Transfer of Pakistani Prisoners
from Sri Lankan to Pakistan
Sixteen Pakistanis who were serving various terms in Sri Lankan jails are being sent to Pakistan under the Agreement for the “Transfer of Offenders” signed between the Governments of Pakistan and Sri Lanka in December 2004. They will travel in four groups starting from May 27, 2009.
The prisoners will be received in Karachi by the Immigration Authorities of Pakistan. Later, they will be handed over to prison officials of the Home Department of the Government of Sindh to complete the remaining term of their sentences. The names of the prisoners are Zia-ud-Din Malik, Muhammad Saleem, Muhammad Farooq, Shahzad Ahmad, Muhammad Iqbal, Faiz-ur-Rehman, Muhammad Sarwar, Hassan Ali, Najam-ul-Hassan, Akif Shoaib, Hussain Ahmad, Ali Ahmad, Saadat Rasheed, Syed Tariq-ur-Rehman, Ali Akbar Shah and Syed Najam-ul-Hassan.
The prisoners have thanked President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Sri Lankan authorities for taking interest in their transfer.
They also thanked the High Commission of Pakistan at Colombo for its persistent efforts in pursuing their cases. Most prisoners were sentenced for trafficking in drugs.
This is the second transfer. Earlier, six prisoners were transferred to Pakistan in July 2006. The prisoners are required to serve their remaining sentences in Pakistan .
