Overseas Pakistanis: Senate body dissatisfied with Foreign Affairs Ministry’s role

[LahoreEstate]

Overseas Pakistanis: Senate body dissatisfied with Foreign Affairs Ministry’s role

* Standing Committee on Labour criticises Foreign Office for ‘inability’ to help overseas Pakistanis in trouble

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: The role of the Foreign Affairs Ministry came under scathing criticism on Tuesday when the Senate Standing Committee on Labour, Manpower and Overseas Pakistanis highlighted the ministry’s ‘inability’ to help Pakistani citizens and workers in trouble abroad.

The committee – which met under Naeem Hussain Chattha – also observed that the Foreign Office remained on the ‘defensive’ throughout the situation that surfaced after the Mumbai terror attacks, and said the ministry had been “unable to convince the world community of Pakistan’s innocence”. Members also accused the Foreign Affairs Ministry of not being able to gather support for the Kashmir cause.

Discussing the problems faced by overseas Pakistanis, the Senate body strongly criticised the ‘apathetic and insensitive attitude’ of diplomats towards fellow Pakistanis.

The members observed that the Foreign Office should take a leaf out of the book of foreign diplomats, who are “always ready to help their citizens in all sorts of situations. “It is wrong to assume that every Pakistani abroad is an illegal resident or an alien,” said the committee.

“They [Pakistani diplomats] behave like sahibs, and are only interested in getting permanent residency for themselves and their families,” said the members.

The meeting called for crash training programmes for Pakistani workers. The Senate also suggested that Pakistani workers be briefed on the basic laws, customs and traditions of the host countries before they went there.

It directed the Labour Ministry to launch an ‘aggressive marketing campaign’ for Pakistani workers in collaboration with the Foreign Affairs Ministry – which should explore markets initially in various countries of Asia and Europe.

Senator Enver Baig called for an awareness campaign in areas such as Gujrat, Jhelum, Kharian and Mandi Bahauddin from where a large number of workers went abroad every year, to educate people on identifying fake agents promoting employment in foreign countries. Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid Senator Tariq Azeem seconded Enver, and said the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Overseas Pakistanis’ Foundation (OPF) could also use private television channels to promote such a campaign.

Enver also asked the Labour and Manpower Ministry to explore the possibility, in collaboration with the Finance Ministry, of opening Pakistani banks abroad – especially in Spain and Italy. “Non-coverage of Pakistani banks gives rise to hundi and hawala,” he added.

Labour and Manpower Minister Khursheed Shah assured the Senate body that efforts would be made to provide better training to Pakistani workers in various fields. He also endorsed the committee members’ observation that the Foreign Office needed to play a more active role for this purpose.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg7_27