Death warrant issued for mentally ill Pakistani man
ISLAMABAD// A schizophrenic convicted of murder will be executed on Wednesday after Pakistan’s supreme court ruled last week that his condition was not a permanent mental disorder and therefore not legally relevant.
Imdad Ali, 50, was certified by government doctors as suffering from paranoid schizophrenia in 2012, following his conviction for the 2001 murder of a Muslim cleric.
His lawyers argued that Ali should not be executed because he was unable to understand his crime and doing so would violate the international covenant on civil and political rights, a United Nations treaty to which Pakistan is a signatory.
“Imdad’s death will serve no retributive purpose, as he remains unaware of this reality,” said defence lawyer Sarah Belal.
A government psychiatrist confirmed the mental health diagnosis.
“I have been treating this man for the past eight years, and there is absolutely no room for doubt in this that he suffers from paranoid schizophrenia,” said Tahir Feroze.
On October 20, hearing Ali’s final appeal, the supreme court ruled that schizophrenia was “not a permanent mental disorder” and therefore could not be defined as a mental illness.
With his execution date set, Ali’s only hope of a reprieve is a pardon from the president, Mamnoon Hussain, who rejected an earlier mercy petition in May. Ali’s legal team filed another petition last month.
As a last resort, Ali’s wife said she was seeking forgiveness for her husband from the heirs of the victim, which could avert his execution under a feature of Islamic law.
“We are trying to contact them, but they are never available to us,” Safia Bano said.
“We are trying to set a meeting.”
Pakistan has hanged 425 people since 2014, when it ended a moratorium on executions.