Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday urged strict action against officials responsible for delays in combating human trafficking, following the deaths of scores of Pakistani migrants in boat accidents last year.

In June 2023, hundreds of migrants drowned when an overcrowded vessel capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos. It was one of the deadliest boat disasters ever in the Mediterranean Sea and there were at least 209 Pakistanis aboard.

In April of the same year, Pakistanis were among dozens dead as two migrant boats sank in the Mediterranean off different towns in western Libya. Earlier in February 2023, Pakistanis were among 59 people killed when a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants crashed against rocks on the southern Italian coast.

More recently, several Pakistanis died in a boat capsizing incident in Greece. The death toll from the tragedy rocketed to 40 after rescue efforts by Greek authorities to find survivors, including 35 missing Pakistanis, ended without any success on Wednesday.

A spokesman for the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Islamabad had said in a statement that following an investigation into the Greek boat capsize, two FIA immigration officers were arrested, and a case was registered against three human smugglers, including the FIA officials.

Chairing a high-level meeting in Islamabad today on the issue, PM Shehbaz lambasted human trafficking as a regrettable offence bringing “disgrace to Pakistan worldwide”.

“After the 2023 boat capsizing accident, action against those responsible was extremely slow. Strict action will be taken against the responsible officers,” the prime minister said without specifying which 2023 incident he was referring to.

He directed relevant agencies to enhance coordination to prevent human trafficking and ensure the identification of FIA officials involved in facilitating human traffickers and take strict action against them.

The prime minister also directed authorities to complete the ongoing investigation into human trafficking incidents at the earliest, along with the submission of recommendations.

During the meeting, PM Shehbaz was briefed on the recent boat capsizing incident, along with steps taken to prevent human trafficking. He was informed that five Pakistanis who died in the accident were identified, while the identification of others was underway.

The meeting’s participants were informed that people from Gujranwala, Gujarat, Sialkot and Mandi Bahauddin were most vulnerable to human traffickers and that legislation was being further improved to prevent human trafficking.