Raymond Davis Case: Developing Story

[American Eagle]

The statements and petitions by the US Ambassador to Pakistan today on behalf of Raymond Davis noting he has a valid US Diplomatic Passport with valid Paksitan VISA that expires in mid-2012 are the law and facts as to who Mr. Davis is.

The US Ambassador, a life long career senior diplomat, knows the laws and knows his job and knows who Mr. Davis is.

You may again want to re-look at and review in this Thread postings # 62; 76; 241; and 242.

The several bullet holes shot into Mr. Davis windshield came from the shootist robbers, who are part and parcel of the terrorism atmopshere inside Pakistan today.

The good people of Pakistan are not well served by avoiding the facts and the truth here.

Meanwhile, I again note the small number of responses to the Pakistani suicide bombers attack killing 35 innocent Pakistani men, women, and children there in Lahore the day before the failed robbery shooting attack on Mr. Davis, where upwards of 180 more innocent Pakistani men, women, and children were wounded.

Pakistan and the US are allies in the war on terrorism. Try joining the Paksitani military service or get a job teaching, building, helping those less fortunate inside Pakistan and prove your loyalty to the nation of Pakistan.

 

[logic]

^^^ Some heads WILL roll, but only later, and not in the order or manner that you describe.

Any suggestion as to how such investigation be carried?

 

[tanveerpower]

Shame on Punjab Police. Shame on the Government of Pakistan.

 

[fida jan]

Excuse me?

Did you claim you are Ex-Spec Ops and you don't even know Immediate Action Drills for Countering Vehicle Ambush?

YouTube - Vehicle Counterambush Drill - Windshield Shooting

my god!!, american eagle must be feeling so ashamed right now for trying so hard to make sense, still failing miserably...not cool

 

[American Eagle]

I am rather satisfied with telling the truth here of late. Have gotten quite a few private e-mails agreeing with and complimenting using the obvious facts. Have also gotten two overseas approving phone calls, which surprised me, from folks I have known for years, native Pakistanis, still living there in Pakistan today.

 

[VCheng]

Any suggestion as to how such investigation be carried?

Yes, but that, as they say, is a whole another discussion!

 

[Awesome]

Quite the contrary, Mr. Davis fired in self defense and saved his own life thereby.

A determination that should be left up to the courts, hence investigation is necessary and a subsequent trial.

 

[Awesome]

my god!!, american eagle must be feeling so ashamed right now for trying so hard to make sense, still failing miserably...not cool

Please do not make this personal, he has his point of view, you have yours, talk on topic, not about each other.

 

[Shameel]

Please remember no two cities inside Pakistan have the same gun laws on their books

Your above statement is as true as your statement about shots being fired into the windshield from the outside. Here, let me enlighten you: There is only one gun law in Pakistan and it's called the "Pakistan Arms Ordinance, 1965", which extends to the whole of Pakistan, except the Tribal Areas (where gun laws don't apply). Here's the link [see Section 1(2)]:

http://www.pap.gov.pk/uploads/acts/190.html

...shots through your windshield fired into Mr. Davis venhcile...are prima facia evidence he was violently attacked.

You're being more loyal than the king. Raymond Davis is not even claiming that shots were fired at him. He has admitted before the police and the court that he fired shots from inside his vehicle in self-defence because he felt that he was "about to be shot". He's claiming that one of the motorcyclists "pulled his gun on me" and he took pre-emptive action. He's not claiming that he was shot at. Ask Ray when he gets out. His contact details are on his website.

 

[fida jan]

I am rather satisfied with telling the truth here of late. Have gotten quite a few private e-mails agreeing with and complimenting using the obvious facts. Have also gotten two overseas approving phone calls, which surprised me, from folks I have known for years, native Pakistanis, still living there in Pakistan today.

well, atleast you have found popularity one way or another, with your zillion posts here...

hope u r busted when court finds the guy guilty, then you will shout, ohh pakistan justice is fake... and start cry again

 

[American Eagle]

LAHORE DAILY TIMES NEWSPAPER

Sunday, January 30, 2011


US demands release of diplomat held in Pakistan

* Embassy says detained American is diplomat who qualifies for immunity from prosecution and was illegally detained

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: The United States has called for the immediate release of an American diplomat charged with murdering two civilians and possessing an illegal weapon, claiming that Pakistani authorities have detained the diplomat unlawfully and in violation of international law and he, therefore, be freed from the illegal detention.

Contrary to the claims of investigators that the under-investigation American involved in the murder of two civilians in Lahore was in Pakistan on a visit visa and not on a diplomatic assignment, the US Embassy maintained that “the diplomat, assigned to the US Embassy in Islamabad, had a US diplomatic passport and Pakistani visa valid until June 2012”.

“He is a diplomat who qualifies for immunity from prosecution and was illegally detained,” the embassy asserted. It, however, refrained from disclosing the real name of the accused “and the only name released by the Lahore Police, which is Raymond Davis, remains his sole identity”.

Nevertheless, the White House spokesperson had, while addressing the media in Washington on the day of the incident, confirmed that it was not his real name and his real identity was being withheld for security reasons.

When asked, local police said that they had not been given any documentary evidence to prove anything in this regard.

“On January 27, the diplomat acted in self-defence when confronted by two armed men on motorcycles. The diplomat had every reason to believe that the armed men meant him bodily harm. Minutes earlier, the two men, who had criminal backgrounds, had robbed money and valuables at gunpoint from a Pakistani citizen in the same area,” the US embassy claimed.

