In reaction to the news that British man Mirza Tahir Hussain has had his death sentence in Pakistan commuted to a life sentence today (16 November) Amnesty International UK Campaigns Director Tim Hancock said:

“Amnesty International welcomes news of the commutation of the Mirza Tahir Hussain's death sentence.

“We know the family of Tahir are extremely relieved after their exhausting campaign, but they are also anxiously awaiting official news of the terms of the commutation. The family are grateful that President Musharraf has used his discretionary powers to commute Tahir’s death sentence on humanitarian grounds.

“Amnesty is also waiting to hear exactly what will happen to Tahir next. The priority is Tahir’s safety and his swift and safe passage back to the UK.”

Amnesty International members all over the world have been writing to the Pakistan authorities on Tahir’s behalf calling for his sentence to be commuted. Amnesty is part of a large coalition of organizations campaigning for Tahir’s sentence to be commuted, including the Islamic Human Rights Commission, Reprieve, Fair Trials Abroad, Human Rights Watch and the Muslim Parliament of Britain.

Background

Mirza Tahir Hussain was sentenced to death in Pakistan in 1989 for the murder of a local taxi driver. He alleges the driver attempted to assault him and that he killed the man in self-defence. An execution warrant was issued on 20 July 2006 saying that Mirza Tahir Hussain is to be hanged on Thursday 3 August.

Find out more about our work against the Death Penalty