Campaign warns Punjabis against immigration, marriage frauds

Chandigarh/Jalandhar, Nov 15 (IANS) In Punjab, where the ambition of nearly half the population is to go abroad, the government has started an advertisement campaign warning against immigration, marriage and job frauds being carried out by unscrupulous travel agents.

The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) is running the campaign through Punjabi channels and vernacular newspapers and asking young Punjabi men and women to guard against false travel and immigration agents and also NRIs wanting to dupe them by offering foreign dreams.

"Supne dekhne chhado, haqiqat val dhiyaan deyo (Stop dreaming and look at reality)" is the punch line of the ad campaign launched by the ministry last month to make people aware about immigration frauds.

These frauds include illegal immigration, the absence of a work permit, not having employment visas, marriage frauds and 'holiday marriages'. The last of these are sham marriages entered into by NRIs with young women from Punjab with the promise of taking them abroad later.

Holiday marriages are also entered into by NRIs coming to Punjab on a holiday and getting married to local girls without telling them of their earlier marital status.

This is said to be the first such sustained ad campaign against immigration frauds.

"It is a well-oiled immigration industry in Punjab where people are losing billions of rupees annually by falling into the trap of fraud travel agents. These agents take advantage of loopholes in the law and no strict penal action on them," points out former central minister Balwant Singh Ramoowalia.

His Lok Bhalai Party (LBP) has been running a campaign against unscrupulous travel agents and for helping duped youth in the state in the last one decade.

Facts on Punjab's illegal immigration industry compiled by the LBP speak for themselves:

Over 500 unscrupulous travel agents have cheated youth of over Rs.20 billion in the last one decade. Complaints worth Rs.2.5 billion, involving nearly 50,000 duped families, are already pending with the LBP.

There are over 15,000 Punjab youth languishing in the prisons of various countries after being duped and dumped by travel agents. Only a few hundred have returned home in the last couple of years to tell their tale of woe.

Nearly 1,500 youth are languishing in inhuman conditions in the Kiev prison in Ukraine alone.

Even VIPs, from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Babubhai Katara to singers Daler Mehndi and Dolly Malkit, have been accused of illegal human trafficking of youth from Punjab.

Over 1,500 youth have already been killed or are missing after being sent abroad, especially to Iraq and some Middle East countries.

Nearly 15,000 abandoned brides are waiting in their homes across Punjab for their NRI husbands to take them abroad. In some cases, the wait has been over 10 years.

The Punjab government recently posted an additional director general of police (ADGP) rank officer to probe immigration and NRI marriage fraud cases. Not much outcome has come from it even as travel agents continue to dupe youth.

"We will not allow travel agents and others to have a free run. We are bringing a law in the state assembly shortly to bring these agents under the ambit of stricter laws," Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had said recently.

But this talk is of little solace to many.

The family of Baljinder Kaur, who is in her mid 20s and hails from Badni Kalan village Moga district, is regretting not only marrying her to a NRI from Italy but also paying him a dowry of Rs.1.5 million. The case is being probed by the Punjab Police.

A couple of years ago, Punjab Police mooted a rule to register rape cases against NRI grooms indulging in sham and holiday marriages. But no such case has been registered so far despite the rising number of frauds being committed on young women.

"There are several black sheep among travel and immigration agents. Their activities bring a bad name to the whole industry. They are looting millions of rupees from unsuspecting youth," pointed out Jalandhar-based immigration agent Onkar Singh.

India to impose severe penalties for human trafficking: minister

New Delhi, Sep 18 (IANS) India will impose "severe and exemplary" penalties on those indulging in human trafficking and launch a nationwide awareness campaign on the risks of illegal migration, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said Tuesday.

Major amendments would be effected to the Emigration Act of 1983 to introduce a provision to prevent "human smuggling", Ravi said here.

"We are going to make the penalties for those who indulge in such crime severe and exemplary," he said while delivering the inaugural address at the consultation meeting of the National Media Coalition against trafficking.

Over 100 journalists from across the country, besides civil society activists and UN agencies participated in the meeting.

