Borderless love: How FB, TikTok, Snapchat brought these foreign women to Pakistan
July 27, 2023
- Women travelled from Mexico, Chile, India, and China.
- Rosa, Nicola, and Anju accepted Islam.
- All women reportedly feel safe; found love online.
In an interesting turn of events, the widespread impact of social media became all the more apparent as four foreign women arrived in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a single month to be united with the men they had met online via social media applications, it emerged Thursday.
A senior police official told Geo News that 49-year-old Rosa from Mexico arrived in Pakistan on June 17 with complete documentation to marry 18-year-old Izaz Ali — a resident of Buner, KP.
Rosa and Izaz first became friends via the vastly popular social media platform Facebook. After falling in love, Rosa travelled to Pakistan to unite with Izaz and converted to Islam, adopting the Islamic name Ayesha Bibi.
She then married Izaz in a traditional Pashtun wedding with great pomp on June 27.
According to Buner DPO Shah Hasan, after the wedding, Ayesha Bibi, who is also a permanent resident of the US, returned to Mexico on July 19.
He further said that the groom had taken the matriculation exam and would leave for Mexico after his result is announced.
However, according to the marriage certificate and other documents available with Geo News, Ayesha Bibi is older than 49 years.
Earlier this month, an Indian woman Anju legally travelled to Pakistan on July 22 and married 29-year-old Nasrullah, who she befriended on Facebook in 2019.
Anju, too, converted to Islam and adopted the name Fatima.
The two tied the knot in a local court of a district and sessions judge in KP earlier this week.
Police confirmed that Anju arrived in Pakistan via the Wagah border on July 22, legally and had a valid visa to stay here for up to a month, but she’ll have to request the Home Ministry in case she wants to extend her visit.
Anju said, in a video statement that surfaced before her marriage, she "feels safe here" in Pakistan.
TikTok
Furthermore, 36-year-old Nicola from Chile married 27-year-old Ikramulah of Charsadda in KP.
Nicola embraced Islam after landing in Pakistan.
According to Ikram, he became friends with Nicola on TikTok during Ramadan earlier this year. The two tried to overcome their language barrier by using English and Google Translate.
According to Ikramullah, Nikola is very happy with the hospitality of the locals. He said: "She wants me to go back with her, otherwise, she says she will tear the return ticket and live permanently in Pakistan."
He added that before her arrival in and experience of Pakistan, his wife had doubts about security in Pakistan.
However, after the duo fell in love, Nicola applied for a visa twice before she finally got permission to travel to Pakistan.
Ikram further said that Nicola has been pleased since she arrived.
"My family and the people of the whole area are very happy with Nicola's arrival. Nicola loves the atmosphere, the scenery and the hospitality in the area," he added.
Snapchat
The fourth woman to travel to Pakistan seeking love is a Chinese woman who reached Lower Dir this week after falling in love with a Pakistani resident via social media.
Local media reported that Gao Fang and the young man were in contact for three years via Snapchat.
