To Whom It May Concern,
Sanna Irshad Mattoo, a Kashmir born photojournalist, was barred from traveling to the United States from India. According to available sources including BBC, she was stopped by the immigration authorities at Delhi Airport from flying to New York to receive the Pulitzer award, a prestigious award in the field of journalism, although she had a valid US visa and ticket. It is notable that the photojournalist, who was part of a Reuters team that won this year’s Pulitzer Prize in Feature Photography, was barred twice from leaving India within a span of three months. The Pulitzer Award winner was also barred from traveling to Paris for a book launch and photography exhibition as one of the ten winners of the Serendipity Arles Grant 2020 in July this year.
It is pertinent to note that the travel restriction has been in the meantime heavily criticized nationally and internationally. But the cause for the prevention of her traveling is unknown. The airport authority in Delhi has not yet made any comment on the causes of the travel ban. Probably, it is because of the unfriendly relationship between the government in India and the journalists of Jammu and Kashmir. Notably, many Kashmiri journalists, according to available sources, face restrictions from traveling and are under some sort of problematic conditions. It is also possible that the photojournalist was barred from traveling because of her extensive coverage of the failure of the Indian government in dealing with the pandemic.
Since the letter does not aim at the identification of causes behind the travel restriction, providing its causes in detail is not relevant here. But it is notable that the Pulitzer Prize is one of the most sought-after global awards. Whatever the causes behind her travel restriction may be, it is desired that she is given permission to move and receive the perstigious award.
Amir M Sayem
Chief Editor
Dhaka Opinion Magazine