"In the next few weeks, we will launch a nationwide awareness campaign on the risks of illegal immigration," Ravi said, adding: "It must be remembered that illegal immigrants are most vulnerable to exploitation and abuse."

In this context, Ravi pointed out that his ministry's effort "has been to transform international migration into an efficient, transparent, orderly and humane process and at the same time to actively discourage and prevent illegal migration".

He also contended that a more equitable global development process will help combat the scourge of human trafficking and other associated trans-national crimes.

"We need to make globalisation and its benefits more inclusive. This simply means giving millions of people around the globe the hope that they have an opportunity to improve their quality of life," Ravi said.

"At the heart of the discourse on combating the scourge of human trafficking and other associated trans-national crimes is the need to make the global development process more equitable," he added.

Ravi noted that despite recent prospects of rapid economic growth in some of the highly populated developing countries, "the economic divergence between the rich and the poor countries is wider today than at any time in human history.

"Quite simply, we need to address the problem of a world profoundly divided between the haves and the have-nots. Indeed, those of us in government as also those in civil society must meet the challenge of inclusive development by which all people have access to a better quality of life - the challenge of the greater good of the greater numbers," the minister maintained.

"Gandhigiri' pays off - Even in US

Washington, July 18 (IANS) A bit of "Gandhigiri" by unhappy Indian green card seekers paid off with the US immigration service reversing itself again to begin immediately accepting applications from thousands of foreign professional workers.

The latest flip-flop followed a unique protest by Indian applicants for permanent residency who sent thousands of flowers to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Emilio Gonzalez last week over a last minute reversal of a June announcement offering expedited processing for H1-B visa holders.

"The public reaction to the July 2 announcement made it clear that the federal government's management of this process needs further review," Gonzalez stated Tuesday acknowledging the Indian workers' protest inspired by the hit Hindi movie "Lage Raho Munnabhai" that extolled Gandhian ways of non-violent protest.

"I am committed to working with Congress and the State Department to implement a more efficient system in line with public expectations," he added.

After the June announcement thousands of holders of H1-B visas-reserved for skilled workers in computing, engineering and other special professions-scrambled and spent money on lawyers and medical exams to prepare green card applications for a July 1 deadline.

However, US State Department announced July 2 that no applications would be accepted until October because of a large visa backlog. The abrupt change sent them back to the queue for 2008.

The USCIS announcement Tuesday allows anyone who was eligible to apply under the June announcement to do so by Aug 17. Applications already properly filed with USCIS will also be accepted, it said.

- Arun Kumar IANS

Australian Legal experts question Haneef's visa cancellation

Sydney, July 17 (IANS) The Australian government's decision to revoke Indian doctor Muhammad Haneef's visa hours after he was granted bail has drawn protests in this country, with experts questioning the move.

Even as India summoned Australia's envoy to New Delhi to voice concern over the development, human rights activists said that Canberra's move appeared to cast aspersions on the magistrate who ordered Haneef, 27, freed on bail.

Marion Le, a renowned rights advocate and registered migration agent, told IANS: "I think that there is a problem with the way this so-called cancellation has been done.

"The visa holder is supposed to be first given a Notice of Intention to Cancel a Visa before it can be done and he then has 28 days to dispute the intention. The ombudsman has just concluded a review of other such cancellations which were done without proper notice and they had to be restored."

She added: "Technically it is a winnable case."

Haneef, charged in the failed British bomb plots, was granted bail by Brisbane Magistrate Jacqui Payne on the condition he provides a surety of AU$10,000 and reports to the Southport police station in Queensland state thrice a week.

Payne ruled Haneef should be released into the community pending his trial for supporting a terrorist organisation by "recklessly" giving his mobile phone SIM card to people planning the British attacks.

Without a valid visa, Haneef, who hails from Bangalore and was arrested July 2, will be deported to India once criminal proceedings are finalised. His lawyer Peter Russo has planned to delay posting bail pending the appeal.

