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State of<br />

Human Rights<br />

in 2009<br />

Human Rights Commission<br />

of Pakistan


Sources<br />

The sources, where not quoted in the text, were HRCP surveys, fact finding<br />

reports, and communications from its correspondents and private citizens; official<br />

gazettes, economic and legal documents and other public releases and statements;<br />

reports in the national and regional press; and publications of international agencies<br />

like the UNDP, ILO, WHO, UNICEF and the World Bank. Considering the limitation<br />

of the official reports, press accounts and sample surveys conducted by NGOs,<br />

figures and assessments offered here may not always represent the full or the<br />

exact picture. They should be taken as a reflection of the trend during the year.


Pictures are by courtesy of The Herald, Karachi;<br />

The News, Lahore; The Dawn, Lahore;<br />

HRCP Special Task Forces at Hyderabad<br />

and Multan and other HRCP offices.<br />

The Commission is also thankful to its photographer<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>if Ali and correspondents <strong>for</strong> some pictures.<br />

Published by<br />

Human Rights Commission of Pakistan<br />

Aiwan-i-Jamhoor, 107-Tipu Block,New Garden Town, Lahore-54600<br />

Tel: +92-42-35864994 Fax: +92-42-35883582<br />

E-mail: hrcp@hrcp-web.org<br />

URL: www.hrcp-web.org<br />

Printed by<br />

Rashid Ahmed Chaudhry<br />

Maktaba Jadeed Press<br />

14-Empress Road, Lahore<br />

Tel: +92-42-36307639-40<br />

February 2010<br />

Price: Rs. 300/-<br />

$ 11/-<br />

£ 7/-<br />

(Postage extra)<br />

ISBN- 978-969-8324-33-9<br />

Cover photo: Moon market explosion, Lahore by <strong>Ar</strong>if Ali.<br />

Cover design: Visionaries, Lahore<br />

Layout and <strong>for</strong>matting: Rehan Latif Khan


Abbreviations<br />

Glossary<br />

Introduction ... 1<br />

Highlights ... 5<br />

Contents<br />

I<br />

II<br />

III<br />

IV<br />

V<br />

VI<br />

Rule of law<br />

Laws and law-making ... 17<br />

Administration of justice ... 27<br />

En<strong>for</strong>cement of law<br />

Law and order ... 53<br />

Jails and prisoners ... 87<br />

Fundamental freedoms<br />

Freedom of movement ... 115<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion ... 122<br />

Freedom of expression ... 141<br />

Freedom of assembly ... 153<br />

Freedom of association ... 163<br />

Democratic development<br />

Political participation ... 171<br />

Rights of the disadvantaged<br />

Women ... 185<br />

Children ... 209<br />

Labour ... 220<br />

Social and economic rights<br />

Education ... 241<br />

Health ... 253<br />

Housing ... 266<br />

Environment ... 274<br />

Refugees ... 289<br />

Appendices<br />

HRCP activities ... 299<br />

HRCP stands ... 317<br />

Pakistani prisoners in <strong>for</strong>eign jails ... 368<br />

International conventions / treaties and Pakistan ... 369


Abbreviations<br />

ADB<br />

Asian Development Bank<br />

the Child<br />

AJK<br />

ANP<br />

ASI<br />

ASJ<br />

ATA<br />

Azad Jammu and Kashmir<br />

Awami National Party<br />

Assistant Sub-Inspector<br />

[of Police]<br />

Additional Sessions Judge<br />

Anti-Terrorism Act<br />

DCO<br />

DIG<br />

DPO<br />

DSJ<br />

District Coordination<br />

Officer<br />

Deputy Inspector General<br />

[of Police / Prisons]<br />

District Police Officer<br />

District and Sessions Judge<br />

ATC<br />

BHC<br />

BHU<br />

CDA<br />

CEC<br />

CEDAW<br />

CIA<br />

CII<br />

CJ<br />

COAS<br />

CNIC<br />

CrPC<br />

CRC<br />

Anti-Terrorism Court<br />

Balochistan High Court<br />

Basic Health Unit<br />

Capital Development<br />

Authority<br />

Chief Election<br />

Commissioner<br />

Convention on Elimination<br />

of all <strong>for</strong>ms of<br />

Discrimination Against<br />

Women<br />

Criminal Investigation<br />

Agency<br />

Council of Islamic Ideology<br />

Chief Justice<br />

Chief of <strong>Ar</strong>my Staff<br />

Computerized National<br />

Identity Card<br />

Criminal Procedure Code<br />

Convention on the Rights of<br />

DSP<br />

ECL<br />

EIA<br />

EPA<br />

EPI<br />

FATA<br />

FCR<br />

FIA<br />

FIR<br />

HEC<br />

HRCP<br />

IDMC<br />

Deputy Superintendent of<br />

Police<br />

Exit Control List<br />

Environment Impact<br />

Assessment<br />

Environment Protection<br />

Agency<br />

Expanded Programme <strong>for</strong><br />

Immunization<br />

Federally-Administered<br />

Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas<br />

Frontier Crimes Regulation<br />

Federal Investigation<br />

Agency<br />

First In<strong>for</strong>mation Report<br />

Higher Education<br />

Commission<br />

Human Rights Commission<br />

of Pakistan<br />

Internal Displacement<br />

Abbreviations<br />

i


Management Centre<br />

organisation<br />

IG<br />

IMF<br />

ISI<br />

ISPR<br />

IUCN<br />

JI<br />

JJSO<br />

JUI (F)<br />

Inspector General [of<br />

Police]<br />

International Monetary<br />

Fund<br />

Inter-Services Intelligence<br />

Inter-Services Public<br />

Relations<br />

International Union <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Conservation of Nature<br />

