Islamabad, Dubai form committee to resolve problems of Pakistani prisoners

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates have decided to form a committee to streamline problems faced by Pakistani inmates in prisons in the Gulf country and ensure their quick repatriation, Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari, special assistant to the Prime Minister for Overseas Pakistanis, said on Monday.
A delegation from Islamabad led by Bukhari has reportedly reached an understanding with Dubai police chief Maj. Gen. Abdullah Khalifa Al Mari to exchange prisoner information aimed at the quick repatriation of overseas Pakistanis who have completed jail sentences in the U.A.E., officials in Bukhari’s office, as well as the Overseas Pakistanis Foundation, told Arab News, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media on the record. 
“For the first time ever we have decided to form a joint committee to resolve issues relating to prisons and imprisoned Pakistanis in #UAE,” Bukhari said in a Twitter post. 
Officials at the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis declined further details of Bukhari’s meetings, saying his trip would conclude by the end of the month and the outcome would then be shared publicly. The Foreign Office declined to comment. 
There are roughly 1.4 million Pakistanis in the U.A.E. According to the Justice Project Pakistan, some 2,600 Pakistanis are serving time in prison.
Muhammad Arshad Ali, a director at the Overseas Pakistani Foundation, declined to provide details of recent talks held between officials of the two countries but said Pakistan had been engaged in formalizing an agreement with the U.A.E. since October to provide support to nationals charged with petty crimes and misdemeanors.
“Those that have been convicted, we can not interfere in their legal process; only their (Dubai) courts can release prisoners,” Ali said. “But there are cases which require appeal or payment of fines and when officials meet on a state level, through negotiations, those fines are expunged or the (Pakistan) government pays on the prisoner’s behalf.”