Where have they gone? [ The secret Prisons]

[A.Rahman]

Where have they gone?



By Naveed Ahmad

ISLAMABAD: On a dark, cold night of March 5, 2003, a hostile knock at the doors of a Gulistan-e-Jauhar flat shook the entire floor.

More than a dozen security officials rushed in as the sleepy inmates scrambled to receive the unexpected “guests” at the doorstep. Before they could get a clue, the “guests” covered the inmates’ faces and were soon being driven to an unknown destination.

The detained residents of the flat included US-educated brothers Majid Khan, 26, and Muhammad Khan, 28, Ameera Muhammad, 26, and their one-month-old daughter Leena. Ameera and her infant daughter were lucky to be freed a week after the incident near Awami Markaz Karachi where her father was told to receive them from a parked police jeep.

Fortune favoured Muhammad Khan, who was dumped near his home after a month of disappearance. Majid Khan could never make it home. It has been known for about a year that Majid Khan was in US custody but US officials back home confirmed Friday he was being kept in Guantanamo.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch describes Majid Khan in its list of “ghost prisoners” as an alleged link to Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, accused of involvement in a plot to blow up gas stations in the United States.

“Ghost prisoners” are those who are not given any legal rights or access to counsel by the US officials and are likely not reported to or seen by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

According to the family, Majid never belonged to any religious or militant organisation. Ever since his return, Muhammad Khan had been occasionally receiving calls from unidentified officials informing him of Majid’s well-being but nothing more satisfying than this one-liner.

The standard advice, however, has been to stay away from talking to the national press or moving any court of law against the disappearance of his young brother. The scared family, which migrated from Rajasthan to Pakistan in the late 40s, has settled in Tando Allahyar near Hyderabad.

The family cried bitterly for Majid on October 7, 2003, when a fairy-looking Munaal was born to his wife Rabia. Now, three, Munal has yet to feel the love of her father. Leena and her mother, Rabia, now live with her maternal parents.
Every time, the unidentified official telephones Muhammad Khan, his answer about Munaal’s father remains the same: Don’t worry, he is alive and would return soon. On his part, Muhammad Khan informed the officials to convey the good news to her 23-year-old dad.

Majid is a computer expert, who studied and lived in Baltimore, Maryland. According to his wife, Rabia, there was nothing extra-ordinarily religious or extremist about her husband. “He was a pretty normal person, who would pray five times and become restless if he ever saw someone in trouble,” she says of Majid.

Rabia, who wears Burqa and gloves on her hands, said Majid and his brother returned to Pakistan in 2002 to set up their own business from his father’s money made in Maryland where he owns a gas station.

 

[A.Rahman]

After getting married on February 26, 2002, Majid left for the US in early March. He returned to the country after five odd months in US. According to his wife, she never found anything unusual or abnormally different following his arrival in Karachi.

Ever since Majid was apparently picked up by the intelligence agencies, life took a horrible turn for Majid’s father Shaukatullah Khan, his two brothers and four sisters. The US agencies started quizzing the family and also restricted her father-in-law’s movement to his house. Depression and anxiety worsened the health of Majid’s cardiac father to the extent of being hospitalised.

Rabia said her father-in-law made two unsuccessful attempts to visit Karachi to see his grand child but “he was always stopped at the airport.” December was the last time when Shaukatullah took to the airport but was denied boarding a plane. However, the remaining members of Majid’s family did travel to Karachi to see Munaal and comfort Rabia.

The Human Rights Watch has been periodically in contact with Majid’s family. What could have lead to Majid’s disappearance? Rabia, has no answer. She innocently explained after a pause, “Majid used to financially assist the Arab refugee families, who wanted to return to their homes but it cannot be a crime — (certainly not) big enough to lead to his prolonged disappearance.

“At least, he should have been charge-sheeted and tried in any court of law,” she hastens to add. Maulana Arshad Mehboob, Rabia and Majid’s uncle, has said: “How can they hand over a Pakistani to the American in such discreet and unlawful manner? This is again a violation of national laws and constitution.”

“We are still very much scared because the governments of two powerful countries are against us without revealing our crime,” Rabia said, trying to make sense of the situation. Her university-going brother Salman was also questioned in Karachi hotel allegedly by intelligence agencies. For a change, he was allowed to go back with an advice to take care of his sister, as “Majid would be back soon”.

The family says none of Majid’s friends has been missing since March 2002 or before. However, none other than Majid’s cousin Mansoor has been missing since February 12, 2005. Just like his cousin Majid, Hafiz-e-Quran and madressah graduate Mansoor would help any Arab refugee from Afghanistan.

In 2004, Mansoor’s family was harassed and quizzed. Mansoor pre-empted his arrest by fleeing to Peshawar with his wife Samia and two children Muhammad and infant Sheema. Meanwhile, Masnoor’s parent moved to another rented house.

Mansoor’s father Arshad recalled, “A day after we vacated the house, a massive raid was conducted on the vacated house.” Soon Mansoor’s family — parents, four younger brothers and one sister — moved to Tando Allah Yar. In another raid, 18 members of Mansoor’s family and relatives were taken to Hyderabad for probe.

