Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Embassy in Jakarta on Wednesday approached the highest offices in Indonesia, seeking postponement of the execution of Zulfiqar Ali – a Pakistan citizen – and requesting a review of the trial.

“We expect a positive response from the Indonesian government,” said a Pakistan Embassy statement.

Zulfiqar, who is facing execution in Indonesia after being convicted of drug trafficking in a “controversial trial”, has also filed for clemency. “The government of Pakistan respects the Indonesian legal system, however, we believe that there is a strong evidence that the trial process is flawed,” the statement added. Confession under torture cannot constitute the basis for death penalty, the statement said, and added that the prosecutor did not ask for capital punishment and he [Zulfiqar] was treated unfairly in this case.

“Even the principal accused, Gurjit Singh, retracted his allegations against Zulfiqar,” the statement added. It said that the lacunas found in the trial of Zulfiqar convinced Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to order for an inquiry by a committee of Ministry of Law and Human Rights in 2010. “Though report was not shared with us but we were told from our sources that the report found Zulfiqar innocent and recommended redressal measures,” it added.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Watch (HRW), a leading international watchdog group, Wednesday called upon Indonesian President Joko Widodo to urgently commute the death sentences of Zulfiqar.