It is for the first time that the information about such an affidavit has been made public. Dr Aafia dropped out of sight from 2003 to 2008 and her whereabouts and those of her three children, during this time, have been a mystery.

Her sister, Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui, has accused the Pakistani intelligence agencies of handing her over to the American officials. She says Ms. Siddiqui was transferred to the United States air base at Bagram, in Afghanistan, and tortured there. Her accusation is widely accepted in Pakistan, and strenuously denied by the American officials.

The paper says that Dr Aafia Siddiqi’s first husband, Dr. Amjad Khan, who was questioned by Pakistani and FBI officials, did not seem to agree with the accusations of Dr Fauzia and had said, during Dr Aafia’s disappearance, that she was hiding in Pakistan. He says he saw her on two occasions.

The paper also says that Dr Aafia’s eldest son Ahmed who was arrested in July 2008 in Ghazni, Afghanistan, along with his mother had told the Afghan investigators that they had arrived by road from Quetta two days before. Ahmed was later sent to be with his aunt, Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui. The other two children, Suleman, 7, and Maryam, 12, remain missing, but their father says they have been seen at their aunt’s house.

The paper says that in an interview, Dr. Khan urged the United States, Pakistani and Afghan governments to publish joint findings on the whereabouts of his children. The paper reports that, today in Pakistan, Dr Aafia has become a national symbol of honour and victimisation so potent that politicians of all stripes, Islamists, the news media and an increasingly anti-American public have all lined up to champion her claim of innocence and the broad outpouring has forced the Zardari government not only to give a public assurance that it will continue its legal assistance but to also raise this issue with the US government.

And in a rare display of unity, Prime Minister Gilani, who has described Ms. Aafia as “daughter of the nation,” and the opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, have promised to push for her release. Last week, Pakistan Senate passed a resolution to demand her return to Pakistan. The paper says that all of this has taken place with little national soul-searching about the contradictory and frequently damning circumstances surrounding Ms. Siddiqui, who is suspected of having had links with al-Qaeda and the banned Jihadi group Jaish-e-Muhammad.

The paper also says that instead, the Pakistani news media have broadly portrayed her trial as a “farce” and an example of the injustices meted out to the Muslims by the United States since September 11, 2001.

The paper says that Ms. Siddiqui’s trial, which focused only on charges surrounding her capture in Afghanistan, left many questions unanswered about allegations of her involvement with al-Qaeda and of terrorist activity.

The paper claims she had a long involvement in Jihadi causes, even while a student at M.I.T. and, later, at Brandeis University. And the FBI had accused her of opening a post office box in 2002 in the name of Majid Khan, who is suspected of being an al-Qaeda member and is being held in the United States military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The court documents show that after getting divorce from her first husband, Dr. Muhammad Amjad Khan, the father of her three children, she married Ammar Baluchi, the nephew of the professed orchestrator of the September 11 attacks, Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, in early 2003. Baluchi was arrested for his alleged role in financing the September 11 plot and is jailed at Guant·namo.

The paper says that last month, the Pakistani minister of state for foreign affairs, Nawabzada Malik Amad Khan, said the evidence against Ms. Siddiqui was insubstantial. But senior Pakistani officials acknowledged that it was almost impossible to defend her in a court of law.

The paper says that one Western diplomat compared her case to that of Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani nuclear scientist accused of running a proliferation network, who now has the status of a national hero.

There is no doubt that the case of an ultraconservative, educated middle-class Pakistani woman who shunned the ways of the West and defied America has resonated in the Pakistani public.

“The iconisation of Aafia Siddiqui as an emblem of Pakistani womanhood represents the kind of female rebel acceptable in a rapidly Islamising Pakistani society,” the paper quotes Rafia Zakaria, a columnist in Pakistan.

“Leaving a husband for a second marriage, travelling alone, even putting your children in harm’s way, all acts that would be otherwise reviled, became acceptable when they are done with the ultimate aim of defying the United States,” she said.

SOURCE : Thenews.com.pk

Washington, Mar. 8 (ANI): The uncle of terrorism-accused Pakistani national, Dr Aafia Siddiqi, has told a New York jury that the neuroscientist visited him in Islamabad in January 2008, asking him to help her to reach the Taliban in Afghanistan.

