JUSTICE FOR JUNAID HAFEEZ

Junaid Hafeez — Pakistani academic, Fulbright scholar, falsely accused under blasphemy laws, Behind bars since 2013

[JUSTICE FOR JUNAID HAFEEZ @Justice4Junaid]

"A right delayed is a right denied." — Martin Luther King Jr.
انصاف کی دستک کا سالوں سے منتظر---- جنید حفیظ
#JunaidHafeez #SaveJunaidHafeez #freeJunaidHafeez #releaseJunaidHafeez #JusticeforJunaidHafeez

[JUSTICE FOR JUNAID HAFEEZ @Justice4Junaid]

Pakistan: Can Junaid Hafeez get relief in blasphemy case? https://t.co/BgesAjm1v7

[Shahzad Shafi @ShahzadShafi007]

#FreeJunaidHafeez

[Areeba Fatima @AreebaFatimaa]

Kudos to @Laiba_Zainab for reporting on this case. Junaid Hafeez’s story cannot be forgotten, what is being done to him should not be subjected to silence. While this is a positive development, there is a long way to go and we need to come together to support Junaid.

[Asad Ali Toor @AsadAToor]

جب اُن سے جنید حفیظ کی صحت کے بارے میں پوچھا گیا تو اُن کا کہنا تھا کہ ’ہماری ملاقات ہوتی رہتی ہے۔ ہم کتابیں وغیرہ لے کر جاتے ہیں، کھانا دے آتے ہیں۔ وہ پرامید ہیں مگر بہت تنہا ہیں۔‘
https://t.co/VeTQdZ6e3b

[Asad Ali Toor @AsadAToor]

🚨🚨#JusticeForJunaidHafeez🚨🚨
After completing his Master’s degree, Hafeez joined Bahauddin Zakariya University in Multan as a lecturer of English Literature while he also wrote poetry. A 2010 interview on FM103 captures his youthful romanticism. Despite the considerable influence of dogmatic and conservative voices on campus, Hafeez was committed to inculcating critical thinking among his students and had managed to carve out a space for independent academic inquiry.
At 27, I was high-spirited and eager to take on the world. At 27, he must have felt the same, I imagine—that his life was brimming with possibility. But it was at this age that Hafeez was accused of blasphemy.
Today, thirteen years later, he spends his days in a cell six feet by eight, with a toilet in the same space.
https://t.co/ZznmQdrnLl

[Laiba Zainab @Laiba_Zainab]

A death row appeal just moved for the first time in years.

The Lahore High Court held its first real hearing on Junaid Hafeez's blasphemy appeal since it was transferred from Multan, and judges are now asking prosecutors to explain the social media evidence behind his 2019 death sentence, including the difference between the Facebook page and group tied to the case. His lawyer says the appeal has finally been admitted for hearing, with the next date still to be fixed.
@LegalPolitical @muneerbajwaa

My latest for @NuktaPakistan

[Voice of the Victims of Blasphemy Business Group @VictimsofB_Gang]

🚨 لاہور ہائیکورٹ میں جنید حفیظ کی اپیل پر برسوں بعد اہم سماعت، عدالت نے اپیل سماعت کے لیے منظور کرلی

عدالت نے پراسیکیوشن کو نوٹس جاری کرتے ہوئے آئندہ سماعت پر دو اہم سوالات کا جواب طلب کرلیا

عدالت نے فریقین سے فیس بک پیج اور فیس بک گروپ کے درمیان قانونی فرق واضح کرنے کا کہا

جنید حفیظ سے منسوب سوشل میڈیا پوسٹس کی فرانزک بنیاد سے متعلق بھی جواب طلب

جنید حفیظ کی اپیل کی آئندہ سماعت کی تاریخ تاحال مقرر نہیں کی گئی

جنید حفیظ کے والد اور بھائی بھی سماعت کے دوران لاہور ہائیکورٹ میں موجود رہے

سماعت کے بعد جنید حفیظ کے والد جذباتی ہوگئے اور آنکھوں میں آنسو آگئے

جنید حفیظ 2013 میں گرفتاری کے بعد سے قید ہیں، 2019 میں انہیں سزائے موت سنائی گئی تھی

جنید حفیظ کی سزا کے خلاف اپیل 2020 میں دائر کی گئی تھی

جنید حفیظ کے مقدمے کو 13 سال سے زائد عرصہ گزر چکا ہے، خاندان طویل عرصے سے انصاف کا منتظر ہے

