IT was painful to read the news on the front page (March 16) that bilateral treaties with various countries to enable Pakistani convicts in foreign countries to be transferred to Pakistan for completing their sentences has been suspended.

This has happened because some convicts managed to get themselves released surreptitiously and clandestinely before completing their sentences.

The treaties were for the benefit of the convicts. It enabled them to undergo their sentences in Pakistani jails and, thereby, enabling their near and dear ones to visit them off and on.

Otherwise, the convicts would have languished in foreign jails without meeting their relatives for the entire duration of their sentences as the latter could not, in most cases, afford to go abroad to meet their relative-convicts.

The illegal approach of some of the convicts has resulted in scrapping out a humane treaty. This shows to what extent our society has become corrupt and selfish and to what extent the government has found itself unable to run jails with proper security and tight control.

I wonder if any action has been taken against those jail officials who were responsible for the release of convicts of foreign courts before the expiry of their sentences.

Let us hope the government will revive these treaties for swapping the prisoners as soon as it succeeds in streamlining the jail administration. In the meantime, it is not clear whether the government is contemplating sending back such convicts to the countries where they were convicted so that they may undergo the rest of their sentences there.

Salahuddin Mirza

Karachi

Published in Dawn March 26th , 2015

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