The scourge of people smuggling

During the recent years, thousands of people escaping conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, and others mostly from the Sub-Saharan Africa and some other countries looking for better economic opportunities in Europe, have drowned while crossing the Mediterranean on overloaded, insecure boats. Yet many more continue to risk their lives in hazardous voyages across the sea. In the latest disaster on Friday, an estimated 90 people lost their lives when their boat capsized off the coast of Libya. At least 11 of them are said to be Pakistanis, but the number may be much higher than that as according to three survivors of the tragedy, most of the prospective migrants were Pakistanis.
It is reasonable to believe that those desperate to have a better life in Europe undertake the perilous journey from Pakistan all the way to northern Africa or via Turkey into Greece, unaware of the dangers involved. They pay large sums - usually raised by borrowing or selling property - to people smugglers in the hope of realizing their dreams. As long as criminal gangs are there to exploit them to make money, tragedies like the present one cannot be stopped. It may be recalled that last November, 15 young people were killed in Balochistan while on their way to Europe. At the time, FIA's immigration wing chief had insisted the murders had nothing to do with people trafficking. Claiming that the activity had registered a significant reduction, he said, as many as 400 proclaimed offenders had been arrested, and in the previous year, 2,000 persons were prosecuted for involvement in the crime.
However, it was also in June last year that the US State Department's "Trafficking in Person Report" placed Pakistan on the second tier of its three-tier watch list, based on the extent to which countries make efforts to comply with the "minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking." Clearly, the relevant agencies have a lot more to do to eliminate the scourge of people smuggling from this country. To that end, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has recommended several measures, such as strengthening law enforcement cooperation in the region through discussions about emerging trends and patterns of human trafficking and migrant smuggling; exchange of information concerning best practices; and improving border security and building cooperative relationships with respect to investigations, prosecutions and protection of victims. The FIA also needs to look into reports that say some of these elements have the backing of influential individuals who protect them using their connections. That nexus needs to be broken without fear or favour.