Pakistani Migrants Die on Atlantic Route

"They didn’t die for a dream. They died because they believed there was no life left in staying behind."

In the early weeks of June 2025, the world was once again reminded of the haunting cost of desperation. A boat carrying over 130 migrants—many of them young Pakistani men—was found drifting near Cape Verde, off the Atlantic coast of West Africa. What should have been a journey to opportunity turned into a silent, agonizing grave for dozens of souls. Of those aboard, more than 60 perished—from starvation, thirst, and the inescapable grip of hopelessness.

But why did they take such a deadly route? And more importantly, what does this say about the lives left behind in Pakistan—and the world we are building for the youth?

The Route of No Return: The Atlantic’s Deadliest Migration Path

For decades, the Mediterranean Sea has been the primary escape route for migrants from Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia seeking better futures in Europe. But as European nations tighten borders and crack down on Mediterranean crossings, traffickers have opened a longer, more treacherous backdoor—the Atlantic route to Spain’s Canary Islands.

This path, stretching over 1,500 kilometers of open ocean, is nothing short of a death sentence for those unprepared. With no navigation tools, no trained sailors, and limited food or water, these journeys last up to two weeks. Many boats, like the one carrying our fallen Pakistani brothers, are simply lost at sea—swallowed by the waves or drifting into oblivion.

According to the International Organization for Migration, more than 5,000 migrants have died or gone missing on this route since 2020. The Atlantic is now known as the sea of shadows—because so many disappear into it without a trace.

The Unspoken Reality: Why Young Pakistanis Are Risking Everything

It’s easy to ask: “Why would anyone do this?” But the real question is: What kind of life must someone be fleeing if they choose this instead?

In Pakistan, especially in rural Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan, unemployment is rampant. Inflation is suffocating. For young men in their twenties, with aging parents and younger siblings looking up to them, there’s a pressure to provide—but no path to succeed. Education is underfunded. Degrees don’t guarantee jobs. And for many, their dreams are not about becoming millionaires—but simply about surviving.

Human traffickers know this. They sell illusions—promising guaranteed jobs, European papers, and freedom, in exchange for anywhere between Rs. 1 million to 2 million. Families sell land, borrow from relatives, or mortgage their futures just to give their sons this one chance.

But what they get in return is often a broken boat, beatings, starvation, and the silent torment of being forgotten.

The Faces Behind the Numbers: A Brother, A Dreamer, A Son

Among the victims was Waseem, a 24-year-old from Sialkot who had studied electrical engineering but never found work. In voice messages recovered from his phone, he spoke about how he planned to "work for 2 years and send money home for his sister’s dowry." Instead, his sister received a call confirming that his body was buried at sea.

These are not just migrants. They are brothers. Sons. Friends. Dreamers.

Each of them carried not only their own hopes but the hopes of entire families. Their loss is not just a personal tragedy—it is a national failure.

Hope or Horror: What Must Change

Let us be clear: migration is not the problem. It’s the conditions that force people to migrate illegally that must be addressed.

Pakistan must take responsibility. The youth of this country deserve more than fake promises and manipulated dreams. They deserve:

Real job opportunities that match their skills and education

Vocational training aligned with global markets

Awareness campaigns in local languages warning against human smugglers

Strict law enforcement to dismantle trafficking networks, both in Pakistan and abroad

And on the international level, Europe must recognize its role in this crisis too. Border enforcement without safe, legal alternatives only drives desperate people into the arms of criminals.

The Wake-Up Call for Our Generation

To all Pakistanis aged 18 to 30 reading this: this is your story too.

You may not be on that boat, but you know someone who could be. Your cousin. Your friend from school. The boy you once played cricket with. They are willing to risk their lives for a better future, not because they are greedy—but because they feel invisible in their own homeland.

This must end.

Let this story be a call to action, not just a headline to forget. We are the generation with the tools, the voice, and the energy to demand better. Through social media, education, activism, and entrepreneurship, we can rewrite the future for ourselves—and for those who believed they had no choice but to leave.

Final Words: Let Them Not Die in Vain

"They left for hope. Let their memory be our reason to build hope at home."

To the youth of Pakistan: You are not powerless. You are not forgotten. And your dreams are valid.

Let’s create a Pakistan where no one has to cross an ocean to be seen, to be valued, or to live a life of dignity.