Pakistan has freed 315 Indian fishermen who have completed their sentences. The released prisoners will leave District Jail Malir, Karachi, on June 27, 2012 morning in air-conditioned buses for an 800+ miles road journey from Karachi to Wagah Border near Lahore, arriving at around 11 am on June 28, 2012. Police will escort the buses to until the released prisoners are handed over to the Indian authorities. They are being accompanied by a representative of the Committee for Welfare of Prisoners headed by Justice (rtd) Nasir Aslam Zahid.
We welome this step but hope that the authorities soon come to an agreement so that innocent fishermen are not arrested and incarcerated simply for crossing the invisible maritime border. Also, we wonder why the prisoners can’t be sent directly to Mumbai from Karachi via ferry. Furthermore, isn’t it time to restore the ferry service, as an inexpensive way of travel between the two cities?
