US improves Pakistan’s ranking on human trafficking

ISLAMABAD: The US State Department has revised upward the ranking of Pakistan after keeping it on the watch list for consecutive four years due to its inadequate measures against human trafficking and migrant smuggling in and outside the country.

Until recently, there was no comprehensive law to either define trafficking/smuggling or punish those committing this offence. The Parliament this year approved two laws in this regard shortly before the dissolution of the National Assembly. In addition, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has taken significant measures to arrest this trend, resulting in the revision of the country’s ranking.

Pakistan had been on tier-2 watch list until recently and further degradation into tier-3 could invoke US sanctions. Annual review of the State Department has though removed Pakistan from the watch list, it is still on tier-2. The ranking that is being carried out from 2011 onward shows that Pakistan has never gained enough score to qualify for tier-1 status which is reserved for the countries who fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

Tier-2 is for the countries who though don’t meet the minimum standard, they are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance, whereas the watch list is comprised of the countries where the number of trafficking is significantly increasing.

In the case of Pakistan, this increase was largely attributed to the absence of proper legal framework which has been provided only a couple of months ago when two laws were passed: The Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act, 2018; and The Prevention of Smugglings of Migrants Act, 2018.

The legislation was pending for the last four years and Pakistan continued to remain on the watch list during the corresponding period. This might have delayed further had there not been the killing of 20 persons in Turbat who were there to cross over illegally to Iran for making their way onward to Europe through Turkey via Greece. Although they were targeted by terrorists, the tragedy highlighted the underlying menace of migrant smuggling and human trafficking. Serious efforts to carry out legislation for punishing smugglers were only made after this incident.

Meanwhile, a boat carrying illegal migrants from Libya to Italy capsized taking 31 lives; Pakistanis included. This further highlighted the risks that illegal migrants face.

While Parliament passed the legislation, the Supreme Court constituted a committee to submit recommendations for arresting this menace of human smuggling which is the third most lucrative transnational organised crime after arms and drug trafficking estimated at 32 billion dollars per year and 27 million victims worldwide.