Jamaat-e-Islami<br />

Juvenile Justice Systems<br />

Ordinance<br />

Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam<br />

(Fazlur Rahman Group)<br />

NIC<br />

NIRC<br />

NSC<br />

NWFP<br />

PAEC<br />

PATA<br />

PFUJ<br />

PHC<br />

National Identity Card<br />

National Industrial Relations<br />

Commission<br />

National Security Council<br />

North-West Frontier<br />

Province<br />

Pakistan Atomic Energy<br />

Commission<br />

Provincially Administered<br />

Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas<br />

Pakistan Federal Union of<br />

Journalists<br />

Peshawar High Court<br />

LHC<br />

LHV<br />

MCL<br />

MNA<br />

MPA<br />

MQM<br />

MSF<br />

NA<br />

NAB<br />

NCSW<br />

NEQS<br />

NGO<br />

Lahore High Court (SHC is<br />

Sindh High Court, PHC<br />

Peshawar High Court etc)<br />

Lady Health Visitor<br />

Metropolitan Corporation of<br />

Lahore<br />

Member of the National<br />

Assembly<br />

Member of the Provincial<br />

Assembly<br />

Muttahida (<strong>for</strong>merly<br />

Mohajir) Qaumi Movement<br />

Muslim Students Federation<br />

National Assembly<br />

National Accountability<br />

Bureau<br />

National Commission on the<br />

Status of Women<br />

National Environment<br />

Quality Standards<br />

Non-government<br />

PKMAP<br />

PMA<br />

PML(N)<br />

PONM<br />

PPC<br />

PPP<br />

PS<br />

PTI<br />

RHC<br />

SC<br />

SAARC<br />

SCARP<br />

Pakhtun Khawa Milli Awami<br />

Party<br />

Pakistan Medical<br />

Association<br />

Pakistan Muslim League<br />

(Nawaz group). PML-Q is<br />

Pakistan Muslim League,<br />

Quaid-e-Azam.<br />

Pakistan Oppressed Nations<br />

Movement.<br />

Pakistan Penal Code<br />

Pakistan People’s Party<br />

Police Station<br />

Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf<br />

Rural Health Centre<br />

Supreme Court<br />

South Asian Association <strong>for</strong><br />

Regional Cooperation<br />

Salinity Control and<br />

Reclamation Project<br />

i i<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


SCBA<br />

SHC<br />

SHO<br />

SI<br />

SITE<br />

SMP<br />

SP<br />

SSP<br />

TB<br />

TJP<br />

TNSM<br />

UDHR<br />

UNDCP<br />

UNDP<br />

Supreme Court Bar<br />

Association<br />

Sindh High Court<br />

Station House Officer<br />

Sub-Inspector [of Police]<br />

Sindh Industrial Trading<br />

Estate<br />

Sipah Mohammad Pakistan<br />

Superintendent of Police<br />

Senior Superintendent of<br />

Police<br />

Tuberculosis<br />

Tehrik Jafria, Pakistan<br />

Tehrik Nifaz-e-Shariah<br />

Mohammadi<br />

Universal Declaration of<br />

Human Rights<br />

United Nations Drug<br />

Control Programme<br />

United Nations<br />

Development Programme<br />

UNESCO United Nations<br />

Educational Scientific and<br />

Cultural Organization<br />

UNHCR<br />

UNICEF<br />

WAPDA<br />

WASA<br />

WB<br />

United Nations High<br />

Commissioner <strong>for</strong><br />

Refugees<br />

United Nations Children’s<br />

Fund<br />

Water and Power<br />

Development Authority<br />

Water and Sewerage<br />

Authority<br />

World Bank<br />

WHO<br />

WTO<br />

WWF<br />

World Health<br />

Organization<br />

World Trade Organization<br />

Worldwide Fund <strong>for</strong><br />

Nature<br />

Abbreviations<br />

iii


Glossary<br />

[Terms commonly used in discourse on rights and laws]<br />

Abadi: Settlement. Katchi abadi refers to temporary settlement of squatters<br />

Asnad: Certificates awarded by educational institutions. Singular ‘sanad’<br />

Amir: Literally, leader. Frequently used to refer to leaders of Muslim groups<br />

Assalam-o-Alaikum: “May peace be upon you.” Muslim greeting<br />

Atta: Flour made from ground wheat.<br />

Azaan: The Muslim call to prayers<br />

Azad: Free<br />

Baitul Mal: Originally the state treasury in an Islamic state. In Pakistan the institution<br />

has been set up mainly <strong>for</strong> disbursement of zakat<br />

Baitul Zikr: House of prayers and pious exchange. The term Ahmedis now use in<br />

place of ‘masjid’ or mosque, which was prohibited to them after they were declared<br />

non-Muslim<br />

Basant: Spring kite-flying festival<br />

Begar: Forced labour<br />

Bhatta: Allowance. Now euphemistically used <strong>for</strong> amounts regularly extorted from<br />

industrialists, traders, professionals and other citizens by petty functionaries, militant<br />

groups or criminal gangs<br />

Bheel: One of the castes into which pre-independence India’s Hindu society divided<br />

i v<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


its people. Bheel is among the ‘lowest’ and poorest in the hierarchy and mostly comprises<br />

farm labourers<br />

Burqa: An outermost garment to shroud the whole female body<br />

Chadar and chardivari: Literally, sheet of cloth and four walls. Associated with<br />

women the phrase signifies that a woman’s place of honour is inside the four walls of<br />

home; and, if she must go out, she has to be wrapped from head to foot in a sort of<br />

winding sheet<br />

Chak: Tiny rural settlement in the Punjab, usually designated just by number and a<br />

letter of the alphabet<br />

Challan: The police’s prosecution brief or charge-sheet. There are two categories<br />

of this: the first is based on a preliminary (first in<strong>for</strong>mation) report, and the next, which<br />

is more <strong>for</strong>malised, follows from early investigations<br />

Chapati: Bread made from wheat flour. A staple food item in many parts of Pakistan.<br />

Chaudhry: Now also a common surname in Punjab, in its original sense it describes<br />

the head of a village’s <strong>for</strong>emost landed family<br />

Cheera: From the word meaning ‘tearing up’ it is a common method of third<br />

degree torture in which the victim’s legs are spread out to the maximum and kept<br />

immobilised in that position. The agony quickly makes the man ‘admit’ in most cases<br />

whatever he is asked to confess by the police<br />

Deeni madrassah or madrassah [Plural in Urdu Madaris]: Literally, a religious<br />

school. At present many of the institutions are run <strong>for</strong> sectarian and fundamentalist<br />

ends.<br />

Deh: Small village<br />

Dera: Extended residential site of an influential figure in a village or other area<br />

Diyat: The blood money in return <strong>for</strong> which the next of kin of a murdered man<br />

may agree to <strong>for</strong>give the killer. It is also monetary compensation <strong>for</strong> any lesser physical<br />

injury caused<br />

Ehtisab: Accountability<br />

Eidul Fitr: Festive occasion which marks the end of the Muslim month of fasting,<br />

Ramazan<br />

Fatwa: Religious edict<br />

Fiqah: Muslim jurisprudence<br />

Gaddi-nashin: Occupier of the usually hereditary seat of custodianship of a shrine<br />

Gherao: A number of persons’ laying siege to someone superior to pressure him to<br />

Glossary<br />

v


listen, and hopefully to yield, to their demands. Literally, to surround<br />

Hadd: Plural hudood: Islamic punishment<br />

Hari: Sindhi peasant, tenant or farm labourer<br />

Hujra: Retiring room of an Imam or any religious person or outhouse<br />

Iddat: The period a Muslim woman is required to spend in relative seclusion after<br />

divorce or death of her husband<br />

Iftar: The fare <strong>for</strong> breaking fast<br />

Ijtihad: Research and reinterpretation of Islamic intent in relation to specific issues.<br />

