Stranded in Libya

Times of crisis often reveal the true nature of individuals — and also states. Certainly this appears to be the case in Libya, where 20,000 or so Pakistanis remain stranded in a situation of rapidly mounting insecurity and uncertainty, unable to obtain food as shortages hit Tripoli and fearful as to their own safety in such volatile times. Whereas the Pakistan Embassy in the Libyan capital and also the Foreign Office at home have been making claims that they plan to assist the stranded Pakistanis for much of the last week, in actual fact nothing has happened at all. And words, of course, won’t ease the suffering of those caught up in the Libyan turmoil — or the desperate anxiety of their families at home. What they need to see is action and there is as yet no evidence that it has been planned.

Unlike other nations, including India, which have sent flights to Tripoli to airlift nationals out of danger, PIA has stated it has received no instructions to do the same. The Foreign Office spokesperson has claimed the problem is that flights cannot land safely in Libya. This seems hard to believe given that airlines from nations other than Pakistan have been able to send in their planes with little evidence of difficulty.

The issue seems to be one of attitude. We have seen similar indifference in the past from Pakistani missions when it comes to helping nationals abroad. Those who land up in jail — sometimes for no fault of their own — most often receive no support and even when the release of persons is secured by human rights groups, our missions make little effort to help send them on their way home. We must ask what the primary purpose of these missions is. The evidence of this indifference in Libya is appalling. Thousands of Pakistanis are desperate to get out. Even the 3,000 who have registered with the embassy have been given no assurances as to when this may happen or what effort their government is making to bring them out of a country where violence threatens every life.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 2^nd, 2011.