Police officials in Lahore, however, remained silent on the background of the killed youths, claiming that so far no such facts had come to their notice.

The embassy’s handout further said “When detained, the US diplomat identified himself to police as a diplomat and repeatedly requested immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Local police and senior authorities failed to observe their legal obligation to verify his status with either the US Consulate General in Lahore or the US Embassy in Islamabad. Furthermore, the diplomat was formally arrested and remanded into custody, which is a violation of international norms and the Vienna Convention, to which Pakistan is a signatory.”

The police refused to accept this as factual and told this scribe, “When they tried to confirm the credentials of the arrested American, another vehicle came on the scene claiming to be from the American Consulate. After a heated debate with the police officials, the driver of that vehicle tried to rush out of the crowd and ran over another innocent biker.”

The US embassy’s handout stated, “We regret that this incident resulted in loss of life.”

“We greatly value the cooperation and partnership between Pakistan and the United States, which is vital to the interests of both the countries. The US Embassy is committed to working closely with the Pakistani government to secure the immediate release of the diplomat, as required under Pakistani and the international law,” it concluded.

 

[pakdefender]

Pakistan rebuffs call for US gunman’s quick release
ISLAMABAD: In a clear about-turn on the status of the American charged with murder of two motorcyclists in Lahore, the United States on Saturday claimed that the accused was a diplomat and demanded his immediate release.

“The diplomat, assigned to the US Embassy in Islamabad, has a US diplomatic passport and Pakistani visa valid until June 2012,” a terse statement by the embassy said.

It went on to accuse Islamabad of being in violation of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations. The Foreign Office reacted sharply to the embassy statement, counselling respect for the legal course.

The exchange was a pointer to an evolving diplomatic crisis between Islamabad and Washington.

The latest American statement was indubitably different from the one released by the embassy on Friday describing the accused Raymond Davis as “a staff member of the US Consulate General in Lahore”, which though ambiguous, but was clearly short of declaring him as a diplomat.

More importantly, the Friday statement had come at a time when media was discussing the status of the accused and was taken by many as a corroboration of the claims that Davis wasn’t a diplomat and hence had no diplomatic immunity.

The latest (Saturday) media release came a day after hectic diplomatic activity apparently failed to yield any result.

The Foreign Office looks to have also hardened its stance on the matter. Spokesman Abdul Basit called for respecting the legal process.

“This matter is sub judice and the legal process should be respected,” he emphasised in a message evidently directed at the Americans.

Mr Davis is being described by the American media as a security contractor from a Florida-based firm, Hyperion Protective Consultants, LLC.

That Foreign Office and the US embassy were not on the same page on the issue of status of the accused was obvious from an FO press release that mentioned Davis as a US ‘functionary’, and not a diplomat.

The latest U-turn in American position clearly fits in with the business principles of Hyperion Protective Consultants.Their website says that the personnel provided to the customer (US State Department in this case) are hired as the customer’s employees. As such the “legal liabilities reside with the business contracting the service”.

The US embassy statement set aside all diplomatese and not only accused the host government of ‘unlawfully detaining’ its ‘diplomat’, but criticised the remand of the accused given by a judicial magistrate.

“Furthermore, the diplomat was formally arrested and remanded into custody, which is a violation of international norms and the Vienna Convention, to which Pakistan is a signatory,” the embassy statement noted.

Pakistan rebuffs call for US gunman’s quick release | DAWN.COM | Latest news, Breaking news, Pakistan News, World news, business, sport and multimedia

 

[fida jan]

every thing he is finding is just clamied by americans and not established facts

find his diplomatic passport and rest the case..

 

[Shameel]

The good people of Pakistan are not well served by avoiding the facts and the truth here.

And the good people of the United States are not served by you coming here and stubbornly denying photographic and video evidence that flies in the face of your interpretation of events.

 

[Awesome]

The statements and petitions by the US Ambassador to Pakistan today on behalf of Raymond Davis noting he has a valid US Diplomatic Passport with valid Paksitan VISA that expires in mid-2012 are the law and facts as to who Mr. Davis is.

A case that the Pakistan government has not verified. There is a diplomatic visa and non-diplomatic visa assigned to embassy staff... What type of visa was he given? Does that visa grants him immunity? There is also a distinction between immunity from prosecution and immunity from sentencing... According to type of diplomatic grant.

Furthermore there is the issue of where immunity is valid. For a crime committed on Pakistani soil, it may fall under the purview of the Pakistani law.

Futhermore a quote from wiki:
Passport - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Issued to diplomats for work-related travel, and to accompanying dependents. Although most diplomats with diplomatic immunity carry diplomatic passports, having a diplomatic passport is not the equivalent of having diplomatic immunity. A grant of diplomatic status, a privilege of which is diplomatic immunity, has to come from the government of the country in relation to which diplomatic status is claimed. Also, having a diplomatic passport does not mean visa-free travel. A holder of a diplomatic passport usually has to obtain a diplomatic visa, even if a holder of an ordinary passport may enter a country visa-free or may obtain a visa on arrival.

Futhermore let me quote Article 38 (2) of the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic Relations:
http://untreaty.un.org/ilc/texts/instruments/english/conventions/9_1_1961.pdf

2.Other members of the staff of the mission and private servants who are nationals of or permanently resident in the receiving State shall enjoy privileges and immunities only to the extent
admitted by the receiving State. However, the receiving State must exercise its jurisdiction over those persons in such a manner as not to interfere unduly with the performance of the functions of the mission.

So definitely immunity does not apply upon the other Pakistani driver and must be handed over to Pakistanis.