Ijtima: Congregation<br />

Imam: Prayer leader<br />

Imambargah: Shias’ place of holy congregation<br />

Isha: The Muslim prayer due after nightfall<br />

Jirga: A gathering of elders, which especially in tribal societies settles disputes,<br />

decides criminal cases etc<br />

Kalima: Quranic <strong>for</strong>mulation of a basic Islamic tenet<br />

Karo kari: A traditional, feudal custom which still continues whereby couples<br />

<strong>found</strong> in, or more often merely suspected of, adulterous relationship are summarily<br />

done to death by the family members themselves. The law takes a lenient view of this<br />

“crime of honour”, which often leads it to be abused<br />

Katchi Abadi: Settlement of homes, many made of unbaked bricks or timber and<br />

cloth, which have cropped up across the country.<br />

Khan: A term frequently used to refer to an influential feudal in the area. Khan is<br />

also a common surname<br />

Khateeb: Person who delivers religious sermons be<strong>for</strong>e prayers<br />

Khidmat committees: Service bodies, comprising government nominees, required<br />

to check failures of public institutions and officials<br />

Khula: Divorce in which the move <strong>for</strong> the dissolution of marriage comes from the<br />

wife’s side. The procedure <strong>for</strong> this is different from talaq, the divorce pronounced by<br />

the husband.<br />

Kutchery: Court. The kutchery of recent currency is the audience given by ministers<br />

or officials <strong>for</strong> receiving public complaints<br />

Maghreb: Time at sunset. Also the Muslim prayer due then<br />

Malik: A tribal chief. Other variants are Sardar and Khan<br />

Marla: 25 sq yds or 21 sq metres. 20 marlas make a kanal<br />

v i<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Masjid: Mosque<br />

Mehfil: Gathering<br />

Mehr: The money the groom pledges to the bride at the time of the wedding as a<br />

token of his earnestness<br />

Moharrir: Police station clerk who records complaints and crime reports.<br />

Mullah: Formerly an appellation <strong>for</strong> an Islamic scholar, now it often refers<br />

pejoratively to a semi-literate fanatical campaigner and pronouncer of the orthodox<br />

Islamic view in the community. Closer to its original sense are maulana, moulvi and<br />

alim (<strong>for</strong> religious scholar, plural ulema)<br />

Muharrum: Muslim month of mourning, most devoutedly marked by Shias<br />

Naib Qasid: Peon<br />

Najis: Something religiously regarded as impure, impermissible<br />

Napaid bazo: Family’s decision to wed one off ahead of birth<br />

Nazim: Mayor -<br />

Naib Nazim:Deputy Mayor<br />

Nikah: Nuptials<br />

Nikahkhwan: The officially appointed moulvi, a religious person, who solemnizes<br />

marriages<br />

Nikahnama: The document making note of a marriage contract with various clauses<br />

listed under it to determine the agreement reached at the time of the marriage with<br />

respect to dowry, mehr and other matters.<br />

Panchayat: A gathering of elders<br />

Patharidar: The village feudal who quietly patronises and provides protection to<br />

criminal gangs or individuals while using them to tame his enemies and help in<br />

maintenance of his hold over the commonalty and his status among his peers. Some<br />

also have a cut in the dacoits’ booty<br />

Peshgi: Advance payment against labour<br />

Pir: A religious figure who often, because he is believed to be spiritually close to<br />

some venerable saint of the past, acquires a wide following of his own. The devotees<br />

of a pir look up to him as a spiritual, and even a physical, healer, guide and source of<br />

salvation<br />

Pucca: Literally solid. Generally refers to houses made of baked brick etc.<br />

Purdah: Veil<br />

Qabza: Forceful seizure and occupation<br />

Glossary<br />

vii


Qatl: Murder;<br />

Qatl-i-amd: Premeditated murder<br />

Qazf: False imputation of immorality against a woman<br />

Qazi: A judge of an Islamic court; in Islamic tradition the man entrusted to mete<br />

out justice.<br />

Qisas: Punishment identical to the crime: eye <strong>for</strong> an eye, tooth <strong>for</strong> a tooth<br />

Ramazan: The Muslim month of fasting<br />

Roti: Bread made from wheat-flour, traditionally accompanying meals<br />

Sang chatti: Sindhi term – Same as swara<br />

Swara: Gift of a girl in marriage in settlement of a tribal dispute<br />

Shalwar: Loose pants tied at the waist with a cord. Shalwar kameez, a loose<br />

trouser worn with a long shirt, or kameez, is a common <strong>for</strong>m of dress <strong>for</strong> both men<br />

and women<br />

Tandoor: Open oven used to bake bread<br />

Tazia: Replica of Imam Hussain mausoleum in Moharram procession<br />

Tonga: Horse drawn carriage used as transport<br />

Ulema: Persons learned in Islam and Islamic practice<br />

Ushr:Islamic land tax<br />

Vani: Tradition according to which women are surrendered <strong>for</strong> compounding a<br />

murder case. The same tradition is known as ‘swara’ in the NWFP<br />

Wadera: Feudal lord, with all the connotations of (a) his repressive character in<br />

relation to the body of peasantry and community who live on and off the lands he<br />

owns, and (b) his influence with the local official functionaries and their superiors.<br />

Allied and more neutral terms are zamindar, the man who owns large tracts of agricultural<br />

land, and jagirdar, the person who has inherited extensive lands.<br />

Watta Satta: The kind of parentally arranged marriage in which a brother and<br />

sister of one family are married to the siblings of another.<br />

Zakat: A tithe Islam imposes on every Muslim as a fixed proportion of his/her<br />

income and wealth and meant as a contribution to help the poor and the needy<br />

Zakir: Religious preacher who mostly recounts events of the Islamic past, usually<br />

now in Moharram at the annual commemoration of Imam Husain’s sacrifice at Karbala<br />

Ziarat: Devout travel to and from prayers at the holiest shrines. A special Shia<br />

observance<br />

Zina: Adultery. Rape is zina-bil-jabr<br />

viii<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Introduction<br />

Dastardly terrorist attacks, resulting in the killing of innocent citizens and<br />

law-en<strong>for</strong>cement personnel across the country, throughout the year 2009,<br />

constituted the greatest threat to fundamental rights of the citizens. Coming<br />

under attack from the security <strong>for</strong>ces in their bastions in Swat and South<br />

