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Dr Ayesha Siddiqa leaves Pakistan
LONDON: Renowned scholar Dr Ayesha Siddiqa secretly reached London on Wednesday after she received a message that a charge sheet is being prepared to put her on trial for writing a book against the Pakistani military establishment.Dr Ayesha, whose recently launched book, Military Inc, created a stir in Pakistan, was scheduled to reach London on June 13. However, she abruptly got out of the country after the messengers told her that she might be put on trial soon. Before leaving Pakistan, Dr Ayesha also received a legal notice from a retired general, demanding Rs 1 billion as damages for exposing his alleged acts of omission and commission in her book. She was informed by some of her close family friends that her life was in a danger and she should be very careful. I left Pakistan quietly as certain messengers were sent to my house to inform me about governments intentions to prepare a charge-sheet, Dr Siddiqa told The New here. She said she believed that the messengers, who were personally known to her, were sent because the authorities concerned were annoyed at her work on the political and economic might and role of the military establishment. Dr Ayesha said she had planned to visit London in the second week of June to attend her books launching ceremony here on June 13. But, after receiving these messages she decided to leave for London quite early, she said, adding that after receiving these messages, her husband was frightened about her safety in Pakistan. Posted by: John Frum 2007-06-07 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=190224 |