Scores of Pakistanis serving time in Saudi Arabia, Qatar
Many go on Umrah, Azad visas, Senate informed
As many as 262 Pakistani prisoners are in Indian jails facing deportation. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE
ISLAMABAD:
Thousands of Pakistanis are serving time in different prisons of Saudi Arabia while a total 83,955 Pakistanis have been issued emergency documents by Pakistani Consulate General in Jeddah alone in two years to facilitate their deportation to Pakistan.
“There are 728 Pakistani prisoners in Jeddah. Teams of the consulate visited jails in Jeddah and surrounding cities as well as deportation centres to issue emergency travel documents to 50,757 Pakistanis in 2015 and 33,198 Pakistanis in 2016 to facilitate their deportation to Pakistan,” said a written reply submitted in the Senate by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Government grilled over Pakistanis imprisoned abroad
The reply said 1,021 Pakistani prisoners were jailed in Riyadh and eastern and northern provinces.
“The embassy teams visited jails in these regions as well as deportation centres where they issued emergency travel documents to 8,421 Pakistanis in 2015 and 8,525 Pakistanis in 2016 to facilitated their deportation,” it added.
The ministry maintained that a total of 7,662 Pakistanis have been arrested in Saudi Arabia on various charges since January 1, 2013. “A total of 3,612 Pakistanis were arrested in Riyadh and 4,050 were arrested in Jeddah during the four years since 2013.
The reply also revealed that a large number of Pakistanis enter Saudi Arabia on Umrah and Azad visas but many of them do not return within validity of their visas. They seek jobs and stay in the kingdom as long as they can avoid arrest, it said.
Majority of Pakistani workers are employed in blue collar jobs. However, Pakistani doctors, engineers, bankers, project managers, lecturers, IT professionals and others are also working in Saudi Arabia.
Out of these Pakistanis, 84 per cent are originally employed while 16 per cent are independents. Recently 7,000 Pakistani workers became unemployed due to financial problems of some companies.
“Pakistani Embassy in Doha, Qatar regularly undertakes consular visits to the central jail and inmates are interviewed about the conditions of the jail. Thirteen prisoners are about to complete their sentence in a couple of months reducing the total number to 42,” the reply said.
The mission will avail the facility of Emiri Pardon to be given on December 18 which is the national day of Qatar and is hopeful that reduction in sentences as well as a total release of cases will be considered favourably by the Government of Qatar, it added.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 7th, 2016.
Thousands of Pakistanis are serving time in different prisons of Saudi Arabia while a total 83,955 Pakistanis have been issued emergency documents by Pakistani Consulate General in Jeddah alone in two years to facilitate their deportation to Pakistan.
“There are 728 Pakistani prisoners in Jeddah. Teams of the consulate visited jails in Jeddah and surrounding cities as well as deportation centres to issue emergency travel documents to 50,757 Pakistanis in 2015 and 33,198 Pakistanis in 2016 to facilitate their deportation to Pakistan,” said a written reply submitted in the Senate by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Government grilled over Pakistanis imprisoned abroad
The reply said 1,021 Pakistani prisoners were jailed in Riyadh and eastern and northern provinces.
“The embassy teams visited jails in these regions as well as deportation centres where they issued emergency travel documents to 8,421 Pakistanis in 2015 and 8,525 Pakistanis in 2016 to facilitated their deportation,” it added.
The ministry maintained that a total of 7,662 Pakistanis have been arrested in Saudi Arabia on various charges since January 1, 2013. “A total of 3,612 Pakistanis were arrested in Riyadh and 4,050 were arrested in Jeddah during the four years since 2013.
The reply also revealed that a large number of Pakistanis enter Saudi Arabia on Umrah and Azad visas but many of them do not return within validity of their visas. They seek jobs and stay in the kingdom as long as they can avoid arrest, it said.
Majority of Pakistani workers are employed in blue collar jobs. However, Pakistani doctors, engineers, bankers, project managers, lecturers, IT professionals and others are also working in Saudi Arabia.
Out of these Pakistanis, 84 per cent are originally employed while 16 per cent are independents. Recently 7,000 Pakistani workers became unemployed due to financial problems of some companies.
“Pakistani Embassy in Doha, Qatar regularly undertakes consular visits to the central jail and inmates are interviewed about the conditions of the jail. Thirteen prisoners are about to complete their sentence in a couple of months reducing the total number to 42,” the reply said.
The mission will avail the facility of Emiri Pardon to be given on December 18 which is the national day of Qatar and is hopeful that reduction in sentences as well as a total release of cases will be considered favourably by the Government of Qatar, it added.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 7th, 2016.