Giovanni Lo Porto Still Missing

The President of Pakistan

Your Excellency, President Asif Ali Zardari:

Giovanni Lo Porto from Palermo, Italy, was abducted on January 19, 2012, in Qasim Bela, Punjab province, Pakistan.

I am gravely concerned for his safety and am requesting your urgent intervention and continued involvement in his case.

Giovanni Lo Porto arrived in Pakistan in October 2011 to help German NGO Welthungerhilfe construct emergency shelters in southern Punjab, where flooding had caused widespread damage. Just a few months before, he was a student in the Hiroshima and Peace program at Hiroshima University in Japan. Organizing Committee members at the university say Giovanni made many positive contributions to his class, demonstrating a strong commitment to building peace and understanding in the world.

I know this is a difficult time for your country as it faces great upheaval: a Supreme Court order for the arrest of Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the return of General Musharraf, the appointment of Mir Hazan Khan Khoso as caretaker Prime Minister, and the upcoming elections on May 11. My strongest wishes for peace and stability go out to you and the people of Pakistan.

Please don’t let Giovanni Lo Porto fall through the cracks during this time of tectonic shifts in power and politics. He came to Pakistan in peace.

On behalf of his global family, please take immediate action for the release of Giovanni Lo Porto and ensure his safe and swift return home. If you feel additional action by the international community would be helpful in gaining Giovanni’s release, I welcome your recommendation.