When Shahzeb Khan's family granted pardon to their son's murderer, whole nation came to utter shock. This was one of the most fought causes by civil society and people from all professions and backgrounds on the basis of barbaric show of feudal power. In the aftermath of the murder, which was committed by son of a very influential person of Sindh, people went in streets, protested and started mass movement with support of media to put the culprit behind the bars.
Shahzeb was killed in cold blood because of saving honor of his family when the servant of this politician's son was bullying his sister despite of several warnings and he asked him to stop. The murderer, Shahrukh Jatoi out of vanity went after Shahzeb, they fell into arguments and Shahrukh and his friend opened fire on him. Shahzeb, young and educated person, belonged to a upper middle class family. However, after Sharukh tried to escape from Pakistan, was caught in UAE and was brought back. He was prosecuted in criminal court as well as Anti Terrorism Court. It was kind of Jessica Murder Case of Pakistan.
But when people heard that the parents of Shahzeb are forgiving the murderer in the name of God, they were left in pure awe and shock, which later converted into anger. This was the worst use of Deeyat Law, not to mention that although it is not in courts and according to section 21(F) of Anti Terrorist Act, the criminal cannot be pardoned by anyone except state. You can read more about the legal and social dimensions of the act of Shahzeb's parents in my previous article here. But as you know the fears of anything being happened in Pakistan are not so uncalled for. It was also rumoured that the parents of Shahzeb took Deeyat money of about 35 Million Rupees. There were news of them being pressurized and threatened by powerful Jatoi family, as well.
In that context, the exoneration was followed by Civil Society speaking against the misuse of Deeyat Laws i.e. Article 309 of Pakistan Penal Code. Civil Society Activist Gulalai Ismail started a petition to the Government of Pakistan to review the laws so that no criminal of the state could get benefit from these laws by abusing them by pressurizing the families of victims or coaxing them with money offers. The petition was spread far and wide using all contacts and social media channels by Gulalai and others including me. I got many replies. Somebody told me that these efforts are laughing stock and some others just laughed. However, many people signed. The petition worked out and it caught the attention of media and can be proven as the first step towards starting some action. It was signed by about 1000 people of civil society, which, in itself is a huge success.
While I was asking people in my contact list on facebook to sign the petition, I came across a respectable friend of mine who discussed with me another dimension of these laws. Farrukh Shah Khan is an executive producer of WBTV, US and is based in San Farcisco California. A journalist by profession, he is also working on a Hollywood movie, Shadows of Swat. He is one of the signatory of the petition but the discussion that we had is as follows. I found it quite informative for readers, so I am publishing it here for the readers with permission of Farrukh Shah Khan. The discussion covers philosophical, social, and political aspects of such laws in American and Pakistani perspective. I hope this discussion will be fruitful for civil society activists to actively pursue the case. Here it goes.
Farrukh Shah Khan
I don't think that taking the rights to avenge away from
victims and their relatives and giving them to the faceless, blind, emotionless
and all powerful state is going to help the victims and their families.
Akif Khan
Respect your opinion but don't you see if this is actually a
way to make them avenge without any pressure. If there is no loophole in system
and the victim gets justice, there would be no crime?
Farrukh Shah Khan
The problem is that state can take over the trial and force
the victims and their families to go along what state wants to do under very
complex legal proceedings and sometimes it decides that it is better to make a
deal with the person on trial to get to state's interests. In US, prosecutors
make deals with killers all the time in order to get to some other criminals.
State is satisfying their interests at the expense of victim and their
families.
Farrukh Shah Khan
Let these matters be settled between the parties involved
without a 3rd party (state) getting in on the action.
Akif Khan
Even if state makes deals with criminals, that is I guess for
the larger good. They are still not completely spared but only their years of punishment
are reduced. Besides state also offers recreative activities and rehabilitation.
Don't you think by keeping this thing in people's hands there are chances of
spread of anarchy? State is deemed to be the protector of citizens, what is its
function if individuals tread on their own revenges?
Farrukh Shah Khan
Not their own revenges. State sanctioned and restricted to
people's allowed limits. This would not allow the individuals to take excessive
revenge (hence no anarchy) but would also restrict state from changing rules in
the middle of the trial and dash the expected punishment in the minds of the a
grieved.
Akif Khan
But mostly it backfires the other way. The affected families
are pushed to a level of compromise. Even in KPK the Jirgas and Masharaan
intervene and they settle the dispute one way or another. Sometimes the power
works like in Shahzeb's case, sometimes it is matter of Pag Pagri, the elders
throw their pagris in the families' feet and ask forgiveness. This does not
affect criminal's attitude in a positive way. He becomes more agressive after
that and becomes Don of his area and there is this all terror of a murderer.
Mostly these people join gangs or form gangs, they do not stop and won't hesitate
to commit another murder or going to Jail. I have seen dozens of such people.
Since last 15-20 years (since 1990 when this law was passed) we haven't seen
any murderer being trialed, given capital punishment or life imprisonment.
