Saving mental health sufferers from the noose on May 20, 2017Imdad Ali listens to the voices in his head. They tell him he is being watched. They convince him that everyone wants to hurt him. They remind him that he can speak to the sun to regulate the weather, control the world by running around his bed and that he can make nooses descend from […]
Waiting for the hangman on April 8, 2017434 people have been hanged since the moratorium on death penalty was lifted in Pakistan. But the number of lives destroyed far exceeds this figure. When the state makes the decision to execute someone, it wrecks the lives of everyone who loves them. The criminal justice system in Pakistan requires waiting. Waiting for things to […]
An act of terror on March 25, 2017Zulfiqar Ali was 18-years-old when he joined the Pakistan Navy as a Physical Training Instructor. His family tells us he excelled in the role, devoted to his country and even more so to his job. He was a diligent man. In 1998, Zulfiqar and his younger brother were held up in an armed robbery outside […]
The most premeditated of murders on March 18, 2017The first thing you notice about the death penalty is how much preparation is involved. If the execution will be by hanging, the length of rope requires close measurement. Too long, and there is a risk of protracted strangulation. Too short, decapitation. In Pakistan, executions must be carried out at 4:30 am from May to […]
Policing as torture on March 11, 2017In April 2012, an unconscious Malik Waqqar Ahmad was found dumped on Chandi Chowk in Rawalpindi. His mangled body, bearing marks of torture, was rushed to Holy Family Hospital. Nine days later, he died. He was 18 years old. His family should have turned to the police. Only, they found out that their teenage son […]