The News quoted the New York Times as saying that S H Farooqi gave a signed affidavit to the authorities swearing that Dr Aafia visited him in January 2008.

A 12-member jury in New York convicted Dr Aafia in February this year for trying to kill US troops in Afghanistan in 2008.

According to court document, Dr. Aafia had a long involvement in Jihadi causes, even while a student at M.I.T. and, later, at Brandeis University.

The FBI had accused her of opening a post office box in 2002 in the name of Majid Khan – a suspected al-Qaeda member – who is being held in the United States military prison at Guantanamo Bay.

Court documents also show that after getting divorce from her first husband, Dr. Muhammad Amjad Khan, who is the father of her three children, she married Ammar Baluchi, the nephew of the suspected 9/11 mastermind, Khalid Shaikh Mohammad.

Dr Aafia disappeared from 2003 to 2008 and her whereabouts and those of her three children remained a mystery during this time.

While her sister Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui has attributed her disappearance to a conspiracy of Pakistani intelligence agencies under which they handed her over to the American officials, her first husband Dr. Amjad Khan claims that Dr Aafia was hiding in Pakistan all this while.

Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and opposition leader Nawaz Sharif have promised to push for the release of Dr Aafia, who they described as “daughter of the nation”.

Last week, Pakistan Senate passed a resolution to demand her return to Pakistan. (ANI)

SOURCE : News.oneindia.in

A series of events are in pipeline as a part of a “Long March” that would be launched from Faisalabad Bar Association. The announcement was made in a peaceful demonstration at Abpara Chowk organised by the Pakistan Professionals Forum and student community of the twin cities to condemn and convey shock and abhorrence against the unjust verdict in Dr Aafia Siddique’s case and to show solidarity with her and her family.

Dr Fauzia Siddqui, Dr Afia’ s sister was also present at the occasion along with the representatives of the Pakistan Professionals Forum, Defence of Human Rights (DHR) and the civil society activists. Peoples belonging to all walks of life including doctors, engineers, lawyers, academicians, students, and other professionals also massively participated in the demonstration and rejected, in unequivocal terms, the illegal detention and conviction of Dr Aafia Siddiqui by NY court. The demo was held during rain. Participants on the occasion vehemently condemned her detention and appealed for efforts to secure her immediate release.

They opined that Dr Afia Siddiqui is a citizen of Pakistan and she was illegally abducted by Pakistani intelligence agencies and handed over to US authorities. Pakistan has the legal authority and jurisdiction to hear her trial and decide her fate, if she has ever committed a crime. Handing her over to US authorities is a gross violation of the constitution of Pakistan and an insult to the judicial system in Pakistan and the nation as a whole.

They also said that the horrifying case of Aafia Siddiqui and her three children is a glaring example of the criminal and inhuman practices of US imperialism and its ally, the Pakistani government.

While addressing the gathering, Dr Fauzia Siddqui said that the aggrieved families of the missing persons under the leadership of Amna Janjua have been waiting for the recovery of their relatives and consider that the current situation is contrary to what the government and other people from ruling parties are announcing.

She said that the Kangaroo court of New York has held Dr Aafia Siddiqui guilty for a crime that she never committed despite the fact that no fingerprints of Dr Aafia were found on the gun; neither witnesses could testify their statements.
“Abduction, illegal imprisonment, torture and rape of Dr Aafia by US forces is insult of national integrity, dignity and sovereignty of 170 million Pakistani people,” she noted.

She maintained that government of Pakistan has not made sincere efforts to get Dr Aafia released from illegal imprisonment of USA during last two years.

She urged the leading political parties of Pakistan and their leaders, particularly, Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif to put their act together and make sincere efforts beyond making press statements for immediate repatriation of Dr Aafia to her family in Karachi, otherwise nation would not forgive them forever.

In her address Amna Masood Janjua, Chairperson Defence of Human Rights (DHR) and wife of one of the missing persons Masood Janjua said that they demand that government of Pakistan should immediately withdraw its cooperation with US in so-called war on terror and ban all transit supplies of US and NATO armed forces to Afghanistan from Pakistan.

“Dr Aafia is daughter of Pakistan and her return to Pakistan is very vital issue, and government must take immediate steps for safe recovery of all the missing persons including Dr Aafia,” she noted.

