Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed authorities to take decisive action against human trafficking following the deaths of five Pakistani citizens in a shipwreck off Greece last week. The incident, involving a boat carrying several Pakistanis that capsized near the island of Gavdos, resulted in at least five fatalities, with many others still missing as search operations continued. In response, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) filed charges against four suspected traffickers and arrested two individuals from Sialkot and Gujrat.
During a meeting in Islamabad, the prime minister emphasized the need for strict measures against human traffickers and criticized the slow response to such incidents. He pointed out that 262 Pakistani nationals died in a similar tragedy last year, attributing the recurrence of such incidents to the lack of action against traffickers.
PM Shehbaz ordered the immediate implementation of the Integrated Border Management System (IBMS) to monitor international travelers and demanded a report from the FIA and foreign ministry regarding incidents involving Pakistanis over the past year. He also called for greater cooperation with international organizations to prevent future tragedies.
The prime minister was briefed on the prosecution of 174 human trafficking suspects, with four convicted. Officials revealed that traffickers have started using air routes to send people to Libya, from where they continue to Italy via perilous Mediterranean crossings. Human trafficking, often viewed as a status symbol in certain areas of Pakistan, continues to rise, with thousands of migrants taking dangerous routes through Greece and the Western Balkans to Europe. Between 2014 and 2023, over 63,000 migrants have gone missing or died along these routes.
