"How can we distinguish which line demarcates the two countries?’‏

Indian fishermen languish in jail despite serving their sentence

Just like the beginning of every month, 17-year-old Indian fisherman Jaish and his friends embarked on a journey to fish in the sea in February this year. Their smiles and laughter soon turned into a spate of tears and confusion, as their stay for a few hours in open waters of the disputed Sir Creek led to their confinement at the juvenile jail in Karachi. Even though their six-month-long sentence for border violation concluded in September, Jaish and his mates are still languishing behind bars.

“I get to talk to my mother only three times a month, but I write letters to her regularly. No one can truly understand or imagine my pain and how I spend every second being away from my family and my homeland,” Jaish told The News. Dressed in casual jeans and a black t-shirt, his eyes were soon filled with tears as spoke about his home in the small village of Codaba in the Indian district of Gujrat. “I have been fishing since I was six,” he narrated.

Jaish’s boat was among the nine Indian boats that were confiscated, and the fishermen were brought to the Docks Police Station before being sent to Landhi Jail. Fifty fishermen on board the boats were charged under the Foreign Act-1946 and Exclusive Fishery Zone, and nine juveniles — Jaish, Bhano, Wasal, Karoo, Aroon, Depiash, Haresh, Vinod, and Cheetan — were sent to the juvenile jail.

Sitting beside Jaish in the juvenile jail was Cheetan, belonging to Dagasi, from Daman, India, who was caught along with his father in March by the Maritime Security Agency. Cheetan said that ever since they were apprehended, he has only seen his father twice. Even in conditions like these, he is worried about how his family be surviving back home, since both the bread winner were in prison in another country.

Cheetan said that though he loved studying, he had to abandon it in order to help his father to earn sustenance for the family. He said that there is a school in the prison, but they could not go there as their mother tongue is Gujrati, and there is no teacher for that.

The case regarding the juvenile detainees was first brought to the fore by Abdullah Khosa, the provincial manager of juvenile justice at the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC), who filed a petition for their release to the chief justice of the Sindh High Court.

However, only one hearing has been conducted so far, and the sentence has been extended till January 2010. “Even though the Home Department has forwarded a request to the Indian High Commission in Islamabad for the release of the prisoners, the Indian High Commission is completely mum on the issue,” an irate Khosa told The News.

Khoso admitted, however, that the release process might take a longer time since relations between the two countries have soured, especially in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

“The swapping of prisoners between the two countries seems like the only way through which these inmates can return home. These children should be deported immediately on humanitarian grounds. Similarly, we want this gesture to move the Indian authorities so that they release Pakistani citizens who are languishing in Indian jails,” he said.

While cases remain pending in courts, Jaish and those in similar situations as him, continue to live a life of anxiety. Jaish said that he never knew he would be facing such a fate by only going out to earn for his family. “There are no borders in the sea. How can we distinguish which line demarcates the two countries?” he lamented.

Cheetan added that the bitter relation between the two countries has not taken its toll on the juvenile inmates. “There is no resentment between the inmates. The Pakistani inmates treat me like their own brother, and I love sharing my village stories with them, and talk about Bollywood stars,” he winked.

The juvenile jail currently has 57 foreign inmates, out of which 39 are under trial, eight are convicted and the other 10 are detainees. Apart from the Indian inmates, the rest of the foreign inmates are the Afghans.

While Jaish has vowed never to indulge in the fishing business once he gets back home, Cheetan has ‘no other option’, he has to carry the job to earn the eager Rs5,000 for the family.

Monday, December 14, 2009
By Rabia Ali
Karachi
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=213225