Abd-ur-Rehman (Muhammad Azam) – Execution Pending

Arrested at 17, Abd-ur-Rehman (known as Muhammad Azam in police records) has spent half of his life on death row. Arrested as juveniles, his conviction for murder and dacoity (armed robbery) was questionable as confessions and witness statements were extracted using torture and fabricated evidence. Tried in the anti-terrorism court, the juvenile was given the harshest possible sentence, death. Frequent appeals have failed to get him justice for over 17 years.

Abd-ur-Rehman was 17 year old and was accused of murder and armed robbery (dacoity) along with his friend Moin-ud-din. Rehman claims that they had gone to the house of the person killed with another man (who absconded) to reclaim a debt. The conversation became heated when the man refused to pay. Moin-ud-din had a pistol which the man attempted to grab when the conversation heated up. He was shot and killed in a struggle for the pistol.

According to Abd-ur-Rehman, when he was apprehended by the police, he told them that his name was “Muhammad Azam”, a known criminal, in hopes that his family wouldn’t find out. Under investigation he was tortured by the police and he again stated that he was Muhammad Azam and confessed to this and other crimes to avoid torture. Later, his father submitted an affidavit that this was not his son’s name. Despite this, he is still known to prison authorities 17 years later as Muhammad Azam.

There are allegations that evidence was wrongfully submitted by a head constable in order to get the case tried in Anti-Terrorism Courts where there would likely be harsher sentences. Moin-ud-din has stated that he was asked to pay a bribe to the judge. Further evidence extracted through torture was presented and this led to the boy’s conviction in July 1999. Subsequent appeals were dismissed by the High Court and Supreme Court in 1999 and 2001.

 The penal system was at odds with itself as to whether Abd-ur-Rehman was an adult or juvenile. Abd-ur-Rehman was 17-years-old when he was arrested by the police in 1998[1] but he was tried as an adult. Abd-ur-Rehman spent the first eight months in a juvenile facility but was then moved to an adult facility and given the death penalty. In 2000, the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO) prohibited the use of the death penalty for juveniles and jail authorities and a government doctor lodged an appeal in 2004 to have Rehman’s sentence reduced because of his age. This appeal was rejected by the Anti-Terrorism as his age had not been raised in the original trial so it was not relevant.

 In Pakistan, the accuser and accused can reach a compromise of forgiveness or financial settlement and a pardon may be issued. A compromise was reached between Abd-ur-Rehman and Moin-ud-din and their complainant in 2008 and a pardon was granted. This should have resulted in the dismissal of the case but because their sentences were given under the Anti-Terrorism Act, no pardons are to be granted. In April 2015, a black warrant with his execution date was issued for Abd-ur-Rehman by the anti-terrorism court in Karachi.

With JPP’s help Abd-ur-Rehman obtained a last minute stay of execution on 27 April 2015. The case is currently before Pakistan’s Supreme Court, but if the litigation is unsuccessful Abd-ur-Rehman may be executed imminently despite the fact that he was a juvenile and he cannot be executed under the protection provided by the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance. There is no evidence that Abd-ur-Rehman had ever been involved in a terrorist group or that he has ever committed a terrorist act of any kind and yet he was tried in an Anti-Terrorism court. He was a juvenile when he committed a crime, confessed under torture, and has made peace with those accusing them. Yet, because he was tried under Pakistan’s broad anti-terrorism laws, his settlement with the complainant is meaningless and he remains awaiting a black warrant.

[1] Azam’s birth certificate was issued in 2001 and provided by his family. It states his date of birth as being 18.3.1981