Waziristan, the militant groups became desperate; they did not spare mosques,<br />

bazaars, religious minorities and educational institutions in their obvious bid to<br />

paralyse the state and all civilian life. The acts of terrorism and the state’s<br />

response to it are discussed in the chapter on Law and order.<br />

The principle that military operations against the terrorists should be carried<br />

out in a manner that they do not violate human rights of the combatants and<br />

non-combatants alike was not always observed. In the aftermath of the Swat<br />

operations, HRCP received complaints of extra-legal killings and mass graves<br />

in the Malakand region, and raised its voice <strong>for</strong> an inquiry into these cases by<br />

a parliamentary committee. A detailed report can be seen in the Annexure on<br />

‘HRCP stands.’<br />

The military offensive against the militants drove hundreds of thousands<br />

of people out of their homes, creating a massive humanitarian crisis. While a<br />

large number of displaced people from Swat had returned to their homes by<br />

the end of 2009, 1.25 million people from the strife-ridden tribal areas were<br />

still displaced. The government, international donors and the civil society of<br />

Pakistan needed to make determined ef<strong>for</strong>ts to help the displaced people.<br />

Any mishandling of the IDPs could provide militant organisations opportunity<br />

Introduction 1


to find new recruits from amongst the uprooted and frustrated young men.<br />

[See the chapter on ‘Refugees’]<br />

The sad fact, however, was that the parliament did not pay adequate<br />

attention to the vital issues, quite a few of which affected national security,<br />

except <strong>for</strong> an initiative it took to address the uprising in Balochistan towards<br />

the end of the year. However, the so-called relief package, too, was yet to be<br />

implemented. The matters related to militancy and IDPs drew little attention<br />

from the law-makers. During the entire year, they did little law-making, passing<br />

only four acts while most of the legislation was done through Presidential<br />

ordinances. [See the chapters on ‘Laws and Law-making1 and ‘Political<br />

participation’]<br />

The parliament and the executive also failed to take notice of the issues<br />

causing distress to the masses, allowing the superior judiciary to expand its<br />

jurisdiction and pass verdicts on a variety of subjects, such as determination<br />

of the prices of sugar and petrol etc. The Judiciary, on its part, was <strong>found</strong> short<br />

on its promises of expeditious disposal of cases and eradication of corruption<br />

in the judicial system. More than 1.5 million cases were pending in the courts<br />

at the end of 2009. The chapter on ‘Administration of Justice’ provides details.<br />

In fact, the administration of justice required more than additional judges<br />

in courts and higher salaries <strong>for</strong> the judges. The other two organs of the justice<br />

system, police and jails, also needed to be overhauled. Jails were over-crowded<br />

and poorly administered. The police was short of personnel. It was also<br />

thoroughly corrupt and poorly trained. To check the crime rate, it relied on<br />

shortcuts like extra legal killings of the accused in the so-called encounters. A<br />

chronology of ‘police encounters’ is available in the chapter on ‘Law and order’<br />

In Balochistan, security agencies were accused of abducting political activists<br />

and suspected militants and keeping them in illegal detention without instituting<br />

cases against them. The issue of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances fueled the anger<br />

and alienation of the Baloch people from Islamabad.<br />

The failure of the criminal justice administration was also reflected in the<br />

increased incidence of crimes against women - the number of honour killings,<br />

rape, domestic torture and acid attacks shot up in 2009 as compared to the<br />

previous year. The chapter on ‘Women’ lists the major incidents of crimes<br />

against women and some major indicators showing the overall status of women<br />

in the society.<br />

An outright disrespect <strong>for</strong> fundamental rights, both by the state and the<br />

communal elements, was also visible in the crimes and excesses perpetrated<br />

against religious minorities. While the gangsters went on rampage in Gojra<br />

2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


against Christians and in Karachi against Shias and looted or destroyed the<br />

properties of innocent businessmen, the police <strong>for</strong>ce apparently looked the<br />

other way. A factory-owner in Muridke was brutally murdered by a mob in the<br />

presence of policemen who stood by helplessly. This is obviously due to a lack<br />

of professionalism in the police <strong>for</strong>ce and absence of an effective institutional<br />

mechanism to supervise its functioning, which could ensure public safety and<br />

protection of fundamental rights of the citizens.<br />

The Gojra and Muridke incidents, and dozens of cases implicating Ahmedis,<br />

also highlighted the misuse of the blasphemy laws, which over the years have<br />

been exploited by fanatics and vested interests to perpetuate a reign of terror<br />

against the minorities. The government was again too timid to take on the<br />

obscurantist elements and make amendments in the law. It could not even<br />

en<strong>for</strong>ce the law banning the misuse of loudspeakers that the miscreants<br />

employed with impunity to incite the people to violence in both the gory incidents.<br />

The state’s abdication of its responsibilities towards the welfare of the<br />

masses could be seen in areas of social and human development. At the end<br />

of the year under review, more than 3.5 million children were working as labour<br />

in the country in sheer violation of the law and the Constitution. The chapters<br />

on Education, Children and Labour provide the details. Public education sector<br />

stood ruined as a result of neglect over past several decades. The government<br />

did not even care to regulate the private sector schools in order to bring them<br />

under some regulatory framework. The same was the state of public healthcare,<br />

public transport and housing <strong>for</strong> the low-income groups. In Punjab, the alleged<br />

instances of neglect by private hospitals in providing treatment to patients<br />

triggered public protest, but the provincial assembly did not even discuss this<br />

issue of public concern.<br />

In recent years, environmental degradation emerged as an issue of survival<br />

<strong>for</strong> Pakistanis, especially owing to acute water shortage, but no serious longterm<br />

planning was in sight. The year 2009 witnessed mass protests on the<br />

shortage of electricity and natural gas and the emerging trend indicated that<br />

in the coming years the people could be up in arms on the issue of water<br />

shortage if this issue was not tackled on time.<br />

The media, despite all its shortcomings, played a major role in raising the<br />

issues of public interest and highlighted the lackadaisical per<strong>for</strong>mance of the<br />

government. In doing so, it earned the ire of the rulers. The politicians, who<br />

had benefitted from the media in the past during the harsh military regimes,<br />

<strong>found</strong> it hard to stomach its criticism. The media remained under attack from<br />

both the state and non-state actors and faced restrictions on free reporting in<br />