This is a big loophole for criminals to escape. Recently a guy in our area
killed two police constables while on a heist and after 5 months he is
wandering free after paying deeyat money. I was surprised that even Police
Department did not take any interest, the dispute was settled between families
by Jirgas. In another incident there were four guys who snatched a car and left
the owner in nearby bushes in injured state who later succumbed to death;
Father of 2 little children. The murderers were released after the settlement
of dispute. I have never seen families urging state to convert the punishment
to stricter level. They always work to the benefit of the murderers. The issue
is more gross in Sindh and South Punjab. Sometimes people also take money in Deeyat and later
kill the murderers to take revenge. Male members of one of our closer families
were completely wiped out in such a feud spread over 35 years and counting about
70 murders in total. My point is that we should work for stricter punishments
(not necessarily capital punishment) and cover these loopholes to stop
criminals taking advantage.
Farrukh Shah Khan
I think we have same intentions at heart and maybe same
solutions. Jirga is the governing body (local govt) and state is just the
extension of jirga. The problems will only get bigger with federal govt
intervening. There are big powerful people controlling the state judicial
system. If Cheif justice can pick and choose cases based on his personal enmity
or interests then how can we expect that state will make any better decisions
than a jirga. At least when we leave family of the victim decide on the fate of
criminal, it will be their decision (within prescribed limits). If state
decides then it will be double injustice against the victims and their
families. We all get hurt in our lives and if our freedom to decide whether to
punish or forgive the criminal who hurt us or our loved ones, we will loose
both the freedom and justice. At least when we decide even if under pressure of
society to take money or forgive, they are asking us to decide and we can make
the decision and archive a closure. If the state makes the same decision to
forgive then the victims could still have no closure and a big sense of
injustice. That breeds discontent among people.
Farrukh Shah Khan
Also I think you see one extreme in Pakistan and I see
another extreme here in US. So we both want to try the other system or at least
balance the extreme by going towards the other side a little more.
Akif Khan
Yes that is actually the motive. But Sir, the laws can be
developed by legislative assembly, you have legislators, you have technocrats
and experts, you have public opinion and that is how judicial system works in a
democratic society. While a jirga runs on the archaic traditions which are not
flexible and are stale since ages. There is a difference. You can always
develop consensus in society in a democracy on these matters and you have to so
that legislators make a law. Even in US I guess the laws are strict and society
has consensus on giving the right to the state even if it is forgiving the
criminal. The parole system is reinforced and even after the person is
acquitted, he is under constant surveillance. Which is not a case over here.
And in US, there might be the cases where state would have forgiven the
criminals but I think that in that system the social impact of the scenario is
far less grave than in Pakistan. Here in Pakistan, people find loopholes and abuse and
exploit them. Families having these rights are easier to blackmail so that they
may use their "right" like again in this case or in Sarfraz murder
case, Raymond Davis and even in the case of Mumtaz Qadri and Salman Taseer, the younger
Shahbaz has been abducted just to pressurize the family. Had there been no such
law, the criminals would not have taken these measures. Due to this law more
people are being blackmailed and put into misery. Let's say that families don't
want money, they are forced and blackmailed to take money or forgive, just
because the other person has either power or money. Hence, torturing already
grieved families.
Farrukh Shah Khan
I heard on radio of a couple more situations
where the state abuse it's power to intimidate little people who made a mistake
and no one was seriously harmed. I can writeup those stories and send to you or
I can write them in comments to your blog. One was a sexual predator registry
case. Second was a priest put in jail because his accountant cooked books and
steal money. His mistake wad to not be able to understand what his accountant
did and for signing paper certifying to govt that these tax filings are
correct. America is the largest developed world country who put many of its
citizens in jail because jail is a huge industry now. There are private jails
where govt send prisoners to be housed. There is a clear conflict of interest
and corruption. Jail industry lobby gives money to politicians for election
expenses. Politicians make laws to help fund and send prisoners to jails.
Majority of people are in for Minor issues like petty thefts. There was a judge
in california or oregon who had partnership in a private youth jail. He would
send 15-17 year old kids to jail for minor issues so that the jail can make
money and in tern r will get his cut. In the process he would destroy many
young lives.
Akif Khan
I completely agree and aware of that Sir. Infact I have been
joining a cause where a teenage boy is jailed just because he posted some joke
on his wall.
But I am talking in Pakistani perspective.
America has started behaving like a wary anarchy since a while. Many matters are left to the fair judgement of Judges who seem to lack human element while treating people. May be, it is due to the media's propagation of security
concerns.
Farrukh Shah Khan
Justice is blind here in America. Justice is more like a robot.
Recently judges are restricted from using their discretion in giving
punishments. They are worried about their jobs and not about doing justice. So
an innocent mistake is landing people in jail where they get training to be a
hardened criminals. I am sharing all this with you so you can check if any of
these end results could be possible in Pakistan or not?
Akif Khan
Here, in Pakistan, everything is on the discretion of judge,
his own interpretation. The laws also support it, are vague and quite
disturbing.
Farrukh Shah Khan
Hmmm given the current mindset of selfishness and corruption
throughout the society (at all levels) you maybe right. In Pakistan we do need
more robotic (blind) justice until we can assume safely that majority of the
people are good. In USA this is the first assumption and it is quite safe but
the corruption in higher levels is growing fast and soon it will spread to all
levels of the society like it is in pakistan now.
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