CURRENT DIMENSIONS
A horror story with shades of the Kandahar hijack incident and hostage exchange for release of terrorists has been circumvented. A potpourri of diplomatic parleys, Union Government intervention and active association of Malayalee businessman, pitched in with divine invocation, worked in tandem. This ordeal over, 46 Indian nurses released from captivity by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants, will be flown back to India in a special Air India flight along with 70 other Indians who wish to flee Iraq. The tale has not ended. The saga has just begun. The fate of 40 other Indian denizens mostly hailing from the north, reportedly in captivity of the Jihadi militants groups, still remains sealed on the first Friday of Ramzan. About ten thousand Indian workers struggle for existence in strife torn Iraq. How, when, where and through whom will they come back. How will India ensure their safety and security. Nobody knows. More channels and bridges in gulf nations will continue negotiations for hopeful release of those held captive. Till then we wait and we fervently pray. For some, propelled by poverty and despair, it is a point of no return.
THE PROBLEM
The sad chronicle is not of Punjab alone. Andhra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka pitch in their fair share. Reportedly, more than four lac nurses from Kerala work abroad and about one thousand are still said to be in Iraq. Exploitation is writ large. Thousands form Punjab add on. The diaspora of 30 million NRIs in 180 nations is swelling. Some have prospered. Others are devastated. Economic necessity, exploitation by unscrupulous agents and foreign demands glitter the path to the patch of grass which is not green on the other side. A 2012 Irregular Migration CARIM India study supplementing a 2009 report of UNODC reveal a flourishing immigration carrier – agent racket fleecing between rupees two to ten lacs for paving passages to hell with forged travel documents, fictitious employment promises and miserable living conditions. Day in and day out, more and more gullible Indian youth fall prey. Coercive exploitation, perpetuated misery and human rights abuses are rampant. No law checks them, nobody regulates this human smuggling trade and blissfully the merchants of death carry on their trade fearing none and defying all.
STUDY ON THE SUBJECT
The 2012 CARIM-India outlines “the modus operandi of agents include jacket substitution, photo substitution in Indian and foreign passports, re-stitching and tampering of passports, use of forged and stolen visas, use of forged residence permits, employment visas and fabricated seals or stamps, exchange of boarding cards at security areas in airports, tutoring to claim a sylum and encouraging over stay on tourist visas” as commonly used methods for illegal immigration. Agents involved in this deathly trade of irregular migration are reported to work in collaboration with links of international chains emanating from the country of origin to transit to destination points with fee being shared at different levels. Sub agents at the lowest hierarchy at village levels scout for semi-literate and unemployed youth for national level primary agents who liase with an international chain. The report reveals “Punjabi fascination for alien shores translates into a fanatical mania bordering on suicidal desperation, tragic tales of illegal immigration, of unrequited ambition, of dreams turning sour, of precious lives lost, are written and re-written. Even today, an average Punjabi youth would go to any lengths, bear any costs and adopt any means – legal or illegal – to cross the seven seas to start a new life in a new country. The faster the law catches up , the more ingenuous he becomes. With each dawn, his mind devises newer means to immigrate. Immigration is a natural way of growth, both for the individual and the nations. Illegal immigrants are ready to brave anything, hide as stowaways in tankers or trucks, trek for several days at a stretch, bear frostbites lose limbs, starve, risk detention and serving jail terms, be exiled to live in Gurudwaras or be caught and shot by mercenaries.” The list goes on. The horror story is endless.
PAST EXPERIENCES
The Malta boat tragedy in 1996 saw 170 Indians, of which 88 were Punjabi youth drowning in the Ionian sea in their unsuccessful venture to immigrate illegally to Greece. Even their bodies were not recovered. In 2011, about 100 Punjabi youth, sold to American agents were held in captivity. Under the watchful eyes of AK 47 toting guards, they were forced to clear explosives from agricultural fields in which remnants of the 2003 Gulf war i.e. bombs, rockets, shells, missiles, cartridges and other ammunition were scattered. With bare hands, these youth were made to run after tractors which unearthed these deadly explosive materials and thereafter physically pick them up to clear the fields for plantation. With a herculean effort and upon High Court intervention, their lives were spared and they reached back home. They were trained as para legal brand ambassadors to educate others not to follow the beaten path leading to despair. Regardless, history repeats itself. The trade flourishes with impunity. Tragic memories are short lived. All those who returned, venture again at risk of their lives. Nobody stops them. Agents send them through the tunnels of death with impunity, fearing no law or authority to check them.