SOURCE : Nation.com.pk

ISLAMABAD (SANA): The Defense of Human Rights along with other human rights organizations working for missing persons announced to organize a long march for the release of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui and other missing persons from Faisalabad to Islamabad on March 10.

This announcement was made during the protest rally taken out in connection with missing persons and Aafia’s tale under the auspices of Pakistan Professional Forum.

Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui, the sister of Dr. Aafia, Amna Masood Janjoah, the chairperson of Defense of Human Rights, Asif Luqman Qazi, the Chairman of Pakistan Professionals Forum and Amir Jamaat-e-Islami Islamabad Syed Muhammad Bilal spoke on the occasion.

The participants included students, engineers, teachers, representatives of human rights organizations, members of civil society and people from different walks of life.
The organizations appealed the people to boycott the political parties which are not playing their role for the release of Dr. Aafia and all other missing persons.

They appealed the people to fully participate in the long march.

SOURCE : Sananews.com.pk

KHAIRPUR: Dr Fauzia Siddiqui has announced to launch a long march from Karachi to Islamabad to gather support for repatriation of her sister Dr Aafia Siddiqui.

Addressing the Sukkur District Bar members here on Friday, she said Prime Minister Gilani was making all-out efforts for release of her sister from the illegal captivity in America. Dr Fauzia said her sister was innocent and not involved in any terrorist plot and accused the US of violation of the human rights and torturing Dr Aafia.

She said the political parties were supporting her sister and had launched rallies to develop pressure upon the government for efforts to repatriate her sister. She said that Pakistan embassy in the US should take up the matter seriously and asked the political forces and human rights activists to develop collective pressure upon the Government of Pakistan to address the Dr Aafia case.

SOURCE : Thenews.com.pk

Talking to the media persons after the conclusion session of a workshop titled “Strategic Communications, Public and Culture Diplomacy” organised at Information Service Academy, Kaira said that after the mutual consensus of other political parties and formal sanction of the Parliament, the draft of Charter of Democracy would become part of the Constitution.

Responding to a question, Kaira said the Government was providing legal aid to Dr Aafia, adding it was not necessary that Government of Pakistan would demand of the US government to handover Dr Aafia.

Speaking at the seminar, he said that the recent achievements against terrorists in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Swat were good but it was a long war and defeating the extremist ideology was crucial to complete victory. Pakistan was achieved in the name of democracy but democratic values and culture could not be promoted here, he lamented.

The Minister said that it was a fact that world powers had provided funds for Jihad during Afghan war. After achieving success in Afghanistan, the sponsors of that war left Pakistan at the mercy of extremists.

The Minister said that Swat operation succeeded only when the nation stood behind it, though it had been launched many years ago but it was without success.

Kaira said that Pakistan People’s Party had always stood for the freedom of expression. The media should demonstrate responsibility in the coverage of events. “Instead of information warfare, we should go for information welfare,” he added.

SOURCE : Nation.com.pk

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.

Today, I received an email from Admiral Sirohey. His office is lined with memorabilia from a long career of service, service as an ally and friend of the United States.

Sirohey and the rest were America’s most stalwart allies during the Cold War. These were the real allies that helped us bring about the downfall of the Soviet Union.

I was honoured to be among them.

Today Admiral Sirohey is scheduled to attend a rally protesting the illegal kidnapping, brutalizing and conviction of Dr. Affia Siddiqui.

America’s best friends in Asia, the finest soldiers in the world are horrified at what we have done.

Can it be that bad?

Bagram Air Base Afghanistan, Jan 2007 photo by Tim King

The Bush administration, when it saw its “War on Terror” wasn’t getting enough suspects, hired drug cartel members and criminal elements to kidnap innocent civilians to fill our secret prisons.

Yes, we actually did this.

In this case, we kidnapped a mother with 3 children, tortured her for years, murdered a small child and then charged her with attempting to murder her captors after years in a secret prison on Bagram Air Force Base. Every soldier on that base; everyone who has served there has to live with the dishonour of this act until something is done.

Remember when America, after World War II, painted the people of Germany with the stain of guilt for not knowing about the death camps? Tell me what is different here?

We didn’t know that druglords and gangsters were stealing people off the street to fill our prisons with “terror suspects” so Bush/Ashcroft and Cheney could crow about their successes?

