THE Military Courts of Pakistan announced on 21 December 2024, sentences ranging from 2 to 10 years for those involved in the 9 May 2023, ‘Black Day’ vandalism. The events of May 9, 2023, stand as an unprecedented episode in Pakistan’s 77-year history, making the designation of this date as a “Black Day” entirely appropriate. The anti-state rebellion that swept across the nation on that day severely tarnished Pakistan’s reputation in the global community of civilized nations.
This matter must not conclude here. The abettors and facilitators of the brazen acts of vandalism should not be allowed to escape accountability, as they bear equal responsibility for the tragic events of May 9. It is imperative that they are also swiftly brought to justice. The Military Courts’ punishments, based on concrete evidence, for those directly involved in desecrating statues of national heroes and shamelessly vandalizing military and state institutions, send a powerful message. Such anti-state actions, as witnessed on 9 May 2023, will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
For sure, the international community, the domestic and international human rights organizations, and domestic and foreign individuals with vested interests, will now all be gearing up to trumpet their biased opinions about the punishments awardees to some of the vandals of tragic happening of May 2023, by Pakistan’s Military Courts today.
To those who criticize Pakistan, I wish to emphasize that the trials and punishments of those found guilty of the heinous May 9 vandalism are fully justified and entirely an internal matter of Pakistan. The punishments awarded to the 25 individuals, convicted of committing grave offences against the State and its significant institutions, were based on thorough investigations and supported by concrete evidence. Videos of their actions, widely broadcast on national media, clearly substantiate these facts.
To further support my stance, I draw attention to the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol—a day undeniably marked as a black chapter in American history. The trial of those responsible for the Capitol attack was purely an internal affair of the United States, and neither Pakistan nor any other nation questioned the legitimacy of those trials or the punishments imposed on the perpetrators.
It is only fair to expect that the international community, human rights organizations, and individuals with vested interests will respect Pakistan’s right to hold the perpetrators of the 9 May 2023, tragedy accountable, just as they respected the United States’ handling of the 6 January Capitol attack.
—The writer is a columnist and analyst based in Islamabad -Pakistan.
