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ISLAMABAD: Pakistani is observing a day of mourning today (Monday) over the tragic deaths of Pakistani migrants in the boat that sank near coast of Greece.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the observance of a day of mourning. The national flag will fly on half-mast today and special prayers will be offered for the deceased.
The national flag will fly on half-mast and special prayers would be offered for the deceased, the PM Office Media Wing said in a statement,
Moreover, the prime minister has constituted a high-level four-member committee to conduct an inquiry into the tragic incident.
“In an unfortunate incident on 14th June, 2023, a boat carrying migrants capsized off the coast of Greece resulting in the deaths of Pakistani/AJK nationals along with other nationals, the notification said adding that the number of casualties is being still ascertained.
The prime minister, while expressing his grief over the incident and also taking a serious note of it, has constitute an inquiry committee that would submit its report within one week.
The committee will be headed by chairman Director National Police Bureau Ehsan Sadiq and includes Additional Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Africa) Javed Ahmad Umrani, DIG Azad Jammu and Kashmir Police Region Poonch Sardar Zaheer Ahmad and Joint Secretary Interior Division (FIA) Faisal Nisar as its members.
The inquiry committee would ascertain facts of the Greece boat tragedy, identify loopholes and lapses in the legal/enforcement mechanism in Pakistan that exposed precious human lives to the vagaries of human trafficking in this particular case and similar incidents in the past.
The committee is tasked to analyze similar past incidents and action taken so far and to take stock of the existing legal framework, enforcement measures and international coordination to prevent, control and punish human smuggling and to prepare short-and long-term recommendations (including legislation, enforcement measures, awareness campaigns and improvement of national and international coordination) to apprehend agents, facilitators, masterminds, rackets and for the eradication of the menace of human trafficking.
