Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah promised on Tuesday that the investigation into the Greece boat tragedy would be completed within a week as authorities arrested two more traffickers allegedly involved in human smuggling.
Last week, an Italy-bound fishing trawler reportedly carrying at least 800 people including hundreds of Pakistanis capsized off Greece. Only 104 people are known to have survived and the chance of finding more survivors was seen as virtually nil.
Reuters confirmed that the death toll of the tragedy has reached 81 after three more bodies were fished out of the sea.
As the news of the tragedy unfolded, Pakistan observed a mourning day on Monday and the Interior Ministry said special legislation would be passed to prosecute those involved in human smuggling as the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) cracked down on traffickers across the country.
The Associated Press of Pakistan today quoted the interior minister as saying that the government would take strict against human traffickers and a committee had been formed to probe the incident.
“The investigation committee will present its report in a week after which further action will be taken by the federal government,” he said, elaborating that the panel would ascertain facts pertaining to the Greece boat tragedy.
It would also identify loopholes and lapses in Pakistan’s legal mechanism, that had exposed precious human lives to the “vagaries of human trafficking in this particular case and past incidents”.
“The government will also review short-term and long-term legislation to curb the issue besides envisaging laws for imposing penalties on the people responsible for such kinds of incidents,” the minister added.
Separately, in a statement issued today, an FIA spokesperson said the agency’s Anti-Human Trafficking Circle in Gujranwala had apprehended an “agent” involved in the boat tragedy.
He said the captured suspect, identified as agent Azmat Ali, had received a sum of Rs1.7 million for facilitating the victims’ illegal journey to Europe, adding that a case had been registered against him and further investigation was underway.
The agency also said that raids were being conducted to arrest other suspects.
Earlier, the Punjab police said in a statement that a “key suspect” involved in the Greece shipwreck had been arrested.
“Mumtaz Arain was taken into custody from Vehari and has been handed over to the FIA for further questioning,” a police spokesperson said, adding that the suspect’s mobile data, documents and other important evidence were also seized during the operation.
He added that the police obtained the mobile phone of another primary suspect, Aslam, from Arain’s possession as well.
State broadcaster Radio Pakistan said in a report that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during a telephonic conversation with PM Shehbaz, expressed grief and sorrow over the deaths of Pakistanis in the Greece boat tragedy.
He extended his condolences to the bereaved families on behalf of the Turkish government and people. Erdogan also prayed for the departed souls.
“In his remarks, PM Shehbaz said Pakistan values the sentiments of the Turkish president and people at this hour of difficulty,” the report added.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said he held a “useful conversation” with his Greek counterpart on the shipwreck tragedy.
“Agreed to closely work together to facilitate Pakistanis in distress and for the identification and repatriation of retrieved bodies,” he tweeted.
Meanwhile, at least 50 people who had left for Europe with the help of traffickers have been missing and their families feared that they were on the ill-fated that sank near Greece.
At least 11 of them belonged to Kharian, 16 belonged to Goleki, Qasimabad, and Kot Qutab Din villages in the jurisdiction of the Kunjah police, five hailed from the areas of Gujrat’s Sadar and Shaheen Chowk police stations, seven people belonged to localities in the jurisdiction of Rehmania and Kakrali police stations whereas at least 10 people belonged to different villages in Sara-i-Alamgir.
Official sources said efforts were underway to identify bodies of Pakistanis through DNA testing, which had kept the families in a state of uncertainty: they are not sure whether their kins were on the boat or in some camp in Libya waiting for the voyage towards Europe.
It may be noted that there were unconfirmed reports about the presence of illegal immigrants in camps of human traffickers in Libya, which was making the identification process complicated. Similarly, these illegal immigrants often travel without having identity documents which further added to complications. The FIA said that it might take weeks in tracing and confirming the identity of the missing victims.
