Islamabad:
Up to 135,000 Pakistani have requested political asylum in Europe and the United States in the last two years, a Senate committee was reported on Tuesday. The figure includes 125,000 asylum applications in different European countries and more than 10,000 in the United States.
The amazing revelations were shared by the Director General of Passports during a meeting of the Permanent Committee of the Senate on Pakistani abroad that was chaired by Senator Zeeshan Khanzada.
The DG informed legislators that more than 52,000 Pakistani have been deported in the last two years. They will only deported 34,000 Pakistani citizens who tried to enter the country illegally, while Saudi Arabia deported 5,000 Pakistani citizens involved in begging.
Saudi Arabia has also reduced its work visa quota for Pakistani and hardened the criteria for the issuance of visas. Meanwhile, several countries, including the EAU, Italy, the United Kingdom and other European nations, have suspended student visa programs for paquistani applicants.
Officials of the Ministry of Pakistani abroad confirmed these developments, and added that some countries are overlooking legal procedures by repatriating Pakistani immediately under the provisions of the Passport Law, instead of imprisoning them.
The DG also revealed that deported Pakistani passports have been blocked, and those found involved in criminal activities abroad face strict legal consequences.
Despite these setbacks, officials said that more than 10.3 million qualified and professionals continue to work abroad, contributing to the country’s economy through remittances.
