ISLAMABAD: Asma Jahangir, counsel for Turkish nationals working at the Pak Turk International School, said on Thursday that her clients were handcuffed in their home in September despite government assurances that they would not be deported until November this year and were reportedly taken into custody by Turkish authorities and taken to Istanbul.

Ms Jahangir was speaking at a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, which held a detailed discussion on the matter of action taken against Turkish nationals residing in Pakistan on valid visas, which was moved by Senator Mohammad Ali Saif.

Ms Jahangir said administrative control of the schools was given to another NGO, so her clients no longer had any links to the school.

The Ministry of Interior, police and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) however claimed that they had no knowledge of Ms Jahangir’s clients being sent to Turkey without their passports.

Subcommittee formed to consider witness protection amendment to ATA

Advocate Sadia Noreen Malik said the Turkish teachers had nothing to do with the politics of either country, and were victimised for the wrongdoings of others, which was an injustice.

Turkish employees of Pak Turk schools were directed to leave the country last year after an unsuccessful attempted coup in Turkey and just ahead of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Pakistan.

The decision was taken due to alleged links between the school and United States based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who the Turkish government has said was behind the attempted coup.

The teachers and parents of children enrolled in the school had gone to court against the directions, and the Pakistani government had said the teachers would not be deported.

Committee chairman Senator Rehman Malik summoned a representative of Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to brief the committee on the deportation of the teachers.

He also directed the interior ministry to give detailed information on who moved the teachers to Turkey, what kind of flight they took, the number of Turkish teachers deported and the number still residing in Pakistan, and what kind of agreement administration of the schools had been transferred under.

The committee also decided to call the foreign affairs, interior, civil aviation and education secretaries and a Prime Minister’s Office representative to the next meeting.

Ms Jahangir told Dawn that although a number of Turkish nationals have been deported from Pakistan, she could only speak about one family, who are her clients.

“My client was the principal of a school but he stopped working as the head of the school. The Lahore High Court issued a stay order that my client, his wife and two children could not be deported but they were handed over to the Turkish police,” she said.

“The incident shows that there is no law in the country and some elements have been running their own laws. It is strange that the court’s orders were ignored,” she said.

Subcommittee formed

The committee chairman also constituted a subcommittee led by Senator Barrister Mohammad Ali Khan Saif to consider a proposed amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act moved by senators Barrister Murtaza Wahab and Mukhtiar Ahmed Dhamrah aimed at witness protection in the country.

The subcommittee will seek the input of the Law Division and interior ministry on any existing or already proposed legislation in thie regard.

Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2017