DUBAI // In a small village in the southern part of the Pakistan province of Punjab, a family is anxiously awaiting the return of a man they thought they would not be able to get out of the UAE.
Expat Abbas Ali will celebrate Eid with his family this year – along with two other inmates – something he previously did not dare to hope for after being jailed in the UAE three years ago for cable theft.
The 40-year-old has completed his sentence but remained in detention because he had no way of paying the Dh45,000 fine that came with his sentence.
His future seemed bleak, until the Pakistan Association Dubai (Pad) stepped in to secure his release and repatriation with help from the UAE Government.
“In Ramadan, thanks to the jail authorities, the fine amount was reduced to Dh21,000, which we have paid on Thursday,” said Tahir Zaidi, Pad joint secretary. “And hopefully, within a week’s time, we will get his release order from court and he will be home before Eid, inshallah.”
Mr Zaidi said his organisation was very grateful to the President, Sheikh Khalifa, who set up a fund to pay the airfares of prisoners who had served their time.
Mr Ali’s wife, Hajra Begum, a mother of three, is also very grateful. “You cannot imagine how excited we are,” she said.
“This is the first good news we heard in the past three years.”
Mr Ali had come to work as a labourer in Dubai after selling his assets and investing his savings to move to the UAE for a job.
But within two months, his company filed a police complaint stating that he had stolen cables from the workplace. Mr Ali was convicted and jailed.
“We were completely devastated,” Ms Begum said. “He was the sole earner for eight family members. We lost our house, farms, everything. For the past three years we have been surviving on the charity of others.”
With no other means to help her husband, in February she wrote to the association, requesting assistance.
“My husband went to Dubai to make our lives better but I don’t know what happened there.
“We only knew he is in jail for some theft, which is unbelievable. But we could not do anything from here. We are poor and resourceless.”
Two other families will also be celebrating this Eid as Mr Ali was one of three prisoners who had completed their jail terms but could not afford to pay their fines.
“We are paying the total fines of Dh36,000 for all the three prisoners,” said Mr Zaidi.
“We are following the procedures in local departments to clear their fines and will arrange their travel before Eid.”
Mohammad Naveed Azam, 25, from Karachi, has completed his two-year jail term for forging documents.
Pad is paying Dh6,000 fine for him. The association has also paid a Dh9,000 fine for Noman Ahmad, 23 from Lahore, who was jailed for six months over a bounced cheque.
“We are repatriating those prisoners who have completed their jail terms and are stuck only because they have no money to pay the fines,” said Mr Zaidi.
Maqbol Islam Orakzai, a Pad welfare officer, said the group only dealt with cases needing support. “We never take cases that are involved in rape, drugs, murder or other serious crimes.”
Last year, Pad was able to send 30 Pakistani prisoners home after paying fines of more than Dh200,000.
akhaishgi@thenational.ae