Introduction 3


Balochistan and the tribal region. [The chapter on ‘Freedom of expression’<br />

gives the details]<br />

These issues of public interest on 18 different subjects were monitored<br />

and documented by HRCP all along the year as per its tradition since 1990.<br />

This book provides an overview of the human rights situation in 2009 besides<br />

a digest of the commission’s activities and stands during this period.<br />

Adnan Adil<br />

Editor<br />

4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Highlights<br />

Laws and law-making<br />

The parliament did very little legislative work in 2009. Much greater<br />

legislation was done by invoking the President’s special powers to issue<br />

ordinances. Only four acts were passed by the parliament, while 61 federal<br />

Ordinances were issued.<br />

An ordinance to set up mobile courts was issued but withdrawn after it<br />

drew criticism by the civil society. Likewise, the National Reconciliation<br />

Ordinance (NRO) was introduced in the NA but it was withdrawn be<strong>for</strong>e any<br />

debate could take place.<br />

On April 13, the NA approved the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 <strong>for</strong><br />

Malakand region. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) opposed the<br />

regulation and staged a walkout from the assembly.<br />

The National Assembly adopted two bills that offered protection to<br />

women. The first bill, Domestic Violence Bill, lapsed as it was not passed by<br />

the Senate within 90 days of its introduction. The second bill, Criminal Law<br />

Amendment Bill, that promised better protection against sexual harassment<br />

by amending the PPC and the Cr Pc was adopted by the Senate in the new<br />

year and became law.<br />

Administration of justice<br />

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary, along with other judges<br />

sidelined under the November 3, 2007 emergency, were restored through an<br />

Highlights 5


executive order.<br />

On July 31, the Supreme Court declared the imposition of emergency<br />

on Nov 3, 2007 and actions taken under it invalid and unconstitutional. The<br />

order under which the Islamabad High Court had been set up was struck down<br />

and the court ceased to exist.<br />

The SC nullified a number of Gen Musharraf’s ordinances and referred<br />

as many as 37 Ordinances, including the National Reconciliation Ordinance<br />

(NRO), to the parliament <strong>for</strong> ratification within 120 days.<br />

The Supreme Court took suo motu notice in scores of cases of human<br />

rights’ violations and numerous financial scams.<br />

The Supreme Judicial Council added the following clause to the Code<br />

of Conduct <strong>for</strong> the judges of superior courts:<br />

“No judge of the superior judiciary shall render support in any manner<br />

whatsoever, including taking or administering oath, in violation of the oath of<br />

office prescribed in the Third Schedule to the Constitution, to any authority<br />

that acquires power otherwise than through the modes envisaged by the<br />

Constitution of Pakistan.”<br />

In November the Supreme Court directed the National Database and<br />

Registration Authority (NADRA) to <strong>for</strong>mulate a policy <strong>for</strong> the registration of<br />

Hindu couples, according to their religious customs, in order to enable them to<br />

get computerised national identity cards.<br />

On December 16, the SC struck down the National Reconciliation<br />

Ordinance (NRO) as void ab initio and all cases that had been shelved under<br />

NRO stood revived.<br />

At the end of 2009, 1.52 million cases were pending in the superior<br />

and lower courts of the country.<br />

Law and order<br />

According to non-official estimates, in 2,586 incidents of terrorism, 3,021<br />

people were killed and 7,334 were injured. Out of these, 1,296 people were<br />

killed in 108 suicide bombings.<br />

In April 2009, the murder of three Baloch nationalist leaders, sparked<br />

a massive wave of protests all over Balochistan. At least 16 people were killed<br />

and many others injured in different incidents of shooting during the protest.<br />

Some 164 incidents of target killings took place in Balochistan in which<br />

118 citizens and 158 security officials were killed while 83 citizens and 7 security<br />

6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


officials were injured.<br />

In Punjab, 224 cases of kidnap <strong>for</strong> ransom took place during 2009 as<br />

compared to 248 caes in 2008. 163 persons were kidnapped in Sindh, 241 in<br />

Balochistan and 592 in NWFP during the year.<br />

<br />

1,668 cases of suicides were reported from all over the country.<br />

747 persons were killed in Karachi out of which 291 were killed in<br />

target killings, and 209 of them were political activists.<br />

In Punjab 253 people were killed in ‘police encounters’ besides 28<br />

policemen. In Sindh, 74 suspects and 52 policemen were killed in ‘encounters’.<br />

Jails, prisoners and ‘disappearances’<br />

New incidents of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances continued to be reported<br />

throughout 2009 from across the country.<br />

An in<strong>for</strong>mal moratorium remained in place on execution of the death<br />

sentence but 276 persons were awarded death penalty in 2009. Some 7,700<br />

people were on the death row.<br />

In Camp Jail Lahore alone, 4,651 prisoners were detained in a facility<br />

with a capacity <strong>for</strong> housing only 1,050 individuals. The story of most prisons<br />

elsewhere in the country was not very dissimilar.<br />

There were around 1,800 minor prisoners in the country, with the<br />

majority facing trial.<br />

As many as 54 prisoners were killed and 156 injured in the country’s<br />

prisons during 2009.<br />

Freedom of movement<br />

The movement of ordinary citizens residing in the insurgency-stricken<br />

areas of Swat, Malakand and the Federally Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas bordering<br />

Afghanistan was seriously affected.<br />

In March 2009, in an attempt to thwart lawyers’ long march and sit-in in<br />

Islamabad, police detained more than 600 opposition activists across Punjab,<br />

200 of whom were restricted in the capital city of Islamabad only.<br />

In December, during Muharram, 123 clerics were banned entry into<br />

Sindh from other provinces, 190 into Punjab from other provinces.<br />

In November, the government made it mandatory <strong>for</strong> the Pakistani<br />

missions abroad to issue visas to <strong>for</strong>eigners intending to visit Pakistan only<br />

Highlights 7


after their clearance from the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).<br />

In November 2009, the Interior Ministry placed the names of 248 NRO<br />

beneficiaries on the Exit Control List (ECL). Afterwards, the Interior Ministry<br />

revised the ECL list and reduced the number from 248 to 165 people.<br />

A new survey revealed some 450,000 Pakistanis migrate illegally to<br />

other countries every year.<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion<br />

The year 2009 saw increasing frequency of organised violent attacks<br />

on religious minorities while the government failed to take proactive measures<br />

to prevent such violence in Gojra and Karachi.<br />

<br />

More than 41 complaints of blasphemy were reported during the year.<br />

At least five members of the Ahmadi sect were murdered in target<br />

killings in 2009, raising to 100 the number of killings since the introduction of<br />

anti-Ahmadiyya laws by the Ziaul Haq government in 1984.<br />

In 2009, 15 incidents of sectarian violence took place in Balochistan in<br />

which 26 men were killed and two others injured.<br />

As the militancy surged in the northwestern parts of the country,<br />

en<strong>for</strong>ced migration and displacement of thousands of people belonging to<br />

