Pakistan Death Sentences Commuted to Life in Prison

The Pakistani government recommended that President Musharraf commute the death sentences of more than 7,000 prisoners to life in prison, in commemoration of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who was slain last December. The move came just days after Human Rights Watch wrote a widely publicized letter to Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilliani, urging him to abolish the death penalty. Charges carrying the death penalty have sharply risen in recent years in Pakistan, and the country's execution rate is one of the highest in the world. In 2007, 309 prisoners were sentenced to death and 134 were hanged. Most of those sentenced to death are poor and illiterate and do not have adequate legal counsel. Some face discrimination as members of religious minority communities. Many death-row prisoners are held without due process of law and face trials that do not meet international fair trial standards. More than 7,000 lives will be saved when President Musharraf signs the Pakistani government's conversion recommendation into law. Human Rights Watch will continue to press Pakistan to permanently abolish the death penalty.