The civil society organisations of Pakistan distributed some essential items among them and gave them a chance to speak to their family members on phone.
Indian fishermen (most of them from Gujarat), locked in the jails of costal Pakistan city, Karachi, were in for a treat last weekend. The civil society organisations of Pakistan distributed some essential items among them and gave them a chance to speak to their family members on phone.
The credit for this goodwill gesture goes to Karamat Ali, executive director of Pakistan Institute of Labour and Research (PILER), whose organisation along with two other organisations, Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) and Legal Aid Committee of Pakistan, headed by retired justice Nazir Aslam Zahid have launched a legal fight in the apex court of Pakistan for release of Indian fishermen illegally detained in Pakistan.
Talking to DNA on phone, Ali, who is in Mumbai on a five-day visit to India, said, "582 Indians continue to languish in four jails of Pakistan, some of them for the past four years. Though they could send letters to their families in India by inland postal system, they never had direct talks with their near and dear ones on phones at any time. In fact, Pakistani jail manual did not provide for this. I had a roaming international cellphone with me and I requested the jailer of Malir jail in Karachi during my visit to allow the Indian detainees to talk to their families on his phone. The jailer was very co-operative after talking to his higher authorities, allowed this and six of Gujarati fishermen could talk home," he said, adding that they all were found to be hale and hearty.
Indian fishermen numbering 295 lodged in Malir district jail in Karachi were given clothes, chappals and other essential items by a joint delegation of PFF and PILER after knowing their actual requirements. According to Shujauddin Qur-eshi, senior research associate of PILER and one of the delegates, assistant superintendent of Malir jail, Shahabuddin Siddique, assisted and supervised the distribution of the essential items.
He said it was a moving scene when the detained Indian fishermen talked to their family members in their own native languages, Gujarati and Kutchi.'' Thirty-three-year old, Kantilal, leader of Indian fishermen in Malir jail, was first to talk to his uncle, who is president of Congress party in his home district in Gujarat.
He requested his uncle to use his political influence to get him and others released.
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