Special SAT Report
ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI:
The Sessions Court on Monday, Sept 16, again delayed grant of bail
to the 18-year old student son of Mr Shaheen Sehbai's cousin in
Rawalpindi, in a fake case of "dacoity" allegedly committed
by Sehbai 18 months ago when he was Editor of leading daily "The
News".
Imran,
son of Sehbai's cousin Mohammed Asif, an employee of Pakistan Railways,
was arrested three weeks ago after he was mischievously named in
the Police case registered against Sehbai and his family members.
The
Court has also ordered police parties to go to Karachi to arrest
other members of the Sehbai family, named in the report.
Normally
in Pakistan such delayed reports, specially about such common crimes
as thefts and dacoities, are never pursued by police, but in this
case pressure of the military government on the Judge has resulted
in fast track actions, arrests and denial of bail, even when the
offence is bailable.
The
Judge and other court officials admit that they were under pressure
from the authorities as the country's leading constitutional lawyer,
Syed Zafar Ali Shah, on whose petition the Supreme Court of Pakistan
validated the Musharraf Coup of October 1999 for three years, appeared
for the Sehbai family.
The
"dacoity" report has been filed by a civilian, low category
employee of the Army GHQ, 18 months after the alleged dacoity took
place. Khalid Mahmud Hijazi, the petitioner, did not file any report
for 18 month. Of these 18 months, Mr Sehbai was present in Pakistan
for 13 months, until March 2002, when he moved to United States.
About
six months after the alleged "dacoity" Hijazi divorced
his wife who moved to another city. But in his police report filed
in August, Hijazi said she had been kidnapped by Sehbai. "Basically
he has tried to mislead the Court through his lies and he will have
to pay the penalty when the case is heard in the higher courts,"
the Sehbai lawyers said.
Shahbaz, Benazir Condemn Sehbai Family
Harassment
ISLAMABAD/LONDON/JEDDAH:
A storm of protest broke out last week in Pakistan, and abroad,
with PPP Chairperson Benazir Bhutto and Pakistan Muslim League President
Shahbaz Sharif joining Pakistani journalists and human rights organisations
in strongly condemning the police action against Shaheen Sehbai,
Editor of the South Asia Tribune.
As
details of the police action became known, condemnations poured
in from all sides. Police
had registered a case against Mr Sehbai for "comitting a dacoity"
18 months ago in Rawalpindi and raids were conducted on the houses
and shops of Mr Sehbai's relatives in Rawalpindi. Two teenage nieces
and two nephews of Mr Sehbai were named in the police FIR and raids
were carried out to arrest some of them.
PML
President Shahbaz Sharif sent a special message from Jeddah to Mr
Sehbai condemning the raids and the police harassment. "I am
perturbed to read your letter, before receiving it, I had in any
case been following your news with anxiety. Unfortunately, much
as press freedom like all other freedoms is essential for the growth
and prosperity of nations, because of Pakistan’s very turbulent
history we have not yet been able to establish this as a common
concept," Mr Sharif said.
"I
am strongly committed to greater freedom for our people in all areas
of existence, and naturally condemn any action that compromises
their basic human rights. I wish I could do more today, but luckily
life moves fast into tomorrow and I hope that sooner rather than
later problems such as the kinds you are facing become increasingly
rare," he said.
Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto expressed her shock over the
military regime, using a junior civilian employee of the GHQ, implicating
Mr. Shaheen Sehbai in a robbery case to punish him for investigative
journalism of his newspaper the South Asia Tribune.
She
said in a statement issued from London the web-based newspaper of
Mr Sehbai, "South Asia Tribune" had written a series of
articles on the corruption of the Musharraf regime. "It is
most deplorable that the tactics of forging cases against political
opposition has been extended to the media as well”, she said.
She recalled that the case against Mr. Sehbai was registered 18
months after the alleged event coinciding with the publication of
revealing stories published in the SAT exposing the dark side of
the regime's key figures. "The Pakistan Peoples Party condemns
this blatant attempt by the regime to victimize a senior journalist,
the Chairperson of the Party said."
She said that all those who cherish a free press would appreciate
the courage with which South Asia Tribune IS exposing the corruption
of the regime.
The
condemnations also came from Ansar Burney Trust which sent letters
to President Musharraf and all international human rights organisation
criticising the action.
The
Government used a former husband of a cousin of Mr Sehbai, who is
a clerk in the Army General Headquarters. He made wild accusations
against Mr Sehbai, including one that he was robbed of his household
items at gun point in February 2001. Sehbai, was then the Editor
of Pakistan's largest English language newspaper.
R.A.
Bazar Police in Rawalpindi, close to the Army General Headquarters,
registered the case against Sehbai on the complaint of the GHQ employee,
who once was married to Mr. Sehbai’s cousin and divorced her
over a year ago. This relationship was known only to a senior military
officer, now posted in Inter Services Public Relations Department,
headed by General Musharraf’s Press spokesman, Major General
Rashid Qureshi.
In
a statement issued in Washington, Sehbai called the case “a
blatant and shameful attempt by the military authorities to use
a very junior civilian employee of the Army General Head Quarters
(GHQ) in Rawalpindi to harass, defame and victimize me and my family.”
"This
report lodged by the Police, obviously under pressure of the military
authorities, is malafide and a direct vicitmization because I have
launched a newspaper which has exposed many scandals of the military
government and its high ups. The Police Case against me has been
lodged 18 months after the alleged event which itself speaks about
its merit.
"I
will invoke all legal and constitutional remedies to defend against
this outrageous onslaught against me, my family and the Press. I
have already instructed my legal counsel, Mr Babar Awan in Rawalpindi,
to prepare a suitable legal defence to fight this blatant harassment
which exposes all claims of General Pervez Musharraf about freedom
of the Press in Pakistan.
"I urge all the Journalist, Political, Lawyers and Human Rights
Organizations to raise their voice against this harassment.
"I
also warn the government and the military authorities not to harass
any member of my family in Pakistan. They would be directly responsible
for all the consequences of any such action.”
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