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Aafia’s tragic fate
With Dr Aafia Siddiqui completing one year out of her 86 year jail term in a US prison cell, the campaign in Pakistan for her release by ordinary citizens as well as her family has gained momentum. Her mother has revealed that Dr Aafia is kept under inhuman conditions; her jail cell is six feet long and she is not even allowed to recite the Holy Quran. A heavy sum of $4700 was charged for a short telephonic conservation with her.
So far, the US government has rebuffed all appeals for her release despite the fact that evidence against her is so weak that it makes a travesty of justice even under the US criminal justice system. The thing to note is that she had only allegedly pointed a gun at US marines in Afghanistan without killing anybody and the US courts awarded her a harsh sentence of 86 years.
What about Dr Aafia?
What a shame that Dr Aafia Siddiqui is languishing in American jail due mainly to the indifferent attitude of the Pakistan government and its Ambassador in Washington. She is serving 86-year jail term on a flimsy and concocted charge that she tried to kill a US marine while in Kabul. It appears that there is no renewed effort to secure her release.
Dr Aafia’s sister, Fauzia Siddiqui, has accused the government of making massive funds available to some of its favourite on the pretext of pursuing her case but they were instead enjoying themselves with that money. Fauzia very rightly said that the golden opportunity for her sister’s release was when the decision to let Raymond Davis, who was guilty of killing two Pakistani citizens in broad daylight, go scot-free was taken.
There is hardly any doubt that it is the responsibility of the federal government to make an all-out effort to secure release of any Pakistani national being persecuted in a fake and highly ill-motivated case. Political and religious parties, NGOs and civil society as a whole have been demanding Dr Aafia’ Siddiqui’s immediate release.
A Tale of Three Accused Women And justice American style
RAMADAN 1432 A.H.
(August 7, 2011)
A comparative analysis of the criminal cases involving three young women, two Americans and one Pakistani. The cases of Amanda Knox, Casey Anthony, and Dr. Aafia Siddiqui reveal just how arbitrary and capricious “justice” can be in the U.S. legal system, and how conceptually flawed it can be in the collective mind of the American people (generally speaking).
These three cases also reveal, in very graphic detail, the role that race, class, gender, religion and politics often play in the pursuit of justice in the western hemisphere.
Surely the real point about Aafia Siddiqui is being missed?
by Asim Qureshi
Since the release of The Guantanamo Files in April 2011 by Wikileaks, there have been a number of stories written in relation to those detained at the infamous base. One of the stories that received some mainstream coverage though, was that of Aafia Siddiqui. However, the coverage that was received, completely missed the point.
During Aafia’s years of disappearance, a number of allegations were made against her by the US, allegations that were circled within the mainstream on a consistent basis. Among the more ridiculous statements that were made included references to her purportedly having run conflict diamonds out of Liberia in the summer of 2001 in order to fund Al Qaeda operations. The sad fact remains, that very few have considered the ludicrous allegations that have been levelled against her.
The most important point to note, however, is that the US refused to prosecute Aafia on any terrorism related offences as part of their case. They started the case making that point, and references to terrorism did not enter until the judge chose to enhance her sentence claiming that he felt she had links.
What Do Pakistanis See When They Look In The Mirror These Days?
by: Mauri Saalakhan
I begin with a question: How can Pakistanis look at themselves in the mirror and not feel absolute contempt for the tribal image they see glaring back at them?
As soon as I heard about the deal struck for the release of the CIA connected murderer, Raymond Davis, I made an inquiry into the terms of the agreement. Was Aafia Siddiqui’s release part of the deal? The answer in one word: “No.”
How disgustingly shameful this is! A foreign mercenary working under diplomatic cover can reportedly shoot two Pakistani citizens in the back (killing both in the process), and a court of law can find this murderer “Not guilty” – using the aggrieved families’ acceptance of ”blood money” under coercive circumstances, and in Buy cipro online violation of the applicable terms of Islamic law, as a feeble justification.
An Issue of Superiority
by Adnan Khalid
On February 3, 2010, a Pakistani – Aafia Siddiqui – was found guilty of two counts of attempted murder, armed assault, using and carrying a firearm, and three counts of assault on U.S. officers and employees. Siddiqui was sentenced to 86 years in prison (effectively a life sentence) by the federal judge Berman in Manhattan on September 23, 2010. She is a Ph.D and an MIT graduate. She was reported as being a polite, not unusually religious, non-assertive woman by her fellows at MIT. Pakistan’s government had no power and control over the U.S. in Aaafia’s case and hence could do nothing to get her released.
Raymond Davis is a staff member of the U.S. consulate in Lahore. He shot dead two Pakistani men on Thursday the 27th of January 2011, in a crowded part of Lahore (Mozang Chowk.) A vehicle of the U.S. consulate rushed to Mr Davis’ ‘rescue’ ran over a third person, who also died. A murder case was registered against Raymond Davis, who was handed into police custody. Raymond Davis was released by Punjab officials on 16th March 2011 after a reported deal was negotiated with the families of the two men he was accused of murdering. Davis was scheduled to be indicted for murder charges on the same date.
Aafia Siddiqui: Victimized by American Depravity
by Stephen Lendman
Her trial proceedings were carefully orchestrated. Witnesses were either enlisted, pressured, coerced, and/or bought off to cooperate, then jurors were intimidated to convict, her attorney, Elaine Whitfield Sharp, saying their verdict was “based on fear, not fact.”
On February 3, 2010, after a sham trial, the Department of Justice announced Siddiqui’s conviction for “attempting to murder US nationals in Afghanistan and six additional charges.” When sentenced on May 6, she faces up to 20 years for each attempted murder charge, possible life in prison on the firearms charge, and eight years on each assault charge.
In March 2003, after visiting her family in Karachi, Pakistan, government Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agents, in collaboration with Washington, abducted Siddiqui and her three children en route to the airport for a flight to Rawalpindi, handed them over to US authorities who took them secretly to Bagram prison, Afghanistan for more than five years of brutal torture and unspeakable abuse, including vicious beatings and repeated raping.
‘Aggrieved Aafia’ and America
By Nighat Leghari
After having implicated Dr Aafia Siddiqui in a false and fabricated case and keeping her in a secret prison for seven long years, the US court of justice have given the verdict which provided a laugh line to the world jurists community. Coming out form the court house even the defense Attorney, Linda Moreno wearing a worn out smile said, “Now I have no faith in American justice system. I completely disagree with this partisan verdict we will go into an appeal against this verdict. She further revealed in her closing statement “The case is about “Fear versus Facts”.
The prosecutor portrayed Dr. Aafia as a terrorist, though she was not charged with any terrorism offences but prosecutor charged her as “would be terrorist”. The verdict she said explains the fear versus facts but I say there is no room for fear in the court room, it indicated that verdict of the jurors took over fear of the US justice system.
Freeing Dr. Aafia, a Matter of Honour
(BAGRAM, Afghanistan) – Veterans Today Editors, Jeff Gates, Raja Mujtaba and I were in the AF-Pak region over the last couple of weeks. Jeff and I are Vietnam veterans, Raja a decorated combat veteran, tank commander, from the India/Pakistan war.
We met dozens of Pakistani military, including nearly all of their highest ranking retired officers, from Admiral Sirohey, Chairman of their Joint Chiefs of Staff to General Alsam Beg, Head of the Army to Lt. General Hamid Gul, former head of the ISI.
In our party were our other Veterans Today contributors, BG Asif Haroon Raja and BG Raza Ali, of “Charlie Wilson’s War” fame.
