Families Grieve Migrant Shipwreck Victims, One Father Laments ‘I Bought My Son’s Death’

Javed Iqbal, a Pakistani carpenter employed in Saudi Arabia, conveyed to BBC Urdu his profound regret over his decision to unlawfully send his 13-year-old son to Europe. He stated, “The agents had sent dozens of boys from the village to Greece and Italy.” He added, “My son, who was stubborn and fell for their tricks, told us repeatedly, ‘If you don’t send me to Europe, I will leave home.'” Mohammad Abid, Javed’s son, was among five Pakistani nationals confirmed by authorities to have perished in waters near Greece after three boats carrying migrants capsized last week. Pakistani authorities have urged parents to prevent their children from embarking on such journeys. However, this appeal has not deterred hundreds of young individuals from attempting them. According to embassy officials in Greece, 47 people were rescued from the recent disaster, but the 35 who remain missing are now presumed deceased after the Greek Coast Guard terminated rescue efforts on Wednesday. BBC Urdu interviewed the bereaved families of two victims from the district of Pasrur, located in central Punjab. Abid was the third of Javed’s four children. Javed, who resides and works in Saudi Arabia, stated, “Abid’s elder brother and sister go to school, but Abid stopped going to school.” He further mentioned that over the past two years, several of their relatives, as well as other boys from their village, had traveled to Greece through agents. Upon reaching Greece, these boys consistently uploaded videos to social media. After observing these social media videos, Abid would inquire, “When will the day come when I too will go to Europe?” Javed recounted, “I explained to him many times that you are still young, you can go when you grow up, but he remained adamant.” He continued, “I told him to come to me in Saudi Arabia, but his only wish was to do go Europe.” During a recent press conference, Aamar Aftab Qureshi, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Greece, conveyed astonishment that a child was among the five Pakistani citizens who perished in the accidents. He also noted that young children were counted among those who survived. He commented, “This trend of sending children illegally is extremely dangerous.” However, Javed stated that each time Abid came home after interacting with these agents, he would threaten to depart if his mother did not secure funds for his journey. Javed explained, “She would make me talk to him on the phone, and I would explain to him. He would agree temporarily, but after a day or two, he would go off the rails again.” Consequently, Javed sold a portion of his farmland, and his wife liquidated some of her jewelry. They compensated the agent 2.56 million Pakistan rupees (£7,300; $9,200) for Abid’s passage to Europe. Javed reported that his son traveled to Egypt from Faisalabad airport, subsequently proceeding to Libya, where he resided for two months and maintained daily communication with his family. Javed stated, “He was happy and kept saying that there were some difficulties, but that they were temporary and he would soon reach his destination.” He added, “We didn’t know that his destination was not Europe, but death.” He recalled, “When there was a rumour about a boat capsizing in the sea near Greece, we tried to get information but nothing was coming out.” The family ultimately succeeded in contacting a friend in Greece, who visited the migrant hospital and located Abid’s body. Following this, they also received a phone call from the Pakistani embassy in Greece. In Ucha Jajja, a different village within central Punjab, another family is mourning the loss of their son. Muhammad Sufyan, Irfan Arshad’s 19-year-old son, also died in the incident, a fact confirmed by Pakistani authorities in Greece. Irfan Arshad stated that the agent misled them until the final moment, assuring them that their son was being sent safely by boat and that concern was unnecessary. Irfan remarked, “When there was chatter in the village that the boat had capsized near Greece, darkness fell before our eyes.” He continued, “It feels like I bought my son’s death with my own hands by paying three million rupees.” Irfan, proprietor of an oil and fertilizer shop, is a father of four sons. Two of his sons reside in Bahrain, and his third son is already established in Greece. He divested an acre of land to finance his youngest son’s journey to Greece. The FIA has initiated a human trafficking case against four individuals concerning Muhammad Sufyan’s death. As per Irfan’s statement in the report, after Sufyan was transported to Libya, the agent had guaranteed his imminent transfer to Greece. However, Sufyan was instead confined to a safe house in Libya for two months, receiving only one meal daily. Irfan stated, “My son got cholera from eating stale food, which made him very weak.” He added, “Whenever we talked to Sufyan, he sounded very worried. We kept thinking maybe it was because he was away from home for the first time, and when he reached Greece, he would be very happy.” Following his eventual placement on a boat bound for Greece, Sufyan’s family was informed of his death by his fellow travelers. In 2023, a vessel transporting undocumented immigrants capsized in the same vicinity of Greece, leading to the fatalities of 262 Pakistanis. Subsequent to that tragedy, authorities pledged a robust crackdown on agents implicated in human trafficking. Similar sentiments were reiterated on Wednesday during a meeting of officials convened to address the most recent tragedy. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared that the recurrent nature of these incidents is a significant concern for Pakistan and promised stringent measures against individuals engaged in human trafficking. Abdul Qadir Qamar, the regional director of the Federal Investigation Agency, informed BBC Urdu that the alleged perpetrators have operated a human trafficking network across various countries for an extended period. He stated, “The FIA’s investigation so far has revealed that the suspects who illegally sent youths abroad in Pasrur belong to the same family.” He added, “And these suspects have so far sent hundreds of people abroad illegally.” He identified the issue as the frequent reluctance of boat accident survivors’ families to pursue legal action against the agents. To date, the court has documented 174 human trafficking cases, with only four resulting in convictions. Irfan mentioned that Pakistan’s foreign ministry informed him Sufyan’s remains were expected to arrive in Pakistan in early January, a timeframe his family considers excessively long. Irfan stated, “We are dying moment by moment.” He continued, “Until we see our son’s body, we will be neither living nor dead. “How can those whose sons die ever have peace?”