Christians, Sikhs and Hindu communities from Swat, Kohat and FATA was<br />

reported following threats by Islamist elements.<br />

A majority of Hindu women did not possess CNIC cards because of<br />

legal complications in registration of marriages.<br />

37 Ahmadis were booked under the blasphemy laws during the year<br />

and fifty-seven Ahmadis were charged under Ahmadi-specific laws.<br />

Nearly 80 per cent of the minority population falls below the poverty<br />

line and it has usually been ignored during the various government support<br />

programmes.<br />

Freedom of expression<br />

Seven journalists were killed during the year while per<strong>for</strong>ming their<br />

duties across the country; four other journalists were killed in crime related<br />

incidents.<br />

In 2009, the freedom of the press in Balochistan remained under threat<br />

from coercive state policies as some independent newspapers’ offices were<br />

under virtual siege.<br />

A total of 163 direct attacks were made against media during 2009<br />

including murders, kidnappings, threats, assaults and attacks on media<br />

8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


establishments. Fifty-four of these attacks were made in Punjab, 52 in NWFP,<br />

28 in Islamabad, while three cases were recorded in Balochistan.<br />

In January 2009, the Council of Pakistan Newspapers Editors (CPNE)<br />

rejected the Printing Presses and Publications Amendment Ordinance <strong>for</strong><br />

newspapers and magazines and urged the government to cancel the ordinance.<br />

The authorities served 64 legal notices on 18 private television channels<br />

in the 2008-09 period <strong>for</strong> violating the code of conduct <strong>for</strong>mulated by PEMRA.<br />

On July 9 the President reissued the Prevention of Electronic Crimes,<br />

Ordinance (PECO) 2009 which covers 18 offences that carry severe<br />

punishment. It could be interpreted as giving authorities power to curb freedom<br />

of expression.<br />

In March 2009, the media was barred from covering the Senate election<br />

held in the NWFP provincial assembly building.<br />

An aggressive campaign by Jang-Geo media group <strong>for</strong> expeditious<br />

implementation of the Supreme Court verdict in the NRO case, and on<br />

corruption charges against the President angered the government which<br />

responded by withholding government advertisements from the group.<br />

Freedom of assembly<br />

Worried at some high-profile protest rallies the government resorted<br />

to Section 144 and imposed restrictions on the right to assembly. The Section<br />

was imposed in Peshawar, Islamabad and across Punjab to prevent / restrict<br />

the lawyers’ long march <strong>for</strong> the restoration of the judiciary.<br />

Several public gatherings were targeted like the attack on the Ashura<br />

procession in Karachi which claimed a high death toll and spread terror.<br />

In May, riots erupted in Karachi when KESC failed to address load<br />

shedding problems.<br />

Karachi shut down on the anniversary of the May 12th carnage of<br />

2007 and daily life and business in the city came to a grinding halt.<br />

Freedom of association<br />

In Karachi, more than 209 people, mostly belonging to political parties,<br />

were killed during the year under review and most probably on account of<br />

their political associations.<br />

Civil society organisations throughout Pakistan faced severe threats<br />

during 2009 in the wake of increasing terrorism and violence. Employees<br />

Highlights 9


associated with NGOs in the country suffered huge losses which were often<br />

irreparable. They faced risks to their property as well as their lives.<br />

At least 34 trade union leaders were arrested during May 2009 all<br />

over Punjab. Also, during this period the Punjab police registered cases against<br />

1,300 workers who were engaged in trade union activity.<br />

Democratic development<br />

In 2009, three joint sessions of parliament were held. The first joint<br />

sitting was addressed by President Asif Ali Zardari.<br />

The National Assembly adopted 23 resolutions expressing its opinion<br />

on some burning issues of the day.<br />

The NA approved the first military operation in Swat on May 12.<br />

The Lahore High Court on October 7 postponed the polls in four<br />

constituencies –NA-55, NA-123, PP-82 and PP-284 - and ordered the Election<br />

Commission to announce new dates <strong>for</strong> the same in consultation with the political<br />

parties.<br />

On September 7, the President signed the Gilgit-Baltistan<br />

(Empowerment and Self-Governance) Order, 2009, aimed at introducing<br />

administrative, political, financial and judicial re<strong>for</strong>ms in Gilgit-Baltistan. Elections<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly (GBLA) were held on November<br />

12, 2009.<br />

A <strong>content</strong>ious issue of NFC Award between the four federating units<br />

was solved.<br />

Following the exclusion of local government laws from the Sixth Schedule<br />

of the constitution the local bodies became a provincial subject. The provinces<br />

started making their own laws relating to local government.<br />

Women<br />

Violence against women registered a sharp increase during 2009. A<br />

total of 1,404 women were murdered. Out of these, 647 women were murdered<br />

in the name of ‘honour’ (including the cases of karo kari) while 757 were<br />

murdered <strong>for</strong> other reasons.<br />

A total of 928 rape cases were reported. Some 563 women committed<br />

suicide while 253 attempted suicide.<br />

<br />

<br />

One hundred thirty-five (135) women fell victims to burning.<br />

The domestic violence (including torture, beating, shaving, amputation,<br />

1 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


murder attempts) cases shot up from 137 in 2008 to 205.<br />

The government failed to en<strong>for</strong>ce a new law to deal with domestic<br />

violence.<br />

The National Assembly passed the amendments in PPC and CrPC to<br />

define sexual harrassment and propose enhanced punishment <strong>for</strong> offenders.<br />

The bill was passed by the Senate in the new year.<br />

Children<br />

Pakistan’s child population of less than 18 years of age was 70 million<br />

– out of which almost 20.30 million did not go to school while around 20.80<br />

million were less than five years of age. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 35 per cent to 40 per cent of<br />

the children were out of schools.<br />

The infant mortality rate is 73 per 1,000 births against the MDG target<br />

of 40 per 1,000 in 2015.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ound 20,000 children die of diarrhoea every year; nearly 20 per<br />

cent of the children suffer from asthma.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ound 52 per cent of the children studying in seminaries experience<br />

sexual harassment.<br />

Almost 58 per cent of the girls in rural areas are married be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />

age of 20.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ound 3.5 million children below the age of 15 are working in the<br />

country’s rural and urban sectors, mainly in<strong>for</strong>mal.<br />

Pakistan suffered from a very high rate of child malnutrition with 39 per<br />

cent of children moderately or severely malnourished.<br />

968 children, 285 boys and 683 girls, were sexually abused in the first<br />

six months of 2009.<br />

<br />

The number of street children in the country rose to 1.5 million.<br />

There were 1357 juvenile prisoners in jails; of these only 132 were<br />

convicts and 1,225 were facing trial.<br />

Labour<br />

Estimated labour <strong>for</strong>ce in the country was 51.78 million – 40.82 million<br />

males and 10.96 million females.<br />

Although the female participation rate in the labour <strong>for</strong>ce increased in<br />

