Editorial

Money well spent?

It is unfortunate that official efforts to assist Dr Siddiqui received only the most limited publicity.

Editorial November 08, 2010

For months we have heard insinuations and accusations that the government had not done enough to defend Dr Aafia Siddiqui, who was awarded an 86-year jail sentence by a US court on charges of using weapons against US soldiers in Afghanistan. According to a report in this newspaper, the government may have done a great deal — though like much else, its way of going about it raises questions.

The Senate Standing Committee on Interior Affairs has been told by the foreign ministry that the prime minister had approved a sum of $2 million to meet her legal expenses. This certainly does not show lack of interest. But it is disturbing that just under half this sum is unaccounted for.

Also, the legal team hired by the Pakistani Embassy in the US was never approved of by Dr Aafia. But this does not mean much given that there has been concern over her mental welfare. It is also worth noting the attorneys hired were persons of sound repute, who should have been able to put up a good defence. However, as the Senate Committee observed, this was always going to be difficult without the full assistance of the family.

An internal audit has been ordered into the matter of the legal expenses. Perhaps there should also be an examination of why many aspects of government work run into trouble simply because of poor planning. The government needs to consider how money allocated for such purposes can be most effectively used, and if Dr Aafia Siddiqui is the only Pakistani prisoner deserving help. There may indeed be others and it would be a good move to look into the plight of those held around the globe and determine how they can best be assisted. It is also unfortunate that official efforts to assist Dr Siddiqui received only the most limited publicity, leaving behind the impression that little was done to help her.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2010.

COMMENTS (2)

Yvonne Ridley | 14 years ago | Reply It doesn't matter how you spin this, Dr Aafia Siddiqui was let down by the politicians in her own country in spite of the two million dollars given to fight her legal case. The first set under General Pervez Musharraf sold her off like a slave to the Americans who later threw her in to Bagram to endure torture and abuse according to eye witness accounts. Hossein Haqqani, the Ambassador based in Washington, was the next person to let her down. He should have been robust from the moment Dr Aafia was shot by US soldiers and arrested. He should have demanded immediate consular access as required in the Vienna Conventions, a treaty signed by the USA. This he failed to do. He then co-ordinated the legal team and distributed the payments on legal issues arising from Dr Aafia's case and while I would be surprised if even he would be stupid enough to help himself to money from the legal pot, we need to know down to the last cent how that money was spent. What I do know is that a top ballistic expert was cancelled because the legal team could not afford to pay his fees yet his evidence could have proved crucial in her defence. The Pakistan Government should ask to see the full legal costs of the case and demand to know how was the money distributed. It was obvious from the outset that Dr Aafia was not going to get justice in the US - the case was flawed from start to finish. Most international lawyers agree the case had no legal basis or standing since the alleged crime was committed by a Pakistani citizen in Afghanistan and not New York where she was tried. The Pakistani politicians and government ministers should have exerted what authority they had from the very beginning and demanded her repatriation. It wasn't until Lord Nazir Ahmed went to Capitol Hill himself last year that he discovered not one Pakistani government minister or the Ambassador had made an OFFICIAL demand for Dr Aafia's repatriation. To all the Pakistani Government ministers and elected politicians and diplomats who are in awe of those they visit on Capitol Hill let me remind you of what Malcolm X once said: "Sitting at the Table doesn’t make you a diner, unless you eat some of what’s on the plate." In other words get up off your knees now and demand the repatriation of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, the Daughter of the Nation. You will only be treated like an equal by those in Washington if you act like one. Kind regards Yvonne Ridley

someone | 14 years ago | Reply those questioning the support given to Aafia siddiqui seem to me to be suffering from an afliction, that afliction is that they realize they were too week to fight to get their sister out, so now they bemoan efforts to get her out in other ways which fall faaaar too short.

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