The US has said it would agree to "release" Dr Aafia Siddiqui into Pakistan's custody and in exchange would seek the release of Dr Shakil Afridi. However, Dr Mazari felt that there are serious issues over the US attaching two conditionalities for "releasing" Dr Aafia to Pakistan: one, that Pakistan accept she is a terrorist and should complete her sentence imprisoned in Pakistan; and, two that her trial in the US be accepted as fair and justified.
Dr Mazari stated that such conditionalities are unacceptable and she hoped the government would not accept any unilateral conditionalities being forced upon it by the US government which is under strong Congressional pressure to seek the release of Dr Afridi, a collaborator of the American government's illegal activities in Pakistan, whom the US Congress wants to welcome as an American hero.
Dr Mazari said if the prisoner swap agreement is to be an acceptable one it should be unconditional. If the US is demanding conditionalities then there must be mutual conditionalities in terms of serving prison terms and labeling of swapped prisoners as "terrorists" or "traitors".
Mazari stated that the people of Pakistan want to see Dr Aafia return to Pakistan but not to be branded a "terrorist" by the government simply at US behest; nor to remain incarcerated because of a highly biased US trial and conviction.
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