1,200 Pakistanis serve different jail terms in UAE

Dubai - Lack of awareness about UAE laws and rules puts Pakistanis in trouble: Ambassador of Pakistan to the UAE.

With a population of 1.4 million Pakistanis in the UAE, only a handful are involved in petty crimes, according to a senior Pakistani diplomat.
The Ambassador of Pakistan to the UAE, Moazzam Ahmad Khan, said that rough estimates show that currently there are 1,200 Pakistanis undergoing different jail terms in all UAE jails.
"Generally, Pakistanis are not involved in major crimes.it is lack of awareness that put them in trouble," he said. The embassy has three welfare attaches who visit different jails at least two to three times a week. "We provide legal assistance in such cases, inform families and once they finish their jail terms, we arrange for repatriation; sometimes paying for tickets and arranging for renewal of passports or issuing outpasses," he said.

"My advice to all Pakistanis living in the UAE is that they must respect rules, regulations and traditions so as to stay out of trouble."
On the other hand, the Pakistan Association in Dubai is also a community body that offers financial assistance to cases in jails and other needy cases.
Last Ramadan, the association raised Dh200,000 through the community for a female who was jailed after a baby died while she was babysitting.
"We get regular requests from jail, especially from those who are involved in crimes such as bounced cheques, unpaid bills etc," said Shahidul Islam who handles the welfare committee at the association.
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Though the visits to the jail are far and few in between now, in 2014, the association gave airline tickets to those who had completed their jail terms and were being sent back to Pakistan.
"We also give money to female prisoners who are there with children," he said, adding that sometimes cash given to prisoners is misused so the committee members make the payments themselves.
asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE