Will Hamid Hayat Be Home for Eid?
By Ras H. Siddiqui
Eid-al-Adha or BakraEid is a significant community and family event for Muslims worldwide. It is celebrated at the end of the Hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca, where millions of followers of Islam gather annually and end their deeply spiritual journey by replicating the animal (lamb) sacrifice of the Prophet Abraham who was willing to sacrifice his son to God. It is a three-day feast during which almost nobody in the Islamic world goes hungry because the meat of the sacrificed animals is distributed amongst the poor.
It is a time of abundance and also charity with a prime focus on family. This year, Eid festivities will commence on Sunday, August 11, 2019 when large congregations will gather for prayer and visit family and friends worldwide including many here in northern California.
One person who has not been able to participate and join his family during this event for 14 years or so is Hamid Hayat, a 36-year-old former cherry picker from Lodi, California who was taken into custody in June 2005 and convicted in the year 2006 of “Terrorism Related Charges,” a term which has been used quite loosely. The conviction has recently been “Vacated” by US District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. which basically points to an overturning of the original verdict. The reason given was that his attorney at the time did not have enough experience and did not provide Hamid with an adequate defense.
Whatever the circumstances, the members of the Muslim and Pakistani-American community in the region have a cause to celebrate and be relieved. The community has always felt that an innocent young man had been wrongly convicted and that a more than enthusiastic paid “informant” had helped to railroad him and send him to prison. Another important point to note is that Hamid “confessed” to attending a training camp in Pakistan. This reality also points towards the need to always consult an attorney before speaking to federal agents. In this particular case Hamid may have been sufficiently intimidated and possibly did not understand the significance of his words. At least that is what many within the area Muslim community had concluded.
On Wednesday, July 31st CAIR-Sacramento Valley held a press conference in front of the Robert T. Matsui United States Courthouse building in Downtown Sacramento to highlight the overturning of the verdict in this case. CAIR Executive Director BasimElkarra, Hayat legal counsel LayliShirani and Raheela Hayat, Hamid’s sister, addressed the gathering. Basim has been rallying support on this issue for many years when he, along with two young ladies from the Muslim-American community (who are now married with families themselves), tried their level best to push for justice for Hamid Hayat when the whole thing started. Incidentally, none of the three are of Pakistani origin. Taj Khan, a Pakistani retired engineer from Lodi, had also been active on this issue. The press conference video and some associated photographs were posted on social media by CAIR and have been utilized in this report.
BasimElkarra said that he was here with members of the Hayat family along with religious leaders from San Joaquin County, the Lodi and Stockton area, and that we are here to celebrate the ruling yesterday, and to heal. He said that this case affected the Hayat family, the Stockton and Lodi communities and a young generation of Muslim Americans who saw one of their own convicted in a post-9/11 world while completely innocent. He spoke of the 14 years that Hamid lost in his prime sitting behind bars. Elkarra added that while we celebrate, we ask US Attorney McGregor Scott and the Department of Justice to show mercy, and to allow this young man to be released.
LayliShirani in her short speech said that she was overjoyed to be present today. She said that she was representing a dedicated group who had worked 13 years to reach this result. Some (from the group) are here in the United States and some of us are in Pakistan. We are just to turn the page and to celebrate the positive result and to bring Hamid home, said Shirani.
Hamid’s younger sister Raheela Hayat next deeply moved everyone at this press conference, bringing tears to many eyes. In her emotion filled appeal, Raheela said that in the past 14 years, what we have lost is already gone. But we just want our brother back home. He has been innocent and will be innocent for the rest of his life until death. None can pay back the 14 years of his innocence. We would like to thank Judge Burrell. We just want our brother back. I want to tell the government, please, end this now and release my brother from Federal Prison in Phoenix, Arizona. Today everything has ended. Please, we do not want anything else. Thank you so much. During a follow up question Raheela said that she talked to Hamid on the phone (crying) and we could not believe 14 years later that Allah has shown his mercy, and that 14 years later we will be celebrating Eid together as a family.
At the time of this writing we are not aware that Hamid Hayat is out of prison. His attorney has filed a motion for his release but he still remains in custody. The Justice Department can still appeal Judge Burrell’s overturning of the original verdict. But we in the Muslim and Pakistani-American community are hopeful and pray that Hamid will indeed join his family for the Eid-al-Adha festivities on August 11th.
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