Director General of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Riffat Mukhtar said on Thursday that the agency is investigating reports of workers being offloaded at airports, during a meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Chaudhry Salik Hussain, a statement from the agency said.
Over the past few months, numerous incidents have been reported of travellers being offloaded from flights at various airports on grounds of suspicion, despite possessing valid travel documents. The actions follow Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s directive to crack down on migrant smuggling after last year’s Greece boat tragedy that claimed several Pakistani lives.
The development took place during a high-level meeting today presided over by the minister, in which he was briefed on such incidents. DG FIA Mukhtar, officials Ministry of the Overseas Pakistanis, and a delegation from the Pakistan Overseas Employment Promoters Association were also in attendance.
DG FIA Mukhtar informed the meeting participants that incidents of workers being offloaded had been reported at Lahore and Karachi airports, and that investigations were underway.
“If any FIA officials are found involved, strict action will be taken against them,” the statement quoted him as saying.
While addressing the participants, Minister Hussain pointed out that workers were offloaded at different airports despite having work visas and protection certificates.
“Pakistanis going abroad for employment are highly respected by us, and no one will be allowed to unlawfully stop workers at airports,” the minister said, per the statement.
Overseas Pakistanis, he said, send foreign remittances to Pakistan, which drives the national economy.
The minister directed the DG FIA to immediately resolve the issue and instructed that no work visa holders be offloaded at airports in the future.
Per the statement, no new conditions have been imposed by the FIA for those travelling abroad on work visas, nor has any new requirement been introduced for obtaining an affidavit from a government officer.
A new digital system will soon be introduced, through which workers can complete their immigration online before departure.
Federal Minister Hussain stated that to prevent such incidents in the future, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and FIA officials were preparing standard operating procedures (SOPs).
In December of last year, four Pakistani citizens were among those killed in migrant shipwrecks off the coast of Greece, as confirmed by the Foreign Office.
A high-level committee was formed to examine the tragedy, overseen by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In January of this year, the former FIA DG, Ahmed Ishaque Jehangir, was removed from his position and Mukhtar appointed to replace him in early April.