Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden Speaks On His “Build Back Better” Clean Energy Economic PlanEngaging with the new US administrations by the authorities in Pakistan, has always been a daunting task, as every new American president brings along a new set of wish-list for its long term ally in South Asia. While, the diplomatic circles in Pakistan were gearing to deal with the new US President Joe Biden, the new-start was struck by a first stone.
The first trial between Pakistan and the Biden administration begun, after country’s highest court Supreme Court of Pakistan ordered authorities to release Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, the principal accused in the 2002 beheading of American journalist Daniel Pearl, dismissing petitions against his release and acquittal (on murder charges) by the Sindh High Court.
Following the court’s order the White House expressed “outrage” over the decision and termed the judgment an “affront” to terrorism victims everywhere. “The United States is outraged by the Pakistani Supreme Court’s decision to affirm the acquittals of those responsible for Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl’s kidnapping and brutal murder, which shocked the world’s conscience in 2002,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
Pushing authorities in Pakistan to review the legal options on the case, Secretary Psaki said “We recognize past Pakistani actions to try to hold Mr Pearl’s murderers accountable, and we do note that as of right now, our Sheikh remains in detention in Pakistan under national security authorities, but we call on the Pakistani government to expeditiously review its legal options including allowing the United States to prosecute Sheikh for the brutal murder of an American citizen and journalist,”.
The stark response by the White House on the Daniel Pear case followed last month’s statement by the then US acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, who said that America “stands ready to take custody of Omar Sheikh to stand trial here” after the Sindh High Court overturned a government detention order that Sheikh should remain in custody.
Daniel Pearl murder case took a recent turn after the apex court was seized with a set of appeals instituted by the Sindh government through Prosecutor General Dr Fiaz Shah, the parents of the slain journalist, namely Ruth Pearl and Judea Pearl, through senior counsel Faisal Siddiqui as well as Sheikh, the principal accused in the murder case, through Advocate Mehmood A. Sheikh.
The appeals challenged the Sindh High Court (SHC) decision that overturned Sheikh’s conviction in the alleged kidnapping and killing of the American journalist. The short order was issued by a three-judge SC bench headed by Justice Mushir Alam. The court also ordered that three others, who had been sentenced to life in prison for their part in Pearl’s kidnapping and death and then acquitted by the SHC, also be freed.
The decision is a complete travesty of justice and the release of these killers puts in danger journalists everywhere and the people of Pakistan,” the Pearl family said in a statement released by their lawyer. Faisal Siddiqi, the Pearl family lawyer, said the only legal avenue following the court’s decision upholding Sheikh’s acquittal would be to ask for a review of the court decision. However, he said the review would be conducted by the same court that upheld the appeal. “In practical terms there is no further legal avenues to pursue in Pakistan,” he said. Nevertheless, the Sindh government has decided to seek a review of today’s SC decision, provincial Information Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said in a statement.
The apex court’s order also came as a shock, as the principal accused sheik, after 18 years of denial -also told the SC he played a “minor” role in the killing. A letter handwritten by Sheikh in 2019, in which he admits limited involvement in the killing of the Wall Street Journal reporter, was submitted to the Supreme Court nearly two weeks ago. It wasn’t until Wednesday that Sheikh’s lawyers confirmed their client wrote it. Nowhere in the three-page letter addressed to the SHC did the British-born Sheikh elaborate or say exactly what his allegedly minor role in Pearl’s slaying involved.
In its April 2, 2020, order, the SHC had overturned Sheikh’s conviction for Pearl’s murder but maintained his conviction on a lesser charge of abetting the kidnapping, for which he was sentenced to seven years in prison. Since Sheikh had been incarcerated since 2002, that sentence was counted as time already served by the high court. The SHC had also acquitted three other men namely Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil and Salman Saqib, who had been earlier sentenced to life imprisonment by a Karachi anti-terrorism court.
After their acquittals, instead of releasing the men, the provincial government placed them under 90-day detention under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance, saying their release posed a threat to security. But, On July 1st , a fresh notification under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, was issued to extend their detention by three months, which was later extended for yet another 90 days.
But in December, the high court accepted a petition by the men against their continued detention and ordered their immediate release, declaring all notifications of the Sindh government related to their detention “null and void”. Following the SHC’s order to release the four men, the Sindh government had filed an appeal with the Supreme Court seeking to keep them incarcerated, citing threats to national security if they were allowed to walk free.
The deceased American Journalist Daniel Pearl, 38, was conducting research on religious extremism in Karachi when he was abducted in January 2002. A graphic video showing his decapitation was delivered to the US consulate a month later. Subsequently, Sheikh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by a trial court. Now, it is upto the government of Pakistan to expedite all its legal options to avoid any row with the new US administration.