AN INEFFECTIVE LAW
Whilst, precious human lives are traded like commercial merchandise by human smugglers, law looks the other way. The Emigration Act, 1983, (EA) which is an Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to emigration of citizens of India applies only to “recruitment” and “recruiting agents” for whom the registering authority is the “Protector of Emigrants” (POE) who also issues permits for this business. The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs website www.poeonline.gov.in indicates 47 recruiting agents registered in Punjab under this Act. Whilst advertisements of agents, consultants and employers in every vernacular newspaper are galore of every possible job, employment, contract or work position, every such individual claims to be a “consultant” and not a “recruiting agent” doing recruitment. Thus, all such pseudo agents claim immunity from registration or taking permits under the EA. A flaccid checking mechanism under the EA lets them get away. The Union Government does not look at human smuggling as an offence under this law. Hence, the long arm of law neither looks, nor thinks of catching up with these human sharks.
A NEW STATE LAW
The Government of Punjab is the first State in the country which has enacted The Punjab Travel Professionals Regulation Act, 2012, as amended in 2014 (previously known as The Punjab Prevention of Human Smuggling Act, 2012),with supporting rules of 2013, to provide for the regulation of the profession of travel agents with a view to check and curb their illegal and fraudulent activities, as also to penalise malpractices involved in the organised human smuggling rackets flourishing in the State of Punjab. No other State has made any similar or other enactment, even though the problem afflicts all like a plague. This state law has 12 note-worthy features:
It defines human smuggling and travel agent including all ticketing agents.
Provides for a licensing regime for travel agents. Debars persons from operating without a license under the Act.
Provides licence numbers to be quoted in all advertisements of agents.
Gives power of search, seizure and arrest to Magistrates and Police Officials.
Complaints to be first verified by Deputy Commissioner or his nominee.
Prescribes power of investigation by DSP to be completed within two months and to be verified by S.P. SSP to be Nodal Officer for all investigations under the Act.
In addition to imposing penalties, provides award of reasonable compensation to be paid to aggrieved person by travel agent.
Identifies defined punishment for offences under the Act.
Authorises Courts to decide whether any illegally acquired property is liable to be confiscated.
Provides for liability of Director, Manager, Secretary of Companies responsible for conduct of business when negligence can be attributed.
Cheating shall have the same meaning as under the Indian Penal Code.
Punishment depending on the crime or offence committed.
CHINKS IN THE ARMOUR
Sadly, even though this benevolent legislation provides succour to the much needed cancerous ailment of regulating the profession of travel agents and consultants as a lawful solution, the implementation of this new law remains a far cry. It is agitated that the State Government is not competent to make this law and only Parliament can enact a law on this subject. Hence, either way, the agents and consultants wish to escape the net be it the EA or the Punjab Travel Professionals Regulation Act, 2012. Hence, while the law remains in limbo, the racket flourishes with no ethics.
A POSSIBLE SOLUTION
Where then does the solution lie. The remedy, whether in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab or Kerala, is the same. The youth and their families need to be educated about the pitfalls of illegal migration. Also, meaningful sources of self employment or vocational avenues at home need to be identified and publicised. It is time the Parliament seriously contemplated enacting a composite law defining human smuggling. The long arm of the law must reach out to capture those who indulge in this business of human trading. Meanwhile, be it a consultant, an agent or a immigration professional, all must register, take permits and be bound by regulatory ethical practices. All those who indulge in clean practices in this business must realise that those who register will have credibility against those who do not and ultimately all illegal, unethical and unregistered agents will phase out. People will realise that only those who are registered and permitted can deal with them. It is thus for the consultants and agents to themselves realise the benefits of the State law. However, it is time that Parliament too delved in this subject to realise that the euphoria is short lived. The long term solution is legislation to rein and herd in all concerned. Changing times show an emergence of a new professional activity. Law requires that they be regulated. The 1983 EA has out lived its utility. It must be replaced with a new law. More human lives cannot be put to stake. We must learn from Iraq. Otherwise, the bubble will burst again and a crisis will proliferate again.
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