Syed Mussarat Khalil

Saudi Gazette

 

JEDDAH — Pakistan Repatriation Council (PRC) organized a symposium on “Stranded  Pakistanis  and role of Welfare Organizations in Bangladeshi camps” at Mehran restaurant Saturday.



Abu Farhan Siddiqui, chief organizer, Muslim Welfare Development Organization-Jeddah (MWDO), was the chief guest.



Anwar Khan, founder/president of US-based welfare organization “OBAT  Helpers” presided over the function.



OBAT Helpers, established in 2004, is dedicated to humanity and works for alleviating miseries of Pakistanis living in camps.



Khan was  here on an Umrah  trip  after  visiting  stranded Pakistanis in Bangladeshi camps.



Khan said there are over 12,000 NGOs that are working in Bangladesh, but none of them are working for stranded Pakistanis which, he said, is very tragic.



He said the role of PRC chairman, Syed Ehtesham uddin Arshad was instrumental in  creating OBAT, while US Senators  Richard  Luger  and  Andy  Carson extended  moral  help  in legalizing its activities in camps.



He  further said  that OBAT activities included educating over 2,000 students from primary level to  professional college level.



Extending micro-finance loans to workers mainly women by providing them sewing machines to earn without moving out of camps, in addition to running over 40 vocational training institutes that provide computer skills.



Abu Farhan  Siddiqui  spoke about MWDO, financial  assistance to over 1200 families, running several schools, clinics, offering scholarships to students, financing marriages, and supporting  living  spaces  for  destitute  families.



Rohail  A. Khan,  chairman  of  Urdu  Academy  International, Khan. He said: “I am following this organization for a long  time and I am impressed  with  the  activities of  OBAT helpers.”



Hamid  Islam  Khan,  who  opened  the  symposium,  elaborated  the roles and  activities  of OBAT, MWDO and PRC.



Shams uddin Altaf, M. Amanatullah and Tayyab Mosani also  appreciated the  role  of  OBAT, MWDO and PRC in projecting the issue of stranded Pakistanis.



Convener Ehsan-ul-Haque thanked the guests and speakers for contributing to the symposium.



He said: “Two weeks  back, upon  receiving report  of  confiscating  quota of  sacrificial meat of   stranded  Pakistanis by  local  Bangladeshi  authority, we  formally  informed the president of IDB,  and  it  was  promised  that  soon  they  will  arrange  delivery  of  meat  to  them.”



He also thanked  supreme court Chief Justice Tasadduq  Hussain Jilani and the three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk for taking care of 5-year-old petition made by the President OF Stranded Pakistanis General Repatriation Committee (SPGRC), Abdul  Jabbar  Khan.



Abdul Majeed recited few verses from the Qur’an followed by a Naat by Zamurrad Saifi.



Abdul Qayyum Wasiq presented his poem in appreciation of the Chief Justice of  Supreme Court on activating the petition of stranded  Pakistanis. Rohail and other members of PRC presented shield and Ajrak to Anwar Khan.