ABA SILTeleconference: School House Massacre in Pakistan and the Responses, Perspectives

A non-CLE program proudly presented by ABA Section of International Law & Co-sponsored by the India Committee, Asia-Pacific Committee, International Human Rights Committee, and the International Refugee Law Committee

IN PERSON EVENT w/ TELECONFERENCE OPTION 

★ Lunch will be Provided ★

Teleconference Free: $15.00 

Syed Law Firm, PLLC

1725 I (Eye) Street, NW, Suite 300

Washington DC, 20006

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at 12:00 PM EDT

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On December 16th, the Taliban attacked a crowded school in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing 148 people, the majority of them children. A Taliban spokesperson claimed the attack was retaliation for the continuing military operation against the group in the North Waziristan tribal region. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif reflected public sentiment, stating, “Terrorism and sectarianism are a cancer for this country and now the time has come to root it out.”

The military has since announced that its air attacks have killed dozens of alleged militants. The Prime Minister also lifted the moratorium on capital punishment in the country. Dozens of people have been hanged so far, and human rights groups fear that some of the 500 death row inmates slated for execution are innocent of crimes, including many of the 63 imprisoned on terrorism charges. Research from the Justice Project Pakistan, for example, reveals that one of the inmates scheduled to be hanged was a torture victim convicted of involuntary manslaughter at just 14 years old.

While national anger in response to this horrific tragedy is understandable, Pakistan’s response and pursuit of its counter-terrorism strategy raises a number of human rights concerns, particularly within the context of Pakistan’s notoriously weak judicial system.

PROGRAM CHAIRS
★ Isabella Bunn, Oxford, UK

★ Lauren Fielder, University of Texas, Austin

★ Mohammad A. Syed, Syed Law Firm, PLLC, Washington, DC

SPEAKERS
★ Sarah Belal, Director, Justice Project Pakistan, Lahore, Pakistan

★ Asma Jehangir, Chairperson, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Lahore, Pakistan

★ Feisal Naqvi, Senior Partner, HaidermotaBNR & Co., Lahore, Pakistan

★ Clifford Wallace, Senior Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, San Francisco, CA

★ Haider Waheed, Partner, MCAS&W Law Associates, Karachi, Pakistan

MODERATOR
★ Jumana Dalal, Syed Law Firm, Washington DC

REGISTRATION FEES
$15 - Teleconference
Free for In-Person Attendees

REGISTER NOW!!! 

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Image: Reuters/Finbarr O'Reilly