September 14, 2003

After hearing about Tariq Khan who is imprisoned in a Saudi jail on false charges by his boss, and the agony his family is going through, one wonders how cruel man can get

THE 1980s saw the hype to go to the Middle East to earn a livelihood reach its peak. Phrases like Dubai chalo (let’s go to Dubai) became famous throughout the country. As a result, many people from Pakistan, specially from the rural areas, went to Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and other Gulf states. Besides professionals, a majority of these people consisted of the labour class.

Muhammad Tariq Khan was a young and energetic man in his 20s at the time when the cry was raised. He lived in Sherwan, a small village 35kms from Abbottabad. They were four brothers and one sister. His father, Haji Muhammad Ashraf Khan, had retired from the Pakistan Army and worked at a nearby school to make ends meet. Tariq had had some formal schooling, but due to poverty he could not continue his education. Like many young men at that time, he dreamed of going to the Gulf region for better opportunities.

Lady Luck favoured him and he got a sponsorship in Saudi Arabia to work with a beverage company and left with a lot of hope and prayers in 1982. Young and energetic, Tariq worked day and night and in a short span of time, he won the heart of his Saudi employer, Sheikh Hussain S. Al-Amoudi, the owner of Al-Amoudi Beverages Industries, Jeddah.

Tariq thought it safe to keep his salary with his Saudi employer rather than with himself, thinking to draw a huge amount on his final return home. In 1984, one of his brothers, Muhammad Taimour Khan, died in a road accident. Tariq went on a short visit to grieve his brother’s death. It was his first visit in two years. Then Tariq came to Pakistan for his marriage in 1990. This was his second visit to Pakistan which lasted for some two months. When Adeel Tariq, his only son, was born, Tariq was away from home. Tariq wished to see his son, but Sheikh Hussain S. Al-Amoudi didn’t let him go.

Tariq had become a major employee of the Sheikh’s business and there was no alternative available to take care of affairs in his absence. The Sheikh promised Tariq to let him go home in the near future. Time passed and in 1994, Tariq got the first shock of his life — the news of his son’s death whom he couldn’t even see. Determined to go home, he approached the Sheikh who again declined permission. The Sheikh had started a new business in Makkah and Madina, and Tariq had become the in charge.

Tariq’s father, Haji Muhammad Ashraf Khan, was suffering from cancer and wished to see his son. In 1997, he finally died. This time Tariq decided to go visit his hometown and requested the Sheikh for a short leave, who again bluntly refused. He refused to return Tariq his passport and other documents (which he had collected from Tariq at the beginning of his job), and even refused to pay him his dues and savings.

The death of his only son and then his father upset Tariq and he argued with Sheikh Hussain S. Al-Amoudi, which the latter declared an ‘act of insult’ from a foreigner (kharji) to a native (kafeel).

“I’ll teach you a lesson,” the Sheikh threatened Tariq.

According to his family members, with the help of a police officer in Madina (Mudeer-i-Madina), the Sheikh sent Tariq to prison.

“Taking advantage of Tariq’s ignorance of Saudi laws, his cruel kafeel (boss) charged him with financial misconduct worth SR28,000, which he later on increased to SR566,089, and sent Tariq to jail,” Javed Khan, his brother-in-law said.

When the case appeared in a Saudi court, it passed the following verdict: “This is a court decision against a Pakistani national, Muhammad Tariq Khan, who did fraud with his kafeel while he was there as a storekeeper. The defender, Mr Tariq, admitted the allegation. This court decided that the defender should pay SR566,089 to his kafeel.” (Dated: Hijra 06-08-1419)

About the Saudi court verdict, Javed Khan, a graduate from Peshawar University, said, “His former employer, Sheikh Hussein S. Al-Amoudi, deceived my brother-in-law by telling him that if he confessed to the charges, he would be let out of prison after some time, otherwise he would get his hands cut off. Thus, a frightened Tariq confessed to all the charges against him.”

Javed adds, “The Sheikh made a false case, without any proof, and threatened Tariq into accepting it, and on that acceptance the Saudi court of law gave its decision. Thus, the honourable court itself was also misguided/deceived.

