Growing challenge of human smuggling

Sadly, the new year has begun with tragic deaths for dozens of Pakistanis attempting to migrate to Europe, bringing long-lasting misery to their families in Punjab province.

On January 16, a fishing boat carrying hundreds of migrants was stranded and eventually collapsed in the Atlantic Ocean between Morocco and Mauritania, resulting in the deaths of 86 people, including 44 Pakistanis who were attempting an illegal journey to Spain.

Reports indicate that approximately 40 Pakistanis were physically tortured and murdered by African human traffickers—about four or five people per day—while the boat remained stranded in deep waters for 13 days.

The traffickers demanded more money from the victims, and those who refused or were unable to pay faced brutal treatment.

Among the 47 Pakistanis rescued, 22 survivors are being repatriated from Morocco this fortnight, while another 11 are returning from Mauritania (four of them have returned). These survivors recount harrowing stories of their ordeal, detailing the inhumane treatment they suffered at the hands of traffickers.

Many had paid enormous sums—up to Rs 5.35 million per person—for air travel to Europe, only to be deceived and taken to Senegal and Mauritania, where they were held captive for months before being forced onto a boat bound for Spain.

This tragedy echoes a similar incident in June 2023 when an overcrowded and aging fishing trawler carrying illegal immigrants capsized near a Greek island, claiming more than 700 lives, including 262 Pakistanis.

However, these are not isolated incidents. In December 2024, five Pakistanis died after their boat, carrying more than 80 people, including children, capsized in the Mediterranean. Yet, despite these repeated tragedies, the insensitivity—if not outright complicity—of government agencies has allowed such horrific losses to continue, all while officials prioritize their vested interests.

In recent years, human trafficking has escalated in Pakistan, ensnaring thousands of men, women, and children in its grip.

Despite some countermeasures, the problem has worsened due to weak law enforcement, systemic corruption, and the impunity traffickers enjoy. The failure to implement robust preventive measures has enabled traffickers to operate with little fear of being held accountable.

A new and chilling trend has emerged in which traffickers detain and torture aspiring Pakistani migrants in Iran, Turkey, and other transit countries, extorting additional money from their families. In February 2024, three separate cases came to light in which 10 young Pakistani men were kidnapped, tortured, and held hostage in Iran by traffickers working in collaboration with international crime syndicates.

Their families in Pakistan received disturbing videos of their suffering, with demands for ransom as high as Rs 10 million per person. While some families managed to pay, others turned to the Pakistani Embassy in Tehran for help.

Traffickers have now shifted to a longer and more perilous route for smuggling Pakistani migrants into Europe. Instead of the conventional route through Iran, Turkiye, or Libya to Italy, they are now using a path from Pakistan to North or West Africa, leading to the Canary Islands in Spain—a route traditionally used by West African migrants.

This route is extremely dangerous; the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has recorded over 21,000 deaths or disappearances in the Central Mediterranean since 2014. According to another report, 10,457 migrants perished at sea in 2024 while attempting to reach Europe via this route.

Corruption and official complicity remain major obstacles to combating human trafficking. The government has failed to report any investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of officials involved in trafficking crimes. Many traffickers continue their operations by bribing authorities or exploiting legal loopholes to evade punishment.

However, following recent boat tragedies, the government has taken action. More than 350 human traffickers have been arrested both within Pakistan and abroad, while over 35 officials of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) have been dismissed for alleged collusion with traffickers. In a significant move, the Director General of the FIA was sacked on January 29 for his failure to curb large-scale illegal migration.

Poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, violence, and lack of awareness make large segments of Pakistan’s population easy targets for traffickers. Many victims are lured with false promises of employment, education, or a better life abroad.

Each year, a significant number of Pakistanis attempt to migrate, often for economic reasons, only to fall into the hands of traffickers who arrange their journeys through illegal channels, sometimes using fake documents.

Human trafficking networks in Pakistan are deeply entrenched and often linked to international crime syndicates. These networks smuggle individuals across borders, particularly to the Gulf States and Europe, where they are forced into labor or prostitution. Recent cases have exposed how groups of migrants are abandoned or subjected to brutal treatment in foreign countries, often facing life-threatening situations.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that approximately 1.5 million people in Pakistan are vulnerable to trafficking, with thousands already trapped in forced labor or sexual exploitation.

A key reason for the persistence of human trafficking in Pakistan is the lack of effective law enforcement. While the FIA has intensified operations against human traffickers following the latest boat tragedy—leading to over 350 arrests—corruption, inadequate resources, and insufficient training among law enforcement personnel remain major challenges.

Many officials either lack awareness of trafficking complexities or are complicit in the crime, accepting bribes in exchange for turning a blind eye. Although Pakistan has laws such as the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act 2018, enforcement remains weak, allowing traffickers to operate with impunity.

In a dramatic move, the government has introduced on January 28 three new legislative amendments in the Senate to strengthen existing anti-trafficking laws: the Prevention of Smuggling of Migrants Amendment Bill 2025, the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Amendment Bill 2025, and the Emigration Amendment Bill 2025.

However, legal reforms alone will not suffice—Pakistan must take a proactive approach by enhancing security, improving law enforcement training, and developing mechanisms to identify and dismantle trafficking networks.

Eradicating human trafficking is one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, and Pakistan must align its efforts accordingly. This requires strengthening international cooperation, as human trafficking is a transnational crime. Pakistan must collaborate effectively with international agencies and neighboring countries to track and dismantle trafficking networks.

Public awareness campaigns, particularly in rural areas where people are most vulnerable, can play a crucial role in preventing trafficking by educating potential victims about the dangers.

Human trafficking is a grave violation of human rights, and its rapid rise in Pakistan is cause for alarm. While some steps have been taken to address the issue, much more needs to be done to protect vulnerable populations and hold traffickers accountable.

More importantly, Pakistan must address the root causes of mass migration—whether legal or illegal. The worsening economic realities and the widening gap between the elite and the masses are pushing thousands to seek opportunities abroad, often at great personal risk.

In a country where the minimum wage is a meager Rs 37,000 per month and citizens struggle under the burden of high inflation and skyrocketing utility costs, parliamentarians have increased their salaries from Rs 180,000 to Rs 519,000 per month, in addition to extensive perks. Meanwhile, a government department is purchasing 1,010 new luxury cars at a cost of Rs 6 billion to the national exchequer. For many ordinary Pakistanis, leaving the country—by any means necessary—seems like the only viable option.

The government and opposition alike remain silent on the real issues: rising poverty, now affecting over 37% of the population; unemployment at 6.3%; drastic cuts in government jobs; rapid population growth; the chronic underfunding of education, with spending at less than 2% of GDP; and higher cost of living.

Until these fundamental challenges are addressed, the cycle of desperation and migration—both legal and illegal—will continue, and so will the tragedies that accompany it.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025