2009, the female participation rate was still lower than the male participation<br />

Highlights 1 1


ate.<br />

<br />

The ban on labour inspection was not lifted.<br />

In 2009, around 285,000 people lost their jobs in the banking sector,<br />

61,200 in the computer industry, 115,000 in the construction sector, 120,200<br />

in the electronic industry and 69,000 in the telecommunication industry.<br />

Education<br />

Pakistan was ranked 117 out of 134 countries in terms of quality of<br />

primary education in World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index<br />

<strong>for</strong> 2009.<br />

The budgetary allocation <strong>for</strong> the education sector <strong>for</strong> 2009-10 was 2.3<br />

per cent of the GDP, less than the minimum amount of 4% recommended by<br />

UNESCO.<br />

At the end of 2009, an estimated 35% to 40% children of school-going<br />

age were out in the streets.<br />

Terrorists destroyed more than 187 schools and partially damaged<br />

318 others <strong>for</strong>cing 50, 000 girls and boys to sit at home.<br />

<br />

About 4000 schools were being used <strong>for</strong> housing the IDPs.<br />

The Nizam-e-Adal Regulation dealt a blow to female education. Some<br />

4,000 schools enrolling above 40, 000 girls were shut down, further worsening<br />

the primary-level gender gap ratio to 11.3%.<br />

The suicide bombing of Islamic University in Islamabad in October was<br />

followed by the shutting down of schools and universities all over the country<br />

<strong>for</strong> about a week and several days of schooling were lost.<br />

The New Education Policy draft was announced in early 2009 and met<br />

with much critical response.<br />

Health<br />

There is only one doctor <strong>for</strong> 1,212 persons, one dentist <strong>for</strong> 18,010<br />

persons and one hospital bed <strong>for</strong> 1,575 persons.<br />

The health budget <strong>for</strong> 2009-10 provided <strong>for</strong> per capita expenditure of<br />

less than $16 which was far short of the $34 recommended by the World<br />

Health Organisation to deliver essential services in a country.<br />

In April 2009, the federal government set up a task <strong>for</strong>ce to prepare a<br />

new national health policy to replace the one of 2001.<br />

<br />

As many as 116,719 cancer cases occurred and 85,812 deaths were<br />

1 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


eported.<br />

There were 85,000 individuals infected with HIV-AIDS in Pakistan out<br />

of which nearly two percent were children under the age of 14.<br />

Pakistan was ranked 8th among the TB-affected countries across the<br />

globe with the number of TB patients increasing every year. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 75 percent<br />

of the TB patients in the country were youth.<br />

13 cases of polio were reported from Swat by October 2009.<br />

Of the 1,078 renal transplants carried out in Pakistan in Sept 2007-<br />

March 2009, organs were obtained from live relations in 1,027 cases. Prior to<br />

the promulgation of the ordinance banning he sale of human organs, nearly<br />

2,000 kidney transplantations were taking place in Pakistan annually of which<br />

only 500 were carried out under ethical conditions.<br />

<br />

212 confirmed cases of Swine Flu, caused by H1N1 virus, were reported.<br />

Housing<br />

In the absence of adequate housing facilities, slums (katchi abadis)<br />

continued to be the biggest housing issue in Pakistan. The displacement of<br />

more than 2.5 million people from Swat also created an issue of shelter <strong>for</strong> the<br />

displaced people.<br />

In the year under review, the total number of housing units in the country<br />

was estimated at 22.8 million out of which 67.5 percent were in rural areas and<br />

32.5 percent in urban centers; the household size was 3.13 persons per room.<br />

<br />

units.<br />

The country currently faced a shortfall of nearly eight million housing<br />

There were 28 katchi abadis in Islamabad inhabited by more than 70,000<br />

dwellers whose living conditions were appalling.<br />

<br />

In 2009, LDA demolished more than 200 temporary katchi bastis.<br />

There were 103 illegal housing societies in Lahore alone which were<br />

not approved by LDA.<br />

Environment<br />

<br />

About 38 percent of Pakistan’s irrigated land was waterlogged.<br />

According to official estimates, collective environmental degradation<br />

costs the country at least 6 percent of GDP or about Rs 365 billion per year.<br />

<br />

By the end of 2009, the total irrigation water shortage was estimated<br />

Highlights 1 3


to be 33 to 34 per cent of the total requirement in 2010. However, Meteorological<br />

Department estimated it to be 40 per cent.<br />

More than 60 percent of the country’s population was without access<br />

to safe drinking water. In Pakistan water availability per person per year was<br />

just a little more than 1,000 cubic metres, much less than the required normal<br />

standard of 1,700 cubic metres.<br />

The Sindh government distributed nearly 111,000 hectares of <strong>for</strong>est<br />

land <strong>for</strong> non-<strong>for</strong>est use during the year.<br />

Some 23,000 people died in the country because of air-pollution. As<br />

many as 45 million Pakistanis suffered from respiratory diseases, mainly caused<br />

by air pollution.<br />

More than 400 million gallons of untreated industrial waste were being<br />

discharged into the <strong>Ar</strong>abian Sea daily out of which 80 million gallons was<br />

contributed by Karachi and the remaining came from the rest of the country.<br />

Refugees<br />

The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) swelled in the wake<br />

of military operations in Swat, South Waziristan, Bajaur, Orakzai and adjacent<br />

areas. At the end of 2009, there were 1.25 million IDPs including 500,000<br />

children.<br />

Only 50, 000 Afghan refugees were repatriated to Afghanistan in 2009<br />

as the process slowed down owing to bad security situation at home. There<br />

were 1.7 million registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan.<br />

Nearly 40,000 IDPs of Balochistan returned to their homes in 2009,<br />

while more than 40,000 were still displaced.<br />

As several conflict-affected areas were declared out-of-bounds <strong>for</strong> aid<br />

workers, many NGOs kept their workers away from these regions.<br />

1 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Rule of Law<br />

III<br />

Laws and law-making 1 5


1 6 State of Human Rights in 2009


Laws and law-making<br />

... fundamental rights, including equality of status, of opportunity and be<strong>for</strong>e law,<br />

social, economic and political justice, and freedom of thought, expression, belief,<br />

faith, worship and association, subject to the law and public morality, [shall be<br />

guaranteed] ... the independence of the judiciary shall be fully secured.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

Preamble<br />

To enjoy the protection of law and to be treated in accordance with law is the<br />

inalienable right of every citizen, wherever he may be, and of every other person <strong>for</strong><br />

the time being within Pakistan.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 4<br />

