Raymond Davis is U.S. citizen
and a consultant for the U.S, graduated from Powell Valley High School in Big
Stone Gap, Virginia in 1993. Davis has previous US Special Forces experience,
spent 10 years in the military, beginning with basic training at Fort Benning,
GA, in 1993 from United Nations Peacekeeping forces in Macedonia then with the
Third Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, and leaving the military in 2003.
Raymond Davis Incident
The Raymond Allen Davis incident occurred on January 27, 2011 when Raymond
Davis, killed two armed men in the Pakistani city of Lahore. Davis stated that
after withdrawing cash from a bank cash machine, he was driving alone in his
white Honda Civic and had stopped at a traffic light near Qurtaba Chowk in the
Mozang Chungi area of Lahore when two men pulled alongside him on a motorbike.
After one of the young men allegedly brandished a pistol at him, Davis opened
fire and killed both of them with his own 9mm Glock pistol. The incident led to
a diplomatic furor and deterioration in the ties between Pakistan and USA which
hit a new low. The US government maintains that Davis is protected by diplomatic
immunity under the Vienna Conventions and has demanded that he be released from
custody immediately. The incident also led to widespread protests in Pakistan
demanding action against Davis. Some people demanded Aafia Siddiqui against
Raymond Davis. The US president Barack Obama asked Pakistan not to prosecute
Davis and treat him like a diplomat and said “There’s a broader principle at
stake that I think we have to uphold.
The Victims of Raymond Davis Incident
Police confirmed that the two men that were shot by Davis, identified as Faizan
Haider and Faheem Shamshad were carrying sidearm but that no shots were fired
from these weapons. The Media reported that the two dead motorcyclists were
intelligence operatives quoting a Pakistani security official who requested not
to be identified since he was not authorized to speak to the media. A third man
was later killed "in a hit and run" when a US consulate car, reportedly sped
down the wrong side of the road on its way to aid the American. Questions
concerning the third victim, whether the vehicle that killed him was driven by a
consul official, whether the consul is claiming diplomatic immunity from civil
suits in relation to manslaughter caused by a road traffic accident have
attracted little media attention.
Diplomatic status of Raymond Davis
Pakistan's former Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also briefed that
Raymond has no complete immunity, he instructed the Foreign Secretary to follow
the law and said Raymond Davis doesn’t enjoy blanket immunity as sought by the
US.
Pakistani Government Worries
The Government of Pakistan is under extreme pressure from the United States to
release Raymond Davis. Media also report alleged the Pakistani ambassador to the
U.S. Husain Haqqani of receiving threats from the US National Security Advisor
Tom Donilon of being removed if action was not taken on the Raymond Davis case.
Donilon also warned of US consulates closing down in Pakistan and an upcoming
visit by President Zardari to Washington being rejected. Lahore High Court Chief
Justice Ejaz Ahmed Chaudhry where an order was issued to put Davis' name on
Pakistan's Exit Control List in order to restrain him from being handed over to
US authorities. A person of Pakistan also created huge pressure on Pakistan
government is not to release Raymond Davis.