Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The newly developed standard operating procedures (SOPs) by the Ministry of Interior have helped in reducing number of illegal Pakistani immigrants from European countries, which was 5,279 in 2013 and reached 1,711 by November 2016.

Each passing year has been witnessing a declining trend in the number of such deportees, mainly owing to measures taken to control human trafficking on the directives of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

According to data issued by the Interior Division, the number illegal Pakistani deportees was 4,330 in 2014 and 2,457 in 2015.

The major reasons of deportation from European countries included overstay, lost passport, entry refused, illegal entry, own request, illegal stay, voluntary return, revoked residence permit, cases rejected for asylum, non-payment of tax and fake documents.

When contacted, official sources on Saturday said the government of Pakistan had been taking the issue of human trafficking/smuggling very seriously.

The Immigration Wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) was regulating movement of international passengers at notified border crossings – air, sea and land.

Strict control over these entry points leaves little room for human traffickers to utilise these points. However, Pakistan has a long porous border (about 2,460km) with Afghanistan and Iran.

Therefore, the sources said that intending emigrants reach European countries by crossing over from Pakistan to Iran and Turkey. From there, they cross over to Greece and other European countries.