Kirk McKenzie, a prominent lawyer and member of the Human Rights Committee and Law Society of New South Wales, was equally concerned.

"The government¹s immediate cancellation of his visa may be justified as a matter of law but it seems to be implied criticism of the magistrate¹s bail decision," he said.

"I think this is more about the precarious political position of the government, with opinion polls predicting a landslide victory to the Labour opposition at the elections which are due before the end of the year.

"The government seems to be hoping that if it manages to divert public attention to issues of safety and security, it will change public sentiment towards it. However, I suspect it will just lead to a perception that the government is relying on a security scare campaign to attempt to revive its fortunes."

McKenzie, a partner in the Syndey Law firm Haylen McKenzie, said: "The magistrate who granted him bail seems unconvinced that there is a strong case against him and given that there is a presumption against bail for terrorism offences and that the magistrate had to be satisfied that there were 'exceptional circumstances' in order to grant bail, she must have come to the conclusion that Haneef was not a threat to the community, should he be released at this stage."

Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews, who revoked the visa, said Haneef would be deported regardless of the outcome of criminal proceedings against him.

In seeking a court order to detain Haneef, police alleged that on his departure from Britain a year ago he had left a SIM card that was used by of some of those now in detention in Britain. He is related to brothers Sabeel and Kafeel Ahmed, who are in custody in Britain.

Meanwhile, the Australia India Business Council (AIBC) has appealed to government, business and community leaders as well as the media to make every effort to ensure that the interrogation of Haneef, an Indian, does not have an unreasonable and unfair negative impact on the many Australian citizens, permanent residents, temporary business visa holders, tourists and students of Indian origin living in Australia.

A statement issued by AIBC national chairman Brian Hayes QC says: "In Australia the Rule of Law and the 'presumption of innocence' are paramount. AIBC urges all Australians to respect these principles and to avoid ethnic, religious, professional or any other form of labelling that would apply suspicion of possible wrongdoing by one or a few individuals to stigmatise an entire ethnic, racial, national or professional group or community."

The AIBC statement urges policy makers, employers, service providers and opinion leaders not to introduce, promote or tolerate any discriminatory practices towards people of Indian origin in relation to employment, migration, citizenship, visa processing, admission into educational institutions and access to services.

AIBC is the only national body in Australia focusing on the promotion of stronger bilateral business and trade links between this country and India.

The statement adds: "Whatever the outcome of current police investigations, we trust that the strong ties between Australia and India and the excellent relations between Australian residents of Indian origin and the wider Australian community will continue to grow stronger as will bilateral business links. This will ensure ongoing benefits to Australia and all Australians."

- By Neena Bhandari IANS

India asks West not to place barriers to lawful immigration

Brussels, July 13 (IANS) Developed Countries receives substantial economical benefits from migratory workers and should, thus, not grow needless barriers that can head to negatives such as improper migration, according to a senior official in India's international ministry.

"Furthermore, there is need to effectively address discrimination and prejudices of all kinds including pejorative labelling and stereotyping" of immigrants, Manjiiv Singh Puri, joint secretary, ministry of external affairs, told delegates at the Global Forum on Migration and Development here, reported news agency INEPNEXT.

Last year, India received $23.6 billion in remittances from migrant workers making the country the highest recipient of inward remittances.

But "more that half of this originated in the Gulf, where a large number of our citizens participate in the development process of the countries there", noted Puri, who chaired the session on 'Working with Diaspora for Development'.

It is estimated that around 25 million people of Indian origin live in other countries while another 20 million migrants, including a large number of irregular migrants, are in India.

"India favours a regular, non-discriminatory and orderly process for our citizens proceeding overseas, whether for permanent or shorter term migration," the Indian official stressed.

The three-day forum which attracted 155 UN member states and over 800 participants ended Wednesday night in Brussels.

"You converted this meeting into a landmark in the migration and development debate, with frank and interesting exchanges of experiences and many concrete suggestions for further action," declared the chair of this inaugural Global Forum, Ambassador Regine De Clercq of Belgium.

It was announced that the Philippines would host the second global forum in 2008.

