Human Trafficking Pakistani immigrants drowned in Greece

Due to the poor economic situation in Pakistan, natives legally or illegally want immigration. In a recent deadly and fatal incident, approximately 350 illegal Pakistani immigrants were sailing through a boat, wanting to enter Europe but their boat sank in Greece, out of which only 12 survived.
Interior Minister of Pakistan Mr. Rana Sana Ullah told the media that more than 350 Pakistanis were on the boat that sank in the sea near Greece. Rana Sana Ullah said, “boat had a capacity of 400 people but 750 people were taken on board. So far 281 families have contacted the government; a separate desk has been set up to assist the affected families”.
The Interior Minister said that Prime Minister Mr. Shabaz Sharif has also set up a committee on this issue. “We are chasing the footprints of human traffickers, the data of the last five years of human traffickers will be collected and they will be brought to the court of justice”, said Rana Sana Ullah.
He said all these people went to Egypt, Libya, and the United Arab Emirates (UAC) legally, and from there they took illegal routes to Europe. These people had no job or business abroad, yet visas were issued to them, which is a strange story, Pakistan will also take up this issue with concerned countries that how these people secured the visa.
On the other hand, British Newspaper “The Guardian”, has revealed terrifying details about the sinking boat. The newspaper raised some serious questions about the suspicious role of the Greek Coast Guards in this tragic incident. According to newspaper reports, “The migrants who survived told that the Coast Guard forced the Pakistani nationals to remain in the lower part of the boat while the nationals of other countries were kept in the upper part of the boat, this is the reason the majority of Pakistanis among the dead”.
Mr. Usman Siddiq is one of the lucky people who survived the horrifying and shocking incident. During a telephone conversation, Usman Siddiq told EAT News, “Our boat left Libya for Italy at the time of dawn, we were not sure what would happen to us. Our agents took huge amounts of money to send us to Europe safely. Once we were told that we had entered the sea boundary of Italy, our boat kept circling in the same place for 2 days. Every moment was painful because we were doubtful about our future. Everyone was thinking about his family and loved ones. On the sixth day, a German ship came closer to our boat and gave us water and food, because we were thirsty and hungry. With every passing moment, we were losing hope. Finally, last night a navy ship came, and it tried to attach a rope to our boat, in this episode our boat overturned and started sinking but the tug ship did not try to rescue us. Many struggled to keep body and soul together at sea for 4-5 hours but all in vain. I miraculously survived the accident”. Usman Siddiq, a 28-year-old resident of Gujarat, was a constable in the police department. He wanted to go to Italy with his four friends, but their boat met with an accident. He claimed that around twenty thousand Pakistanis are still in the safe havens of human traffickers in Libya, waiting to be sent by boat to Italy.
Federal Law Minister Mr. Azam Nazeer Tarar told the National Assembly that across Pakistan different families have contacted the government claiming that their family members are missing so maybe their children are among the victims of the heartbreaking boat accident. A special desk has been set up in this regard and DNA samples of different families are being collected.
In a press release issued by the Prime Minister’s House, it has been said that PM Shahbaz Sharif has directed to bring those responsible for the boat incident to justice. The government of Pakistan has already started a crackdown against human smugglers.
The unfortunate boat carrying about 750 people who wanted to go to Italy from Libya sank about 50 miles off Pylos in Southern Greece on June 14. It is being described as one of the worst incidents that happened to migrants in Europe.
The 12 Pakistanis who survived the accident were kept in a camp in Malacca, some of whom were released. People who were rescued from the boat disclosed that there were 100 children on board. They repeatedly asked for help from passing passengers and cargo ships, but they were given no help other than water and food.
The bottom line of this tragic incident is linked to unemployment, corruption, poor governance, inflation, and price hike in the country. People are worried about their future; this is the reason they want to leave the county.
Government has to take some solid and serious steps as confidence-building measures otherwise brain drain will continue. Moreover, a ruthless crackdown against human traffickers is essential who send innocent people illegally to different countries of the world.