Farid’s emotional homecoming after 25 years

After a quarter of a century of uncertainty, pain and heartbreak, Mohammad Farid has finally returned home�"bringing to an end his family’s long, agonising belief that he was dead.

Farid was only 10 when he left Bangladesh with his father. What followed was a 25-year ordeal that took him across several countries, left him severely injured, deprived him of both legs and trapped him for years as an undocumented migrant.

On Thursday, Farid was formally reunited with his relatives at the BRAC Migration Welfare Centre in Ashkona, Dhaka, in an emotional homecoming that his family had almost stopped believing would ever happen.

His return was made possible through a coordinated effort involving the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), the Probashi Kallyan Desk of the Ministry of Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment, and the BRAC Migration Programme.

Farid has not returned to his elderly mother, Nurjahan Begum, who lives in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar. “We had assumed that Farid was no longer alive,” said his younger brother, Syed Alam. “We cannot express how we feel after getting him back after so many years. Our elderly mother has been waiting for her eldest son. We are poor, but we will stand by our brother.”

According to the BRAC Migration Programme, Farid crossed the Bangladesh-India border with his father about 25 years ago and later travelled to Pakistan. While working there, he fell from a moving train and suffered serious injuries, forcing doctors to amputate both his legs.

Afterwards, a human trafficker allegedly promised to take him to Europe. Farid travelled from Pakistan through Iran to Türkiye, but never reached Europe. Instead, he spent around 14 years selling water along the Turkish coast as an irregular migrant. Turkish police detained him three times and kept him in migrant camps. Following his latest arrest, he was deported to Bangladesh.

Farid arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Turkish Airlines flight TK-712 at around 5:15am on August 18. Having spent most of his life abroad, he struggled to communicate and could provide only his name, his parents’ names and “Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar” as identifying information.

After AVSEC personnel found him, Farid was handed over through the Probashi Kallyan Desk to the BRAC Migration Welfare Centre. With help from local representatives and journalists, BRAC staff traced his family within 12 hours in Nasir Para of Morichya Palong Union in Ukhiya.

Farid later spoke with his younger brother through a video call. A distinctive childhood feature �" six fingers on one hand �" helped confirm his identity. The family said Farid’s father, Ayub Ali, remains in Pakistan.

BRAC Associate Director for Migration and Youth Platform Shariful Islam Hasan said the organisation had assisted around 41,000 migrant workers at the airport over the past eight years and reunited 164 vulnerable migrants with their families. He said BRAC also hopes to provide longer-term support to help Farid rebuild his life.

Wage Earners’ Welfare Board Director and RAiSE Project Director, Joint Secretary ATM Mahbubul Karim, said stronger vigilance and coordinated action were needed to prevent people from falling victim to human trafficking.