Veterans Today Editors Raja Mujtaba & Jeff Gates in Islamabad, Pakistan Feb 2010 Photo by Gordon Duff

If you didn’t know before, this is what all the secret “torture memos” were all about, not real terrorists, but innocent people we “bought” as though we were slave runners of old.

A few years after we bought our phony terror suspects, tortured, raped and brutalized them, most were released.

They had committed no crime other than to be standing on the wrong dark street corner when the druglords working for Bush were out hunting “meat” for America’s gulags.

Dr. Aafia had to be convicted, had to be jailed and silenced.

The crimes against her and her children were so heinous, only a kangaroo court in America, a country whose news is orchestrated by the Islam hating MSM/Corporate media and powerful Israeli/AIPAC lobby, would have the audacity to bring her to trial.

Do we need to review the case? Remember the OJ case? He was released because of a glove not fitting. Dr. Aafia was shot by the “translator” during her “debriefing.”

She has a Doctorate from an American university. She comes from a country where everyone speaks English.

“If the translator doesn’t fit, you must acquit!”

Do we now call a person with a cattle prod a “translator?”

When the My Lai massacre happened, I was with a Marine unit less than 50 miles away.

All of us who were there then, not so many are around any more, carry the stain of that dishonour and have for decades.

I can talk of honour or service but all people see is babies and their mothers, shot to death, lining the bottom of a ditch.

It is a matter of honour.

There are no “secret prisons” and nobody is tortured without someone knowing about it.

We are all responsible, I don’t care if you are serving in Iraq or Afghanistan or anywhere around the world, active duty, reserve, National Guard, retiree or veteran. We are nearly 30 million strong.

Many of us don’t have much; memories, wounds, a small pension and our honour.

Our silence strips our honour away.

Dr. Aafia Siddiqui was not a terrorist. The newspapers lied, we all know why. Either she is guilty or we all are. Better to destroy her than to arrest those guilty of real crimes, arrest people some of us voted into high office.

“We were just taking orders.”

Where have we heard that before, Nuremberg? It isn’t just this one life. We’ve already killed over a million people in our ill fated invasion of Iraq.

Fog of War. We know better, everyone with eyes to see knows better, know it now. Then why are we still acting like criminals? No more lies. We are at war, a war with real enemies. We have so little; our short lives, our families and what we believe in.

Did a tiny crippled woman, illegally imprisoned for years, try to murder a roomful of FBI, Special Forces and Blackwater/CIA operatives?

I can tell you this: If I get my butt kicked by a 100 pound woman in a wheel chair, you won’t see me in front of a jury in New York City crying for my mama.

The only possible answer is that everyone involved in the trial of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui is a liar. Nothing else is possible. I know why they lied, they were ordered to “for the good of the service.” Was there something in the oath involving “protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America unless told to lie for the good of the service?”

What are we protecting?

Once the public learns that we are buying phony terror suspects from the world’s largest drug dealers, people we are protecting, people flooding our streets with narcotics, there might be problems. Best not let the public know why we never found those weapons of mass destruction, that yellow cake uranium, those mobile bio-weapons labs or why our continual search for Osama bin Laden keeps failing.

The deal of the century, destroying an innocent life and earning the hatred of a valued ally, all to stand behind the lies and rhetoric of America’s “dark age.” We would be lucky if it were only every citizen of Pakistan that was enraged at us for this travesty. It is worse, far worse.

Who are the real terrorists? In Pakistan, Admiral Sirohey, friend to half a dozen American Presidents is heading to a peaceful protest. What can we, Americans, claim? If kidnapping, torture, rape and covering it up by letting the victim rot in prison isn’t terrorism, I don’t know what is.

We should be thankful for that seat on the UN Security Council. We may need it for more than covering up for Israel. The next nation facing sanctions for international crimes may be us.

All that stands between us and being cut off from the world is our veto. All that is keeping an entire administration from War Crimes trials is the Bush administration’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court at the Hague.

Why is President Obama allowing the outrages of the Bush administration to continue?

SOURCE : Salem-news.com

I admit that there has been one topic I have been reluctant to write about for a year now, despite occasional prodding from the readers. When I first heard about Dr Aafia Siddiqui’s case, I immediately held an uninformed opinion; I thought she was guilty. It didn’t matter to me that she was a woman, and I felt if she had been Al Qaeda then she deserved punishment.

