‘Donkey route’ again

FOUR Samana-based youths have made a fervent appeal to every Punjabi: Never take the illegal route to the West. It’s a bitter case of once bitten, twice shy. They are lucky to have survived the notorious and perilous ‘donkey route’ — they were robbed, deprived of food for days and made to trek barefoot. An unscrupulous travel agent who had assured them of a work visa to the US is to blame for their ordeal. Their families sold land and mortgaged jewellery to raise around Rs 35 lakh each. But they were stranded in Spain for weeks and had to pay Rs 25 lakh to another agent to finally make it to the US.

It’s a familiar story that keeps playing itself out again and again despite all the news reports about desperate migrants pushing their luck too far. There are two key questions: Is such a passage to America worth risking one’s life and savings? And what are India and other countries doing to bust the thriving racket? This international ring cannot be wiped out without a well-coordinated transcontinental operation. The ring of human smugglers has operators everywhere — from Asia to Europe and Central America — and each of them extracts his or her pound of flesh on the way.

The routine arrests after every such incident are just not enough to tackle the menace. Wily agents will lie low for a while and then reappear to ply their nefarious trade. Those who try to go abroad illegally are also at fault. A vigorous public awareness campaign is a must to warn aspiring migrants about the perils of bypassing official channels. Movies like Aaja Mexico Challiye and Dunki have done their bit; the onus is on various stakeholders to fight this battle together.