The problem of Pakistani beggars continues to affect the Gulf countries. As news of more and more beggars from Pakistan heading to the Gulf continues to emerge, reports have come out that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) removed 16 beggars from a flight to Saudi Arabia at the airport in Multan.
The group which consisted of 11 women, four men and a child, pretended to be Umrah pilgrims and were travelling on Umrah visas in order to enter the Gulf nation. The Umrah is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken at any time of the year, in contrast to the Ḥajj which has specific dates according to the Islamic lunar calendar.
The passengers confessed during the immigration process that they were going to visit the Islamic holy land. The beggars accepted that half of the money they were going to earn through begging would have been given to the travel agencies engaged in their arrangements. FIA has arrested them from Multan for further questioning and legal action.
Notably, the development comes shortly after the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development told the Senate Committee that a large number of overseas Pakistanis engage in begging which puts many of them in legal trouble. 90 per cent of beggars apprehended in foreign countries belong to Pakistan.
The ministry informed, “Both the Iraqi and Saudi ambassadors have reported overcrowded jails due to these arrests.”
Pakistanis make up a significant portion of the pickpockets arrested within Masjid al-Haram in Saudi Arabia and frequently enter the site on Umrah visas to beg. Furthermore, Pakistan has been told not to send any more beggars posing as pilgrims by the Arab nations. The government of Pakistan is asked to take back all the beggars by the administration in those countries.
