Pakistani death-row prisoner Zulfikar Ali passes away in Indonesia

Zulfikar Ali, a Pakistani prisoner on death-row in Indonesia, passed away on Thursday, rights organisation Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) said.

“It is with the heaviest heart that we announce the passing away of Zulfiqar Ali,” the organisation said in a tweet. “A Pakistani citizen who has been declared innocent for 8 years, and been innocent since the moment he was arrested. He is mourned by his family and lawyers who fought for his life until the very end.”

Earlier in the day, the 54-year-old was moved to an intensive care unit (ICU) after his health deteriorated. Diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer in December 2017, Ali was also a diabetic patient. “He leaves behind 5 children and his wife, Siti. His mother, based in Lahore, was unable to fly to Jakarta to meet her son for the final time,” reads JPP statement.

His case came to the limelight in 2016 when Indonesia told the Pakistani embassy in Jakarta that he would be executed for being convicted on charges of possessing 300-grammes of heroin.

His execution was stayed after rights groups and the United Nations implored the Indonesian government, after which Islamabad also intervened.

Source: Express Tribune