The Prime Minister of Belgium Guy Verhofstadt and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had inaugurated the forum.

Dubai mission issues over 5,000 emergency certificates

Dubai/New Delhi, July 9 (IANS) The Indian mission in Dubai has issued over 5,000 emergency certificates to illegal Indian workers to return home following an amnesty scheme launched by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government.

By Sunday, the Indian Consulate General in Dubai had received 15,700 applications for emergency certificates and 5,010 certificates have been issued, according to a press statement issued by the Dubai mission.

Early in June, the UAE government had set a deadline of three months for all illegal foreign workers to either get legal status to stay in the country or face deportation.

According to the statement, the consulate has also received around 27,000 passports of Indian citizens from Dubai immigration authorities. The list of passports is available on the mission website www.cgidubai.com.

The mission will distribute these passports at the Indian High School in Dubai from Monday. The statement directed people seeking to retrieve their passports to proceed directly to the Indian High School instead of visiting the mission.

The statement also requested the public who approach the mission for various other services to stagger their visits to Wednesdays and Thursdays as Sundays and Mondays are peak days in view of the extra work generated on account of the amnesty scheme.

An official in the ministry of overseas Indian affairs (MOIA) in New Delhi said the Indian mission in Dubai is taking all precautions to ensure that certificates are not issued to the wrong people.

He said the mission is verifying the identity of those who cannot produce passports and whose names do not exist in the mission's database by getting in touch with the state government concerned.

"On receiving such a request from the mission, the state government gets the identity of the person concerned verified by having the police visit his or her home," the MOIA official said.

He added that all state governments have been requested to process all such requests as fast as possible.

There are around 1.4 million Indians in the UAE.

- IANS

India to ban housemaids to countries refusing labour pact

New Delhi, June 25 In a move to contain increasing instances of exploitation, India is contemplating a ban on housemaids going to work in countries with which it does not have a labour welfare pact.

According to a new proposal from the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), a ban would force the countries to come to the negotiation table for a welfare agreement.

"The ministry is considering a ban on the emigration of Indian women having emigration clearance required (ECR) passport to a country if it refuses to negotiate a bilateral memorandum of understanding (MoU)," said an official source in the ministry.

"The ban could be lifted if the country returns to the negotiating table," the official added.

India has already signed similar MoUs with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Qatar and Jordan and is negotiating agreements with Malaysia, Oman, Yemen and Bahrain.

It is believed that more than 200,000 Indian women are working as HSW (household service workers) in the Gulf region itself. The number of Indian housemaids has sharply increased in the last three-four years - from about 5,000 women, mostly from Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, in 2004 to 15,000 in 2005.

According to the source, Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi has already discussed the matter with a ministerial sub committee and with an inter-ministerial meeting convened specially to discuss the issue.

Officials pointed out that Saudi Arabia has not begun the negotiation process at the government level.

"The minister (Ravi) is of the view that women household workers cannot be protected in a country that is disinclined to sign the MoU for bilateral cooperation. He has already suggested a total ban on women workers to such countries," the official, who only spoke on condition of anonymity, told IANS.

The ministry has also suggested that a minimum wage be fixed and no woman be allowed to emigrate if the contractual wage was below the minimum wage.

"We have also proposed that every foreign employer directly recruiting an Indian woman emigrant must deposit a security of $2,500 in the form of bank guarantee at the respective Indian missions.

"The employment contract should be between the worker and employer, not with the agent. To avoid the malpractices of cancelling the insurance policies or refunding the one-time premium after the emigration formalities, we want insurance companies to give an undertaking that it should not cancel any policy except with prior written permission of protector general of emigrants (PGE)," the official added.

In order to check the increasing cases of exploitation at workplaces - household jobs fall under the informal sector and do not have the protection of labour laws in the respective countries - the ministry has already banned the emigration of HSW below 30 years of age.

"However, the reported cases are still in the rise. The very nature of their jobs makes the household workers prone to long hours, erratic work scheduled, verbal assault, physical and sexual abuses," the official pointed out.