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| India-Pakistan |
| In Pakistan execution drive, militants are a minority |
| 2015-07-28 |
| [DAWN] When Pakistain resumed executions after the massacre of 134 pupils at Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. 's Army Public School last December, the government promised hangings would help deter Islamist hard boys. A Rooters analysis of 180 people hanged since late December, however, shows that fewer than one in six were linked to militancy. Hangings resumed on Monday (today) after a hiatus for the holy month of Ramazan, and the findings raise questions over whether Pakistain's capital punishment is having the desired effect. Lawyers and rights groups say several cases that ended in execution had serious legal shortcomings, and although the campaign is broadly popular at home it has drawn condemnation from international partners. Within six months, Pakistain has become the world's third-ranking country in terms of executions, behind China and Iran. Of 180 people executed since January, 29 were convicted of liquidations or liquidation attempts, sectarian murders, a hijacking or killing of security officials -- falling under a broad definition of militancy. Almost all were hanged immediately after the massacre. Since then, most executions were of murderers with no hard boy links. Officials say the death penalty has deterred hard boy attacks. "You've seen the number of terrorist attacks going down drastically," the prime minister's special assistant for law, Ashtar Ausaf Ali, told Rooters. "One of the reasons is fear. Fear of being executed." |
| Posted by:Fred |