The Senate Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development was informed on Tuesday that Pakistanis are found to be involved in almost 50 percent of the crimes in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
While giving the brief, Secretary Overseas Pakistanis Dr Arshad informed the committee that the UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait have shared reservations on various issues related to the Pakistani labour force working in these states.
In September 2023 the same committee was informed that out of all the Pakistanis leaving the country, beggars are going abroad the most. Out of all the beggars who were arrested, 90 percent turned out to be Pakistanis.
Tahir Niaz from The Nation reported that the secretary of the ministry told the committee that the domestic labour force comprised 71.8 million people, while the diaspora includes 10.7 million individuals, primarily in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the US, the UK, and Canada.
“Moreover, there are issues like criminal activities among the Pakistani workforce abroad. For instance, 50 percent of the crime rate among the labour force in the UAE is reportedly attributed to Pakistanis,” the ministry official told the committee.
However, Nausheen Shah from The News reported the current development has come after a significantly more concerning issue as it highlights the rather “inappropriate” behaviour of Pakistanis in the UAE which includes them making videos in front of women in Dubai.
Ministry officials told the committee today that around 0.6 to 0.8 million Pakistanis go abroad each year, of which 200,000 to 300,000 come back.
Out of the total people travelling abroad, 96 percent go to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, they said.
What problems do other nations have with Pakistanis?
Briefing about the problems other nations have with Pakistan, the officials told the committee that the UAE informed us that we had a quota of 1.6 million, which has exceeded to 1.8 million.
Pakistanis, they said, visit Malaysia for a year, extend their stay, and are then sent to jail. People have also slipped in Iraq, the officials said, noting that their exact number is unknown.
Senator Nasir Abbas said Bangladeshis are securing more jobs than Pakistanis. In Iraq, Pakistanis are “helpless” as they are employed as cheap labour. Abbas added that they are kept as “prisoners” in Iraq.
Moving forward, the officials told the committee members that two million Pakistanis reside in Saudi Arabia and 0.4 million go to the Kingdom every year.
KSA authorities, the officials said, have asked Pakistanis not to send “beggars and sick people”. They added that GCC is modern now, they are focusing on technology and development.
The overseas ministry officials said that Pakistanis going abroad are “unskilled” and noted that our people aren’t being trained as well. “People from other nations are replacing ours.”
Work ethics, work attitudes, and involvement in crime are issues of Pakistanis.
Kuwait has complained of Pakistani nurses refusing to perform certain job-related duties and instead telling ward boys to help patients sit up. The nurses do not learn the language but want to be sent to Europe after spending six months in the country.
Meanwhile, Qatar, as per the officials of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis, has complained about Pakistani labourers refusing to wear safety helmets.
Saudi Arabia has maintained that they will only give jobs to workers who can pass the test of their relevant authority, i.e., the National Centre for Human Resources Development (Takamul).
The officials said nations are “suspicious” of Pakistanis. Around 600,000-800,000 people go abroad, of which 96 per cent travel to the Middle East.
Future of Pakistani workforce
Ringing the alarm bells for the future of the Pakistani labour force seeking to secure jobs in the UAE, the ministry said that Gulf states are now looking towards Africa as their workers offer even cheaper labour than that of the Pakistani expatriates.