This gut reaction probably came from the circumstantial evidence surrounding the case, of which there is a considerable amount. So, instead of writing something that was obviously tainted with bias, I chose not to write anything. Only recently, when I was asked to an interview with an American radio station did I realise that I needed to know more than what I superficially did. While researching the case, I came across a website dedicated to Dr Aafia, and it bemoaned the lack of interest from the liberal media, of which I concede I could fall into, and in many ways that criticism is valid.

My unequivocal position has changed by looking at the facts and disputed facts of the case. I feel significant doubt regarding my earlier conclusion. That is not to say that I feel she is innocent, but I don’t think it can be said with certainty either that she is guilty.

But, perhaps most interesting is to understand why certain people have positions regarding her innocence or guilt (myself included). My initial beliefs are probably rooted in reactionary thinking against certain groups and how they champion her cause.

For those individuals, it does not matter whether she may or not be guilty. They feel affronted that a Pakistani sister, mother, daughter and wife has been given up on. Being an accomplice to terrorism as a part of Al Qaeda doesn’t matter to them, even if it turns out to be true. All that matters is that she is being tried by the US and her case has been subsumed by nationalism. Her missing children have also struck a raw nerve, leading many to cite it as an example of the US’ barbarity behind its civil cloak. However, few are willing to admit that she willfully neglected her duties towards her children by endangering them.

In general, this utter unwillingness to address possible guilt turns me off. They want to influence the legal system but do not believe in it, simply because a fair and negative verdict will never be accepted by them. But frankly, the judgment against Dr Aaafia by the US court doesn’t appear to be fair. And this is why despite these caveats of intention those who doubt her guilt have a strong case, too. The story of how she was nabbed in Afghanistan appears unlikely. From being behind a curtain, stealing a weapon placed at the foot of a soldier and then being shot in retaliation when they knew she was there is a weird accumulation of circumstances. Then, of course, getting tried and being found guilty for it rather than the allegations of involvement in terrorism is another. On top of it a Pakistani citizen who could possibly have been in illegal detention in Afghanistan by the US supposedly commits a crime in Afghanistan and is then tried in the US for an incident which is not what she was initially wanted for?

There is also the possibility that she is not mentally fit to understand what is going on around her. Her recent photos speak of tragedy and hardship. Plus, she happens to be described as some sort of brilliant scientist at the disposal of Al Qaeda by the western media, whereas her research for her PhD was anything but something that could be used for terrorism (she contributed to the theory that man learns by imitation).

With all this in mind, it’s good that the government of Pakistan spent money on her defence. She is someone who very likely could have been handed over to the Americans in violation of all our laws if she was truly in captivity all this time. Her case is worth pursuing because it is not an open-and-shut one that the courts in the US have decided against her.

Despite all of this, there are still some troubling issues. She isn’t someone randomly picked up in a massive miscarriage of justice; she was on the radar of the US as early as 2002. In addition, even a UN Commission alleges that she was a member of Al Qaeda. Apparently it was Khalid Sheikh Mohammad who gave up her name in 2003 when he was arrested – that of course cannot be verified thanks to the illegal detention center that Guantanamo is.

The court record says that her lawyer confirmed her second marriage to a man already in custody who is supposedly an Al Qaeda operative. Her previous husband alleges that her children are not missing but actually in the custody of her sister and that she has not been detained for five years by the US before the shooting incident. Most troubling is an account of her uncle who claims to have met her in the period when her supporters allege she was in the US custody. The journalist Declan Walsh wrote a very prescient piece which noted that the key to understanding the truth would be to know where Dr Aafia was for the five “missing years” before her arrest; was she illegally and inhumanly held by the US or was she working for Al Qaeda? One person who could answer this is the son of Dr Aafia, but his testimony or presence has not been forwarded by Dr Aafia’s family in whose custody he is currently.

For either side, those who believe in her guilt and those who don’t, to say something conclusively is impossible at this stage despite their claims. Guilt needs to be established beyond reasonable doubt, but this case sets a long shadow with many unanswered questions. Her defence therefore is imperative to prevent a miscarriage of justice which has probably happened with the guilty verdict she has been handed down. Her sentencing is still left, and the inevitable appeal. But the US won’t be pressurised by a government like ours which it can easily ignore. For those campaigning for a fair shake to Dr Aafia the key will be involving the US media to give more scrutiny to a case it has largely ignored given its obsessive attention to the recession and domestic issues.

