Shahida Raza had represented Pakistan in football, hockey and martial arts in several international championships.
Social media users in Pakistan have expressed grief and paid tribute to the Pakistani former national hockey player Shahida Raza, who died in a shipwreck off the coast of Italy last week.
The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) confirmed on Thursday Raza was among the 62 people who died when a boat sank near the Italian coast on Sunday.
Raza, who had also represented Pakistan in football and martial arts, enlisted human smugglers to get her out of the country as she sought a better future for her disabled son, her friend Summaya Kainat told the Reuters news agency.
The 27-year-old belonged to the minority Shia Hazara community and hailed from the southern Pakistani province of Balochistan.
Hazaras have been targeted by armed groups, and some members of community have sought asylum outside Pakistan in recent decades.
According to Kainat, Raza left her home on the outskirts of Quetta four months ago. She crossed Pakistan’s south-western border into Iran, and then travelled to Turkey, with the aim of eventually reaching Italy or Australia and seeking asylum there.
Kainat said her friend had opted to seek asylum because she believed it was easier to gain refugee status after than getting a regular visa.
“She was the sole breadwinner of the family,” Kainat told the Reuters news agency.
“She told me that as soon as she got a job, she would take her son Hasan away with her,” said Kainat, who also played hockey with Raza.
Hasan, aged three, had a disability that left him unable to speak or move unaided.
Raza was one of two nationals that Pakistan’s foreign ministry said had died in the shipwreck. Another 17 Pakistanis were rescued, while two remain missing, the ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
The chief minister of Balochistan expressed grief over Raza’s death saying in a statement she had brought honour to the province and the country.
All-round athlete
Records from the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) show that Raza represented Pakistan at several international tournaments from junior levels until the national women’s squad.
Nicknamed “Chintu”, Raza played as a half-back and was known for her defence-splitting sprints and goal-scoring ability.
She started playing hockey in the national women’s hockey championship in 2007, and represented the army and Wapda (local water and power authority) teams.
Heartbreaking story this. Shahida Raza was also a single mother who sought a better life in Europe but died trying to reach there. https://t.co/FuYqgsNCqp https://t.co/9qapVQZCjr
— FootballPakistan.com (@FootballPak) March 1, 2023
In addition to being a hockey star, Raza also played football and was part of the national women’s football championship.
Social media users in Pakistan have detailed some of Raza’s achievements in the field of sports and expressed their grief at her death.
Meet Shahida Raza our very own athlete/sportsperson from Quetta. We’re honored for her presence in QLF.
Shahida Raza played hockey for Pakistan Women’s Hockey Team.
She is a 4 time football player of Pakistan Football Federation. pic.twitter.com/wnWvO4NTKQ— Quetta Literary Festival (@QuettaLF) June 21, 2022
Found out abt Shahida Raza’s passing at 3:30am, my heart is covered in sadness.
She played Saff Champ’ship for Pak,was nat’l champion with Balochistan United. She perished in the Italy Migrant Ship wreck.
If football was developed properly she wouldn’t have been on that ship. pic.twitter.com/gnU62hFwUO— natasha (@NatashaRaheel) March 1, 2023
Kainat said Raza was left jobless once her sponsorship with the departmental sports team ended, and struggled to make ends meet amid rising inflation in Pakistan. Raza’s husband divorced her, citing his inability to live with a disabled child.
“Whenever, I talked to her on WhatsApp during her stay in Iran or Turkey, she was crying and asking after Hasan,” Kainat said.
Turkey is part of one of the most-used routes for human smugglers to bring asylum seekers into Europe, who at times travel by road, walk for miles and endure being locked in ship containers for days.
The UN refugee agency said that last year people travelling from Turkey made up about 15 percent of arrivals to Italy by sea.
Every year, several thousand Pakistanis take the dangerous overland and sea routes, attempting to reach Europe in the hope of better life. They pay millions to human traffickers but risk their lives while making the journey.
Pakistani officials said they were planning a new crackdown on people smugglers in the province of Punjab after the boat tragedy.