“Actually, the Sheikh didn’t want to pay Tariq his life-long savings, which he kept with him. He tried to get rid of Tariq by sending him to jail. With the charge of embezzling a huge amount, the Sheikh has almost made it impossible for Tariq to get out.”

Tariq Khan’s father-in-law, Ahmed Sultan, with his attorney, went to Saudi Arabia to meet Sheikh Hussein S. Al-Amoudi in 1999. According to him, the Sheikh told them that he loves Tariq more than his own son, because he did good business for his company. The Sheikh told Ahmed Sultan that he had forgiven Tariq and he would soon be freed from prison.

“We waited anxiously for Tariq’s arrival, but instead of freeing Tariq from prison, he increased his claim from SR566,089 to SR7,000,000, an unimaginable amount for poor people like us. This came as a rude shock and we tried to contact the Pakistani Consulate in Jeddah,” Ahmed Sultan said.

After hectic appeals to the government, Tariq’s family took up the matter directly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan. The Pakistan Consulate in Jeddah recently informed through letter no CWA/01/377 (J) /2002, dated March 1, 2003, that the Community Welfare Attache “held a meeting with Sheikh Hussein S. Al-Amoudi, former employer of Mr Muhammad Tariq Khan on January 20, 2003, and he agreed to cooperate with the Consulate General of Pakistan in securing the release of Mr Khan from prison, in case Mr Khan agrees to collect the outstanding money from the creditors and deposit the same in the company account.”

The Community Welfare Attache of the Pakistan Consulate adds, “I visited the Bariman Jail in Jeddah on Feb 23, 2003. However, the jail authorities informed me that Mr Muhammad Tariq Khan had already been released therefrom.” The Community Welfare Attache, in his letter, inquires, “We have taken up the matter with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Makkat-ul-Mukarramah Region Branch, Jeddah, to know the present status of his case. Meanwhile, it is requested to confirm from Mrs Ajaib Khan if her son has actually been released or not.”

Some relatives visited the Bariman Jail in Jeddah to confirm the above claim of Tariq’s release. They were shocked to know that Tariq is still in the same jail and tragically, he has lost his memory and sense. Due to a serious illness, he has lost a lot of weight and now weighs a mere 45 pounds. He is so weak that he can’t even move without help.

“Tariq Khan’s case speaks volumes about the inefficiency of our missions abroad,” says Mahboob Rahman, a journalist of the Hazara division. “There are many innocent Pakistani citizens languishing in foreign prisons and the government needs to run a campaign to free them.”

In an appeal to the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, Tariq Khan’s mother, Mrs Ajaib Sultan, says with tears in her eyes, “If we had that much money (as claimed by the Sheikh) we would never have sent our beloved son so far away from home to suffer this much in the first place. I am on my deathbed and it is my last wish to see my son before leaving this cruel world.

“Is there anybody to tell the Sheikh that he has punished Tariq enough — his only son and father died in his absence, I’m on my deathbed, Tariq himself has lost his senses, his wife has become old without him, our family is totally destroyed — what else does the Sheikh want from us, what will be his answer to Allah on the Day of Judgment?” Tariq’s mother cries out.

“Is there anybody to convey the cries of a poor old mother to the ruler the sacred land of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) and to free my son from prison? Who will convey my request to the Imam-i-Ka’aba and Masjid-i-Nabvi to free my innocent son who is languishing in prison?” Tariq’s mother adds.

“I can only request the governments of the two Islamic countries (Saudi Arabia and Pakistan) for the release of my innocent husband, whom I have not seen after marriage. If something happens to my husband in jail, on the Day of Judgment I will seek justice from Allah against the Sheikh and the heads of the two Islamic governments,” says Tariq’s suffering wife, Sabiha Bibi.

“We appeal to all of humanity in the name of Allah to help us release Tariq from prison. We request the Custodian of the holy shrines, Shah Fahad, Crown Prince Abdullah, the President of Pakistan, Pervaiz Musharraf, Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali, President Muslim League (Q) Chaudhry Shujaat, Human Rights Commission and activists in both the countries and around the world to help us get Tariq released from prison on humanitarian grounds,” says Javed Khan.

Looking at the suffering of Tariq Khan’s family, no person can hold back tears and wonder how cruel man can get.

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