Imprisoned abroad

Over 14,000 Pakistanis are languishing in prisons around the world, many of them for minor offences, because they often lack access to justice and support from Pakistani missions abroad. Even some of the 183 Pakistanis executed abroad since 2010 would have been able to avoid the death penalty, and possibly any serious punishment, if they understood their legal rights or at least had the right kind of support.

Unfortunately, despite efforts by prisoners’ families, civil society, and the media, most of the prisoners abroad still lack appropriate support, and often only end up getting help from Pakistan as political pawns in bilateral ‘friendship’ deals — minor offenders such as those with visa violations are usually released when leaders from the Arab world visit Pakistan or vice versa. If things were being properly managed in Pakistan and at its foreign missions, such nonviolent offenders would not have to languish in jail for several months and years.

A new project by the prisoners’ rights group Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) holds promise of helping inmates abroad get fair treatment by making available a database that details everything about them and their criminal convictions, along with details of any prisoner transfer agreements that may apply, and consular access and protection records. The JPP portal would hopefully put Pakistani prisoners abroad in a position to invoke bilateral agreements, such as prisoner transfer deals, which would help them avoid jail time in favour of deportation.

There are also reports that some prisoners are denied fair trials and end up in jail despite being victims of human trafficking or being forced to indulge in criminal activity, such as transporting drugs. The number of Pakistani prisoners in the UAE, for example, has tripled in a year. Consular support and better policing of those involved in such activities here would go a long way to keep the ‘captive Pakistani’ population from ballooning, but that would require taking action against some powerful players across the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 21^st, 2023.

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