The writer is a Rhodes scholar and former academic. Email: fasizaka@yahoo.com

SOURCE : Thenews.com.pk

The NA Standing Committee met here Wednesday with Riaz Fatayana in the chair. Dr Fauzai Sadiqui, sister of Dr Aafia Saddiqui, attended the meeting on the special invitation. The committee reviewed the measures taken by the government regarding release of Dr Aafia.

Dr Fauzia termed the performance of Pakistan’s ambassador to the US Hussain Haqqani as unsatisfactorily. Riaz Fatayana said law regarding trial of any accused inside the local court before handing over to foreign country exists. Trial against Dr Aafia should have been held in Pakistan or Afghanistan, the committee said. Member NA Standing Committee Javed Hashmi on the occasion said Hussain Haqqani failed to satisfy him during his visit to the Untied States on the issue of Dr Aafia.

Additional Secretary of US Desk of Foreign Ministry Atia Mehmood informed the NA Standing Committee that issues related to financial and bilateral conflicts can only be moved to ICJ. The committee was informed that an amount of Rs $2 million was paid to lawyers for pursuing the case of Dr Aafia.

Joint Secretary on Human Rights Ahmed Yar suggested that an application for the release of Dr Aafia on parole should be submitted to the US President.

The committee, however did not agree with the suggestion, saying Dr Aafia did not commit any crime. The Foreign Ministry informed the committee that five Pakistanis are still in Guantanamo Bay.

The committee asked the Foreign Ministry to move to the court instead of just focusing on diplomatic efforts as false cases were framed against these persons.

SOURCE : Nation.com.pk

The protestors including doctors, engineers, lawyers, academicians, students, and other professionals, while carrying placards and banners, chanted slogans and demanded international human rights organisations to play their due role in the release of Aafia Siddiqui.

The rally was addressed by Dr Fauzia Siddiqui, the sister of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, President PPF Asif Luqman Qazi, Chairperson Defence of Human Rights Amina Janjua, and other civil society activists and student leaders.

Dr Fauzia said her sister is being punished for being a Muslim and a Pakistani. “According to a Fatwa given by leading Muslim scholars, it is the duty of every Muslim to struggle for her release,” she said and added that the horrifying case of Aafia Siddiqui and her three children is a glaring example of the criminal and inhuman practices of US imperialism and its ally, the Pakistani government.

The speakers observed that the Government of Pakistan has not made sincere efforts to get Dr Aafia released from the illegal imprisonment of the US during the last two years. “We demand the Government of Pakistan to immediately withdraw its cooperation with the US in the so-called war on terror and ban all transit supplies of US and NATO armed forces to Afghanistan from Pakistan,” they said.

Asif Luqman urged leading political parties of Pakistan and their leaders, particularly President Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif, to put their act together and make sincere efforts beyond making press statements for the immediate repatriation of Dr Aafia to her family in Karachi, otherwise the nation would not forgive them.

The speakers said Dr Aafia Siddiqui is a citizen of Pakistan, was illegally abducted by Pakistani intelligence agencies and handed over to the US authorities. “Only the courts in Pakistan have the legal authority and jurisdiction to hear her trial and decide her fate if she has ever committed a crime,” they said. They maintained that handing her over to the US authorities is a gross violation of the constitution of Pakistan and an insult to the Pakistani judicial system and the nation as a whole.

The kangaroo court of New York has held Dr Aafia Siddiqui guilty for a crime that she never committed despite the fact that neither any fingerprints of Dr Aafia were found on the gun nor the witnesses could testify their statements.

The abduction, illegal imprisonment, torture and rape of Dr Aafia by US forces is an insult to the national integrity, dignity and sovereignty of 170 million Pakistani people.

SOURCE : Thenews.com.pk

2nd March 2010 marks Aafia’s 7th birthday and approximately 2,540 days in captivity. Many supporters decided to mark the occasion by celebrating the day.  True, it is odd that we will celebrate without Aafia being amongst us. In fact, Aafia was not much for celebrating birthdays. But we will celebrate to remind us that Aafia is not forgotten and remains very much among us, in spirit, even if she is physically locked up in a coffin sized US prison cell.

