KUWAIT CITY, Aug 25: Twelve Pakistanis hired by a local company to work in Iraq and who were denied wages, have taken refuge in the embassy premises and demanded justice.

Shamim Khan, Tariq Abbassi and 10 other Pakistanis who ran away from military camp in Iraq narrated to Dawn their ordeal and the difficult circumstance they have been living in for one and a half years.

Shamim Khan said that the Al Tamimi Company in Kuwait hired and brought them from Pakistan on visit visas to work in Iraq. He said during one and half years of work in the military camp, they faced difficult situation.

He said after running away from camp and spending two days on the Kuwait-Iraq border, their company Al Tamimi humiliated and treated them badly.

He said they were beaten and put into the lockup for demanding their three months salaries and other dues not paid to them. He said owing to the humiliation and high handedness at the Al Tamimi Company, they all approached the Pakistani embassy for shelter and assistance in the matter.

Shamim Khan said the embassy so far has not come up with solid solutions and has shown a cold response to their problem.

He said they all had promised not to move out from embassy premises unless their salaries and dues amounting to KD 10,000 were paid to them. Until the filing of this report, negotiation between Al Tamimi Company, embassy officials and the Pakistanis were going on.