I am angry at the Pakistani government. Raymond Davis killed two Pakistani citizens
and he got off scot-free. Raymond Davis’ government helped him out. Javed is an
innocent Pakistani and the Pakistani government is doing nothing to help him. 114
Nargis and her brother have lost complete faith in the Pakistani government’s commitment to their
relative’s return. “They have not achieved anything”, she and her brother protested, “They do not
care about the average Pakistani. No minister has ever spoken about Bagram; the government has
never even held a press conference on this issue.” 115
Four years after he was released and returned to Pakistan, Jibran still feels like his government failed
him:
The Pakistani government does not care about average people. The government
should have done a lot more to help me. They should have asked the US to prove that
I am innocent or guilty. 116
Former detainees also criticize Pakistani officials for disrespectful treatment while they were in
detention, for failing to provide them with desperately needed assistance, and for not even believing
that they were Pakistani. Ayaz, released in 2011, recounted a 2009 visit by a Pakistani diplomat to
the DFIP in which the Pakistani ambassador treated him rudely—and instead of ensuring Ayaz was
being properly treated and offering assistance, was “interrogating me like the Americans.” 117 Jibran,
another former detainee, shared a similar experience:
In 2007 or 2008, I cannot remember, I was visited by a Pakistani diplomat. He was
very rude. He asked me crudely where I was from. I told him Kohistan. He said that I
am not Pakistani and that I cannot even speak Urdu. I told him to check and see
where I am sending my ICRC letters; it’s an address in Pakistan. He dismissed me. The
second time around someone else came. He was just as rude. He also said that I was
not Pakistani and asked me for a proper letter with a proper address. 118
The Pakistani government’s treatment of detainees has angered their families as well. Hafeez, whose
uncle Abdul Jabbar is in detention told JPP interviewers:
Why are they locking him up like that? He is innocent. The Pakistani government
should help him out. They need to help him get out of there. This is unfair. They are
doing nothing to help him even though he is Pakistani. Why is the government not
upholding his rights? 119
From detainees’ and their families’ perspectives, who simply want to understand where their cases
stand, the Pakistani and U.S. governments are constantly pointing the finger at each other.
114
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Mubashar, December 2012 (real name, location withheld). Raymond
Davis is a former CIA contractor who killed two Pakistani men in Lahore in 2011. See “CIA contractor Ray Davis
freed over Pakistan killings”, BBC News, 16 March, 2011, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia12757244.
115
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Nargis and Mukhtar, November 2012 (real names, locations
withheld).
116
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Jibran, November 2012 (real name, location withheld).
117
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Ayaz, November 2012 (real name, location withheld).
118
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Jibran, November 2012 (real name, location withheld).
119
Justice Project Pakistan interview with Hafeez, December 2012 (real name, location withheld).
31
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