I know that in every young heart there is a desire to explore the world .For those who have never travelled there are exaggerated imaginations of streets paved with gold, palatial bungalows, exotic food and adventures and of course a life of complete freedom that includes worldly pleasures one cannot even think of in their country of origin.
When I interact with any of these young men in a party or any other gathering I am a little taken aback by the exaggerated imaginations of my fellow countrymen. That is why it is no wonder that every other day we hear of tragedies mostly involving young men who driven by these dreams end up either dead on the shores of some foreign land or living in squalid conditions in detention camps in some European country.
Things were not so bad just a few decades ago. Young people from all over the world looking for a better life descended upon the apparently rich countries and many of them could find decent jobs. Legal immigration was much more accessible and routine than illegal immigration through what is now commonly known as the “Boat People”.
Initially, the term “boat people” first appeared in the late 1970s and it described the mass exodus of Vietnamese refugees from Communist-controlled Vietnam following the Vietnam War. Today “boat people” refers to all asylum seekers who arrive in a new country by boat seeking safety and protection.
There is a vast difference between the two. The original boat people were real refugees and those that shipped them were not organized gangs out only for the money they would make irrespective of the fate of their passengers. The second wave of boat people that I would call a commercial venture of mostly criminal gangs sprang out of the Arab Spring.
This word “spring” in itself is the king of misnomers because by no stretch of imagination were the events leading to that name brought even a whiff of spring to any of the countries or their population.
Look at Libya for the ordinary Libyan there was no end to pampering by the government. Students could study anywhere in the world at expanses borne by the government. Gifts were given at their wedding including residences and so many other facilities. If this was not spring what is?
What spring were these people searching for is beyond me.
Anyway it were conditions like these in Iraq, Libya and other Arab countries that the modern boat people appeared on the high seas and before long this operation was extended to include people from the Indian Sub-continent and other countries whose populations had decided that relocation was the answer to their problems. It will not be wrong to say that after the so-called Arab Spring illegal immigration and its felicitation reached new levels and has become a big industry in which criminal elements are also involved.
It is sad that young people from Pakistan also opt for these illegal routes and many lose their lives. It is not just the hazardous journey on the seas but also the involvement of criminal gangs who kidnap these young people and instead of guiding them safely to their intended destinations demand huge ransom from their families to return them to Pakistan.
All this because of the exaggerated hopes our young men pin on migrating to other countries. Life for an immigrant and an illegal one at that is not a bed of roses. Unless you are a professional in demand in your country of destination you have to work back breaking hours sometimes as much as 16 to 20 hours a day, sleep in overcrowded rooms and eat when food is available which might not be exactly according to your wishes.
Migrating to another country is not really the solution as opportunities shrink with each passing year. If these young men were to put in the hard work they willingly undertake in a foreign country and put up with some hardships in their own countries they can realize their dreams without becoming targets for criminal gangs and losing their life’s saving and sometimes even their lives chasing an elusive dream. Migration is not a road to instant prosperity, lavish lifestyle, freedom beyond imagination. Now it is just a mirage and many people caught by its imaginary glamour are paying a heavy price for it.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
The writer is a well-known columnist
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