Suriname reports suspected case of human trafficking
The Surinamese authorities have launched a Blue Alert nationally and internationally about the disappearance of a group of Pakistani nationals who arrived there some time ago.
As a result, surrounding countries have been asked to look out for the Pakistanis in a case that is being treated as a possible case of human trafficking.
The police report that the 15 men entered the country legally but did not register at one of the official border posts to leave the country on the day they were supposed to do so. Since then, there has been no trace of them.
It is widely believed that these men left Suriname illegally for Guyana.
“A group of Pakistanis recently travelled to Suriname. However, their residence permit has expired, and the group has not been stamped at the formal border posts. This means that the passport of this group of Pakistanis does not contain a stamp indicating that the group has left Suriname,” said the Information Anonymous Reporting Center (MIA).
In this context, the MIA Blue Alert Pakistani Edition was launched to locate men aged 20 to 40.
A Blue Alert is an international code that is applied when information is sought about a suspect. The Blue Alert- Pakistan Edition has been launched due to the increasing number of illegal cases, the reporting centre said.
“This worrying trend requires urgent attention from government agencies and the public,” MIA continued.
The uncontrolled stay of this group of Pakistanis, according to the hotline, could pose potential security risks, given the challenges and the need to tighten security checks, MIA says. This could endanger national security and make it more difficult for authorities to identify and address potential threats.
Roy Samuels, commander of the Military Police, told local news website Starnieuws that this issue is murky.
According to him, this leans towards human trafficking, and that is why the international partners have been informed. Samuels emphasizes that the group has registered legally in Suriname.
“The immigration department has done a good job of screening,” the MP commander said. However, he finds it strange that the group did not register at the international airport or another official border crossing before leaving Suriname. The Pakistanis are nowhere to be found in the country.
The senior officer indicates that in most cases, Suriname is used as a hub for, among other things, human trafficking. Due to the country's geographical location, various items are transported via Suriname to the rest of the world.
Several months ago, there was also concern about cases of suspected human trafficking or smuggling – -in one case, large groups of people from India arrived from the Netherlands. Still, afterwards, they, too, disappeared without leaving the country.
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