Mansoor’s father was not amongst them as he was already in Karachi for some work. After learning about the lurking danger, Maulana Arshad stayed away to avoid being picked up.

According to the family, in a week’s time, the entire 18-member family was released. The scared family alleged they were being threatened with capture if they did not inform about Mansoor’s location.

Soon the family learnt from Peshawar relatives and friends quoting newspaper reports that Mansoor had been picked up by the authorities. Unlike Majid’s case, Mansoor left home for some work and never returned. His cell phone was switched off and nobody visited the house to collect any documents or material.

In the case of Majid, “every thing was a mess after the raiding party left ... they took away his computer, documents, DVDs, CDs etc,” recalled Rabia. Majid’s family had been religiously keeping the promise made with agencies and continued an unending wait.

Majid Khan’s name is much more public in the United States than in Pakistan. He is being alleged of working in close connection with Uzair Paracha, 25, who was convicted by a US court of using fake travel papers to help Majid Khan, thought to be in an overseas prison after being seized by the US.

Paracha was arrested at a midtown Manhattan office where he had set up a business of selling real estate to Pakistanis, who are increasingly moving back to Pakistan. Uzair was convicted of trying to help another Pakistani, Majid Khan, obtain documents early in 2003 to travel from Pakistan to the US.

In a written agreement presented during the trial, both the prosecutors and Uzair Paracha’s lawyers said Majid Khan is an Al-Qaeda member. According to US officials, Majid Khan’s Maryland driver’s license and his Social Security card, as well as bank and credit cards, were found in Uzair Paracha’s suitcase when he was arrested in March 2003.

Even, the US agencies said, the key to the post office box where Majid Khan’s documents were to be sent by the immigration service was on Uzair Paracha’s key chain. Paracha, an IBA graduate of batch of 2002, has reportedly confessed that he tried to help alleged al-Qaeda member Majid Khan get fake travel documents.

According to trial testimony and Justice Department documents widely quoted by the international media, Majid Khan had laid plans with top Qaeda leaders in Pakistan, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.

Back in Tando Allah Yar, the scared family decided to move court and mobilize the parliamentarians of the country following the inspiration provided by the wife of another Pakistani Masood Janjua.

For the past four days, they have been joining three other families of missing Pakistanis to lodge a quiet protest in front of the parliament house. Despite an uproar in the National Assembly, the interior ministry bosses are keeping mum.

Finally, breaking the moratorium, Majid’s uncle and Mansoor’s father Maulana Arshad along with Rabia Majid and Samia Mansoor spoke to the media standing along side MMA leaders Qazi Hussain Ahmad and Maulana Fazlur Rahman in Liaquat Bagh Pindi.
During the protest outside the parliament, opposition leaders Farid Paracha, Khawaja Asif, Sherry Rahman, Hafiz Hussain Ahmad etc gave their assurances to raise the issue on the floor of the National Assembly.

“There comes a time that your patience runs out and you can’t see your kids wailing and waiting,” says Maulana Arshad pointing to Majid’s wife Rabia and her daughter Munaal.

“After a fruitless trust in the intelligence official, the moment came when we lost our tolerance and came out with facts in the open,” he said. The family members are encouraged by the recent verdict of the Sindh High Court regarding custody by intelligence agencies.

“We have hired a lawyer and we are filing a petition with Sindh High Court for the production and trial of Mansoor, who are facing illegal detention since 2005,” Maulana Arshad told The News.

In the words of GT Hunt, attorney for Uzair’s father Saifullah Paracha, “The US government plans to bring Majid to trial before a military tribunal.” From a strictly legal and theoretical point of view, this is probably good news for him, as it ends his secret detention and he could get the assistance of a full defence team. However, the question remains as to whether Majid would get justice in the US, which he was denied as a citizen in his home country.

 

[A.Rahman]

how far can we go to please uncle sam? shouldnt the state be protecting its citizens instead of handing them over to a torturer?

CIA is becoming more like some kind of rouge agency, using offshore Prisons and holding people without trails.

What astonishes me the most is that pakistanis are not safe in their own country.

CIA can take anyone they want in Pakistan!..scary thought..

 

[KashifAsrar]

If I would say so it would be taken as an Anti-Pakistan statement, but the fact is that, MUSHARRAF has long seized to be dictator Pakistan needs NOW!! He must GO now !! What Pakistan needs is a Islamic democracy !! Nothing more nothing less !!
Kashif

 

[A.Rahman]

If I would say so it would be taken as an Anti-Pakistan statement, but the fact is that, MUSHARRAF has long seized to be dictator Pakistan needs NOW!! He must GO now !! What Pakistan needs is a Islamic democracy !! Nothing more nothing less !!
Kashif

Just tells you what these generals can do for couple of F-16's.

 

[Awesome]

This is just from the family's point of view. Pak government obviously believed he was Guantanamo Bay material. The entire idea of that prison sucks, since no trial in granted. But that doesn't mean he's not guilty. "It wasn't me" just doesn't cut it.