Street crime: Looted in Pakistan

A Slovak doctor serving Pakistanis is disheartened after a robbery.

LAHORE:

“Instead of hoping that my dream of a better future for people having skin diseases in remote areas of the Punjab comes true, I am now afraid of being able to lead a peaceful life in Pakistan,” she says, clearly dejected. For two years, the 43 years old woman from Slovak Republic, Denisa Ol’ga Zamoyska, has been trying to provide treatment to the people of Mandi Bahauddin.

“But what happened is too much for me, and has forced me to think about my safety in this country.”

Zamoyska told The Express Tribune that she lost more than Rs800,000, valuables as well as travel documents in a robbery.

She said she had decided to live and practice here in 2012, to be of use to the people of this area. But now she doubts that that she did the right thing.

Sanaullah Khan, her husband who is from Mianwali, told The Express Tribune that Zamoyska had been passionate about practicing medicine in some remote area. He said that she had embraced Islam to marry him two years ago. Six months prior to her arrival in Pakistan, they became acquainted and decided to marry. He is a father of four children and his first wife had died.

On February 2, 2014, two men on motorcycles snatched her hand bag that had her valuables and all travel documents in Mandi Bahauddin. She called Police Rescue (15) and a team reached the spot within 15 minutes and listened to her story. A theft FIR was registered later that day. No suspect has been arrested so far.

According to the FIR, the lost valuables include two passports of Slovakia, Rs80,000 and €1,000, two mobile phones, three gold rings worth €2,000, ring worth €1,500, a gold watch worth €1,000, a necklace worth €800, Slovakian health insurance card and ID card, credit card and international as well as Slovakian driving licences.

According to her husband, she has stopped leaving the house since the incident. Sanaullah said that they had hoped that her documents would be returned, if not the valuables. He said there was no Slovak embassy in Pakistan, and obtaining the replacement documents would be a very lengthy process.

He said that they had visited MPA Hamida Wahidudin and the Chief Minister’s Complaints Cell, but there had been little progress.

District Police Officer (DPO) Ameer Taimoor Khan told The Express Tribune that he was personally looking into the matter. He said he had met with the complainant. After listening to her, the DPO has also had show cause notices issued to two of the police officials who reached the spot after she called 15, but did not properly deal with the complain.

Station House Officer Mehdi Khan, said the mobile phone call record had led police to a sweeper at the Mandi Bahauddin Jail who was being interrogated. He said police were making serious efforts and would likely trace the robbers soon.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5^th, 2014.