When will the Pakistanis kept at Bagram return?

For years, the US government has held Pakistani citizens at Bagram Prison in Afghanistan in indefinite detention without any charge or trial. And for years, successive Pakistani governments have failed to uphold the rights of their citizens held there nor have they helped alleviate the suffering of their families in Pakistan. Abandoned by their own government, detainees and their families are losing hope.

Hameedullah Khan, held since 2008, was only 14 when he was abducted and shipped off to Bagram. Fazal Karim, who disappeared in 2003, was held in solitary confinement for six years. These detainees are sons, brothers and husbands. They and their families deserve justice. Today, the Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) is launching its Bagram Campaign to defend the fundamental rights of Pakistani citizens at Bagram. Our goal is to ensure they are not subject to the politics between the US and Pakistan. In a detailed report and through powerful testimonies and documentary photography, we bring to light the toll that indefinite detention has on detainees and their families. We outline how the US and Pakistani governments can ensure that Bagram does not become the next Guantanamo Bay.

The Pakistani Constitution provides that the state has a duty to uphold the fundamental rights of Pakistani citizens even when they are abroad. In October 2010, the JPP brought a case before the Lahore High Court to compel the Pakistani government to end the detention of its citizens held at Bagram Prison. For over 10 years, the executive has failed its citizens at Bagram and their families in Pakistan. The JPP litigation has been successful at forcing the Pakistani government to negotiate the return of its citizens. Where the executive has failed, the judiciary has decided to step in.

Yet, progress has stalled. In October 2012, the foreign ministry announced the return of six Pakistani citizens from Bagram Prison. Eleven months later, they still languish in detention. Our government still has no clear strategy or policy for securing the release and repatriation of its citizens. Instead of standing up for their fundamental rights, previous Pakistani governments have treated them like bargaining chips.

Meanwhile, detainees and their families are suffering. Families interviewed spoke of the anguish of being kept in the dark about their loved ones. They are outraged at their own government’s failure to defend the rights of their loved ones. As one family member told us, “I am angry at the Pakistani government … Raymond Davis’ government helped him out. My nephew is an innocent Pakistani and the government is doing nothing to help him.”

Under international law, the US government must ensure detainees will not be tortured when they return to Pakistan. Yet, the Pakistani government has so far resisted providing such assurances. To justify this, some officials have claimed that such assurances are a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty. But how can providing proper assurances that its citizens will not be tortured violate Pakistan’s sovereignty?

The Sharif government has an opportunity to end this record of failure. It should come to a broad agreement with the US and should demand the immediate release of all Pakistanis before the withdrawal of US troops. In negotiating with the US, it should adopt concrete steps to ensure that the rights of those transferred into its custody will be protected. Time is running short. As the US military withdraws from Afghanistan, Pakistani citizens are at a risk of falling into the tragic limbo that has befallen those at Guantanamo Bay. That is an outcome that no one wants — not the US, not Pakistan and certainly not the detainees and their families. It is time to close Bagram and it is time for Pakistan to do its part.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2013.

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