Caught in a French lorry

Thousands fleeing poverty, unemployment and law and order problems have attempted to illegally enter Europe

In a shocking development, some 31 illegal Pakistani migrants were caught hidden in a lorry in Southern France on Friday. The episode reflects the desperation of jobless people who sometimes are ready to risk life and limb to cross into the continent of their dreams. It’s no small mercy that they were found alive. The 39 people discovered in a refrigerated truck in Britain last month were not so lucky. Both incidents expose, in no uncertain terms, the risks faced by migrants en route to Europe. The group of 31 Pakistani migrants was discovered during a routine check on a motorway near the Italian border, French prosecutors said. The migrants, who included three teenagers, were handed over to the Italian authorities.

Phenomenon of illegal Pakistanis entering Europe is not new. Thousands of Pakistanis fleeing poverty, unemployment and law and order problems have been attempting to illegally enter Europe. Every year, thousands of Pakistanis make abortive attempts to enter Greece via Iran and Turkey for better working opportunities. Most of them are arrested in Iran and Turkey and sent back.

Last year, the Pakistani ambassador to Greece wrote a letter to the Pakistan Foreign Office detailing the dire state of Pakistani human trafficking victims in Greece and seeking urgent attention of the government to curtail the crisis-like situation. Small wonder then that Pakistani illegal immigrants constitute a huge chunk of people deported from different countries annually. According to one report, over half a million such illegal immigrants, sent back home during the last six years, hailed from Pakistan.

Among the long list of countries, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, and Turkey, took the top spot, deporting the most number of Pakistanis. According to statistics provided by the Ministry of Interior, since 2014, Saudi Arabia has deported more than 325,000 Pakistani nationals, UAE 52,000 and Oman and Oman jointly sent back home 47,000 Pakistanis. Human trafficking is a global problem, affecting the lives of millions of people around the world and robbing them of their dignity. Authorities should scale up efforts to prevent its nationals from bringing shame to the motherland.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 4^th, 2019.

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