This day marks the first birthday when the US claims to have taken the rest of Aafia’s life (even though 7 years have already been taken away from her and her children). But we will use this to mark the first birthday of Aafia, the daughter of the Pakistani Nation. We have come to realize that Aafia is no longer just our sister and daughter or just another political prisoner from the “War of Terror”; she is the living symbol of all that has become of her nation and its honor. So, on March 2nd, we remember on behalf of the entire nation.

We use this as the beginning of a calendar and a commitment to seek not only Aafia’s restoration to her family, but also the safe return of all missing persons and, most importantly, the restoration of peace and security in the nation that stood up for its daughter when others hid in fear.

While we celebrate, we will ask all supporters to let this truly be a celebration, not a venue for anger or excuse to harm any person or property.  Let it be a message to those who would like to propagate the lies that Aafia is violent or her supporters are radicals, that while we are determined to defend and fight for our honor and expose the lies, we will do so in a dignified and restrained manner.  We will not let the perpetrators of the “War of Terror” be our teachers. We will show, InshaAllah, that Aafia can be brought back and the Pakistani nation can unite and act with resolve – and do so in a manner that shows the best of our Islamic and Pakistani heritage. We want to show that emotions can be channeled into action and slogans into results instead of rants.

This is also the month of Rabi-ul-Awal, the month in which our blessed prophet Muhammad (SAAW) both entered and also departed from this world. And so, it is an opportunity to not only celebrate life but also reflect on what one makes of it. In the end we enter and exit alone. We enter with nothing and leave with nothing except the account of how we lived.  The day to day trials and triumphs, the joys and sorrow, the wealth and poverty, the arrogance of power and the burden of oppression – these are all transient conditions that never stay the same. In the end it is only how a person reacts to these that matters and is remembered.

Our lives are testimony to this. What we learn from this is to maintain perspective.  Not easy nor always successful, but essential to maintaining sanity. When this is attempted, it is surprising how the blessings of God become evident even in the worst of circumstances and humility becomes essential in each success.  This is how we come to find reason to celebrate at a time when the world would have us mourn.

Yes, an American court, out of fear, condemned Aafia, but through that trial it also exposed the total lack of any evidence against Aafia and the naked cover up of all that was done to her. Yet, this very act of condemnation also raised her status in the entire Muslim world from a victim to a heroine. She went from being a name to a symbol, from a mother’s daughter to the daughter of a nation. Yet, we know labels are also transient. We remember when she was a pariah, the most dangerous woman in the world and to some she still is. But, then, as now, to us she remains a simple human being – a sister, a daughter, a mother.

So, whether people celebrate a national symbol, the rise of a heroine, the face of all missing persons or the memory of a terror victim, we hope they will also remember that underneath all that is a tortured human being named Aafia Siddiqui and it is for her living memory that we celebrate – in joy and not in sorrow.

May God Bless You

SOURCE : Freeaafia.org

KARACHI: On the directives of the president of the Pasban, Altaf Shakoor, the birthday ceremony of Dr Aafia Siddiqui was celebrated here on Tuesday.

The main event in this regard was held at the Karachi Press Club in which a large number of the people belonging to different walks of life participated and paid rich tributes to the brave Pakistani lady, who is presently languishing in a US prison. Cake was cut while a number of pigeons and balloons were also released. President Pasban Altaf Shakoor, Dr Fauzia Siddiqui, and civil society representatives were also present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Fauzia Siddiqui said that the presence of a large number of people here shows that the Pakistani nation is still awake and fully backs the cause of Dr Aafia’s release.

SOURCE : Regionaltimes.com

Dr. Aafia’s sister, Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui, will address the rally to be attended people from different walks of life, especially civil society activists and students.

An American court convicted Dr. Aafia over charges that she tried to kill Americans during her detention in Afghanistan in 2008. A family lawyer immediately announced an appeal, citing ‘prejudice and bias’.

Meanwhile, the Journal Club of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Pathology Department celebrated Dr. Aafia’s 38th birthday. Postgraduate doctors and faculty members attended the cake-cutting ceremony. They prayed for early release of Dr. Aafia and urged the government to do its best for the purpose..

SOURCE : Thenews.com.pk