سماعت کے دوران سول سوسائٹی کے افراد بھی اظہار یکجہتی کے لیے عدالت میں موجود رہے

عدالت نے کیس کی عمر کے باوجود اپیل کی جلد سماعت کے لیے مناسب پیش رفت نہ ہونے پر سوالات اٹھائے

عدالت نے نشاندہی کی کہ کیس لاہور منتقل ہونے کے بعد فریقین کو نوٹسز جاری نہیں کیے گئے تھے

سماعت کے دوران شواہد کے جائزے اور منصفانہ و بروقت عدالتی کارروائی کی اہمیت پر بھی توجہ رہی

جنید حفیظ کے اہلخانہ کو امید ہے کہ اب مقدمہ آگے بڑھے گا اور شواہد کا باقاعدہ جائزہ لیا جائے گا

عدالت میں آج کی سماعت نے جنید حفیظ کے مقدمے میں پیش رفت کی نئی امید پیدا کردی

[Laiba Zainab @Laiba_Zainab]

Today, I went to the Lahore High Court to cover the hearing of Junaid Hafeez’s appeal and after years of waiting, there was finally a substantive hearing of the case in Lahore.

The court admitted the appeal and issued notices to the prosecution, asking it to address two important questions at the next hearing: the legal distinction between a Facebook page and a Facebook group, and the forensic basis for the social media posts attributed to Hafeez. The next date has yet to be fixed.

But beyond the courtroom proceedings, what stayed with me was seeing Junaid’s father and brother there. His father was in tears after the hearing. For a family that has spent more than 13 years living with this case, the wait for justice has come at an enormous human cost. Junaid has remained imprisoned since his arrest in 2013 and has been on death row since his conviction in 2019. His appeal was filed in 2020.

There were also people from civil society present in court in solidarity, a reminder that this case is being watched not only as a legal proceeding, but also through the lens of due process, the right to a fair and timely hearing, and the safety of everyone involved in such cases.

Today’s hearing did bring some hope. But it also raised an uncomfortable question about the years that have already passed. The judges noted that notices to the parties had not been issued after the case was transferred to Lahore, and questioned why the appeal had not been properly pursued for an early hearing despite its age.

For Junaid’s family, however, this is not simply an old case on a court file. It is more than 13 years of a life interrupted and years of waiting for the judicial process to reach its conclusion.

The hope outside the courtroom today was simple: that the case will now move forward, the evidence will be examined, and justice will ultimately prevail.

[Aishah Masood @aishamj7]

Hoping for good news! 🙏🏻

[Kiyya Baloch @KiyyaBaloch]

A very important hearing today. I hope Junaid gets justice, despite little hopes. Judges in both the lower and higher courts in this country are often too afraid to make decisions in sensitive blasphemy cases. Still, let’s hope for the best.

[cyril almeida @cyalm]

Junaid Hafeez... 🤞🙏

[Asad Ali Toor @AsadAToor]

⚖️🤲🤲 #JusticeForJunaidHafeez 🤲🤲⚖️

[Q @QindeelAzeem]

Junaid Hafeez’s next hearing is scheduled for 22 September

Sheema Ji appeals to the government, judiciary and all concerned authorities not to delay his case any further

Justice delayed is justice denied

[Ahmad Noorani @Ahmad_Noorani]

Advocate Saif ul Malook will argue Junaid Hafeez’s appeal before the Lahore High Court (LHC) today.

The strategy of the opposing side is to somehow employ delaying tactics and secure yet another hearing date, as has been happening since 2019.

Let’s see who prevails today: justice or the extremists?

[Q @QindeelAzeem]

#JusticeForJunaidHafeez

[Shehzad Roy @ShehzadRoy]

We worried about children who are not going to school, but we are more worried about children who are going to school. @ZindagiTrust @durbeenPK

[Q @QindeelAzeem]

جنید حفیظ کی جوانی کے تیرہ سال جیل میں ضائع کیے گئے۔ ایک انگریزی ادب کے پروفیسر کو ختم کیا گیا۔ یہ ایک قومی نقصان ہے۔ ایک سانحہ ہے۔ ایک المیہ ہے۔

#FreeJunaidHafeez

[Asma Shirazi @asmashirazi]

اچھی خبر ! اللہ کرے جُنید حفیظ کو بھی جلد رہائی نصیب ہو۔ #JusticeForJunaidHafeez

[Q @QindeelAzeem]

Junaid Hafeez’s mental health has collapsed after more than 12 years in solitary confinement

Arrested in 2013, sentenced to death in 2019, still waiting for his appeal.

My interview with his lawyer, senior advocate Saif-ul-Malook

#FreeJunaidHafeez