Greek Boat Tragedy: Drowned Dreaming Defying Doomed Destinies

Pakistan In Picture

Asem Mustafa Awan

Islamabad: They have died in hundreds and few have survived as the doomed boat stayed stranded for hours with no help on hand, and rightly so; if the help had arrived, the entire plot would have been exposed, with law-enforcement agencies nabbing the culprits.

The people fleeing Pakistan in the quest for freedom were approximately 750 on board the ill-fated boat and only a few survived.

Destined with doom and despair, they all deposited around 2.3 million Pakistani rupees ($8,000) with human smugglers who operate in connivance with a network that is above the law and has remained unchecked for decades.

This scribe has come across many individuals who have survived the ordeal, with a few going abroad and a few returning after a failed attempt.

These operators are known to everyone and have their hands stained with the blood of hundreds of innocent lives who, finding no way out, resort to desperate measures.

These human traffickers have billions stashed away and they disappear every time, now that they operate under fake identities.

These soulless monsters have operated in Pakistan for a long time and people have died at their hands on many occasions.

The boat with many other nationalities on board was a ‘golden goose’, and all these people who ensured individuals with ‘doomed destinies’ had a nexus. It will require authorities to operate on scientific lines to find these murderers who have committed crimes that have caused grief to many thousands.

DNA sampling is now being conducted and the genetic codes will be identified, but the question is, if the world is so advanced, how could it overlook this human tragedy?

Was it deliberately done to deter the incoming influx of people who faced repressive regimes and persecution, and resorted to such deadly measures?

These questions require answers and they are with the people who control the borders.

The writer is a journalist based in Islamabad and writes on a wide range of issues.

Photo Credit: Reuter File