URGENT ACTION APPEAL ----------------------------------
20 October 2006 Further Information on UA 118/06 (04 May 2006) and follow- ups (24 May 2006; 21 July 2006; 04 August 2006; 18 September 2006; 06 October 2006; 16 October 2006) - Imminent Execution PAKISTAN Mirza Tahir Hussain (m) President Musharraf has issued a two-month stay of execution for Mirza Tahir Hussain. He had been scheduled to be hanged on 1 November for the murder of taxi driver Jamshid Khan in 1988. Mirza Tahir Hussain will not now be executed until at least 31 December. This is the fourth stay of execution granted to Mirza Tahir Hussain, who is a British national. It follows the intervention of Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, who is due to visit Pakistan in the coming weeks. Prince Charles contacted Pakistan's Prime Minister, calling for a reprieve. UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has also intervened on his behalf. Mirza Tahir Hussain was tried and convicted of murdering taxi driver Jamshid Khan while traveling to the village of Bhubar from Rawalpindi on 17 December 1988. The taxi driver reportedly stopped the car, produced a gun and attempted to physically and sexually assault Mirza Tahir Hussain who was 18 years old at the time. In the scuffle that followed, the gun went off, and the taxi driver was fatally injured. Amnesty International has been campaigning for the commutation of Mirza Tahir Hussain's death sentence, which was handed down by the Federal Shariat Court of Pakistan in 1998 and upheld by the Supreme Court in 2004. Amnesty International believes that Mirza Tahir Hussain has been the victim of an unfair trial and that the death penalty should under no circumstances be upheld in such cases. Amnesty International, along with a number of other notable organisations, is continuing to call on President Musharraf to use his powers under Article 45 of the Constitution of Pakistan to commute his death sentence. Article 45 clearly states: ''The President shall have power to grant pardon, reprieve and respite and to remit, suspend or commute any sentence passed by a court, tribunal or authority''. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible: - expressing concern at the death sentence handed down to Mirza Tahir Hussain after an unfair trial; - expressing concern that despite calls for clemency in his case, he will once again face execution upon the expiry of his stay of execution on 31 December; - calling on the President use his powers under Article 45 of the Constitution to commute Mirza Tahir Hussain's death sentence. APPEALS TO: President Pervez Musharraf Pakistan Secretariat Islamabad, Pakistan Fax: 011 92 51 9221422 (please keep trying) Email: via website: http://www.presidentofpakistan.gov.pk/WTPresidentMessage.aspx Salutation: Dear President Musharraf COPIES TO: Ambassador Mahmud Ali Durrani Embassy of Pakistan 2315 Massachusetts Ave. NW Washington DC 20008 Fax: 1 202 686 1544 Email: info at pakistan-embassy.org Also, please send copies of your appeal letters to well known Muslim clerics in your community who may be able to make statements condemning Mirza Tahir Hussain's execution based on principles of justice and fair trial. Please send appeals immediately. Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 1 December 2006. ---------------------------------- Tip of the Month: Choose one or two recommended actions to focus your letter around, in order to keep your letters fast, short, and to-the-point. It is not necessary to cover all recommended actions in each letter. ** POSTAGE RATES ** Within the United States: $0.24 - Postcards $0.39 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.) To Mexico and Canada: $0.55 - Postcards $0.63 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.) $0.75 - Aerogrammes To all other destination countries: $0.75 - Postcards $0.84 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.) $0.75 - Aerogrammes Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights. This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal. Urgent Action Network Amnesty International USA 600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl Washington DC 20003 Email: uan at aiusa.org http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/ Phone: 202.544.0200 Fax: 202.675.8566 ---------------------------------- END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL ----------------------------------
