, Abe Lincoln declared on January 1, 1863 that all slaves are forever free. He made the Count free. ”That is correct, said the officer. He hugged Abram who just became a citizen in the land of the free. This is just a joke. It could have been true. Under present condition, it is just impossible to happen.

Who was Abram? It did not and still does not matter.