A Thai police officer stands next to Pakistani refugees who walk in line to a waiting bus after they were released from the immigration detention center in Bangkok, Thailand Monday, June 6, 2011. – AP

ISLAMABAD: A ceremony was held in Bangkok on Tuesday to formally affect the transfer of another 11 Pakistani prisoners to Pakistan in accordance with the Pakistan-Thailand Agreement on “Cooperation in the Transfer of Offenders and Enforcement of Penal Sentences.”

These 11 prisoners are part of the second batch of 22 prisoners being transferred to Pakistan. The first group of 11 prisoners had arrived in Pakistan on 22 June 2011, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here on Tuesday.

The first batch of 8 prisoners was transferred to Pakistan in December 2010.

At today's Transfer Ceremony, Pakistan's Ambassador to Thailand Sohail Mahmood represented the Pakistan Government. The Thai side was represented by Deputy Director General of the Department of Corrections, Thanis Sriyaphan.

This transfer of offenders is the outcome of an inter-governmental process and represents close cooperation between Pakistan and Thailand in the consular field.

Since the bilateral Agreement came into effect in December 2009, the two governments have made proactive efforts to ensure its fast-track implementation.

In this context, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, and Embassy of Pakistan in Bangkok have been working closely to advance this objective, the press release added.