Let Mumtaz Qadri live
I consider what Mumtaz Qadri did to be a heinous crime and one of the most serious – murder, and that too motivated by ideological reasons. The victim was the governor of Punjab who in furtherance of his public duty had met a woman convicted under the state’s discriminatory blasphemy laws. Nevertheless, Qadri should not be executed as the death penalty must be opposed on all accounts. There should be a special onus on us to resist the temptation to punish someone for their ideology, however repugnant we may find that ideology. People must unequivocally reject the death penalty, especially as applied in Pakistan. Liberals who say they are against the penalty, ...
Read Full Post
Sialkot lynching: Hang ‘em all
“An eye for an eye makes the world blind…but with so much injustice around us, perhaps blindness is preferable.” [J Haque] After a total of 401 days, the Sialkot lynching case has come to an end with an outcome that is perhaps as grisly as the event that took place – death sentences for seven of those involved, and I for one fully support the verdict. In fact, just to play judge, jury and executioner, (as is our classic Pakistan ka haal) I would also like to know why the other six involved, and particularly the policemen who stood by and ...
Read Full Post
Does Sakineh deserve to die?
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani is a young Iranian woman who was sentenced to death by stoning in Iran, a sentence that sparked an international outcry over a practice that many see as archaic and barbaric. Since the initial sentence the twists and turns in events have moved rapidly. The initial sentence was handed down by a court in Tabriz in May 2006, she was charged with committing adultery (despite the alleged incident occurring after the death of her husband) and was sentenced to 99 lashes, which was carried out. Then, in September she was convicted by another court, the details of ...
Read Full Post
All in the name of religion
Aristotle said, “The rule of law is better than the rule of any individual.” It’s a good thing that he did not live to see the way laws are made in Pakistan, set in place too frequently by individuals for selfish reasons. Case in point: the blasphemy law When General Ziaul Haq started tweaking the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) in 1982, he introduced Section 295-B, which made desecrating the Holy Quran or making a derogatory remark about it punishable by life imprisonment. Unsatisfied with his contribution to the law, in 1984, he added Section 295-C. The clause added the death penalty ...
Read Full Post
Would you kill a killer?
According to an AFP report two Pakistanis are to be executed for drug smuggling in Yemen. Their trial began in December last year and is likely to end in front of a firing squad. Ajmal Kasab, bad guy extraordinaire, is another Pakistani waiting for justice through death. He has appealed the sentence. Mujahid Abdullah, Abdul Hai and Saleem Zaman, three men found guilty of involvement in an attack on a police check-post in Mianwali that claimed the lives eight policemen, were awarded the death sentence in Sargodha. Some readers may be thinking “Justice at last!” I cannot help but think what if ...
Read Full Post
Pakistan, a country where Zuckerberg can face death penalty
The news that Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg may face a death penalty by the Lahore High Court (LHC) didn’t come as a surprise to anyone who has been following the facebook fiasco in Pakistan. Keeping in view the recent few verdicts by the LHC which ironically defied some basic laws of physics, geography and common sense, there is a major possibility that the young entrepreneur from New York is sentenced to a death penalty under Criminal Code 295-C on blasphemy laws. Now I am not here to discuss the global pitfall of such a verdict in the ...
Read Full Post1-6 of 6