Any law, or any custom or usage having the <strong>for</strong>ce of law, insofar as it is inconsistent<br />

with the rights conferred by this chapter [on Fundamental Rights] shall, to the extent<br />

of such inconsistency, be void.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 8(1)<br />

It is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to<br />

rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by<br />

the rule of law<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

Preamble<br />

Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or<br />

indirectly or through freely chosen representatives.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 21(1)<br />

For the second time running the parliament could complete very little legislative<br />

Laws and law-making 1 7


work in 2009. Much greater legislation was done by invoking the President’s special<br />

powers to issue ordinances.<br />

Acts of parliament<br />

Only four acts were passed by the parliament during 2009. These are:<br />

1. The Finance Act, 2009<br />

2. The Cotton Standardization (Amdt) Act, 2009<br />

3. The Election Laws (Amdt) Act, 2009<br />

4. The Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

As in the preceding year the Finance Act was used as a vehicle <strong>for</strong> amending laws.<br />

The legislation done in this manner was:<br />

1. Amendment of Customs Act 1969<br />

2. Amendment of the Finance Act of 1989<br />

3. Amendment of Sales Act of 1990<br />

4. Amendment of the Income Tax Ordinance of 2001<br />

5. Amendment of the Petroleum Products (Petroleum Development Levy<br />

Ordinance, 1961)<br />

However, the previous year’s tactic of amending through Finance Act laws not<br />

related to revenue matters was not repeated.<br />

Legislation through ordinances<br />

Sixty-one federal ordinances were issued in 2009. An ordinance (No.7 in the<br />

following list) to set up mobile courts was issued but withdrawn after it drew criticism<br />

by the civil society. The following list of these ordinances includes quite a few measures<br />

that were issued in order to keep alive ordinances issued four months earlier:<br />

I. The Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009.<br />

II. The Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance, 2009.<br />

III. The Federal Excise (Amdt), Ordinance, 2009.<br />

IV. The Oil and Gas Regularity Ordinance, 2009.<br />

V. The Public Defender and Legal Aid Office Ordinance, 2009.<br />

VI. The National Vocational and Technical Education Commission Ord, 2009<br />

VII. The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009.<br />

VIII. The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ordinance, 2009.<br />

IX. The Benazir Income Support Programme Ordinance. 2009<br />

X. The Civil Servants (Amdt) Ordinance, 2009.<br />

XI. The Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance, 2009<br />

1 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


XII. The Women in distress & detention Fund (Amdt) Ord, 2009<br />

XIII. The Public defender & legal aid office Ord, 2009<br />

XIV. The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ord. 2009<br />

XV. The Petroleum Product (Petroleum Development Levy) (Amdt) Ord, 2009<br />

XVI. The Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (Amdt) Ordinance, 2009<br />

XVII. The National Vocational & Technical Education Commission Ord, 2009<br />

XVIII. The Regulation of Generation Transmission & Distribution of Electric<br />

Power (Amdt) Ordinance, 2009<br />

XIX. The Benazir Income Support Program Ordinance, 2009<br />

XX. The Civil Servants (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009<br />

XXI. The Anti-terrorism (Amendment) Ordinace,2009<br />

XXII. The Finance (Amendment) Ordinance,2009<br />

XXIII. The Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance,2009<br />

XXIV. The Public Defender and Legal Aid Office Ordinance,2009<br />

XXV. The Central Law Officer (Amendment) Ordinance,2009<br />

XXVI. The Petroleum Products (Petroleum Development Levy) (Amendment)<br />

Ordinance,2009<br />

XXVII. The Anti Money Laundering Ordinance, 2009. (XXVII of 2009)<br />

XXVIII. The National School of Public Policy Ordinance, 2009<br />

XXIX. The Regulation of Generation Transmission & Distribution of Electric<br />

Power (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (XXIX of 2009)<br />

XXX. The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009<br />

(XXX of 2009)<br />

XXXI. The Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan Ordinance, 2009 (XXXI<br />

of 2009)<br />

XXXII. The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (XXXII<br />

of 2009)<br />

XXXIII. The Recognition & En<strong>for</strong>cement (<strong>Ar</strong>bitration Agreement & <strong>for</strong>eign <strong>Ar</strong>bitral<br />

Awards) Ordinance, 2009 (XXXIII of 2009)<br />

XXXIV. The Pakistan Penal Code (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (XXXIV of<br />

2009)<br />

XXXV. The Islamabad Consumers Protection (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009<br />

(XXXV of2009)<br />

XXXVI. The National Vocational & Technical Education Commission Ordinance,<br />

2009 (XXXVI of 2009)<br />

XXXVII. The National Commission <strong>for</strong> Human Development (Amendment)<br />

Laws and law-making 1 9


Ordinance, 2009 (XXXVII of 2009)<br />

XXXVIII. The Industrial Development Bank of Pakistan (Re-Organization &<br />

Conversion) Ordinance, 2009 (XXXVIII of 2009)<br />

XXXIX. The Earthquake Reconstruction & Rehabilitation Authority Ordinance,<br />

2009 (XXXIX of 2009)<br />

XL. The Price Control & Prevention of Profiteering & Hoarding (Amendment)<br />

Ordinance, 2009 (XL of 2009)<br />

XLI. The Transplantation of Human Organs & Tissues Ordinance, 2009 (XLI of<br />

2009)<br />

XLII. The <strong>Ar</strong>bitration (International Investment Disputes Ordinance, 2009 (XLII<br />

of 2009)<br />

XLIII. The National Disaster Management Ordinance, 2009 (XLIII of 2009)<br />

XLIV. The Police Order (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (XLIV of 2009)<br />

XLV. The Patents (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (XLV of 2009)<br />

XLVI. The Competition Ordinance, 2009 (XLVI of 2009)<br />

XLVII. The Federal Public Service Commission (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009<br />

(XLVIIof2009)<br />

XLVIII. The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics Ordinance, 2009<br />

(XLVIII of 2009)<br />

XLIX. The Trade Organizations Ordinance, 2009 (XLIX of 2009)<br />

L. The National Command Authority Ordinance, 2009 (L of 2009)<br />

LI. The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan Ordinance, 2009 (LI of 2009)<br />

LII. The Pakistan <strong>Ar</strong>my (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 (LII of 2009)<br />

LIII. The Defence Housing Authority Islamabad Ordinance, 2009 (LIIIof2009)<br />

LIV. The Islamabad Capital Territory Private Education Institutions (Regulation &<br />

Promotion ) Ordinance, 2009 (LIV of 2009)<br />

LV. The National Defence University Ordinance, 2009 (LV of 2009)<br />

LVI. The Pakistan Regulation & Control of Loudspeakers & Sound Amplifiers<br />

Ordinance, 2009.(LVI of 2009)<br />

LVII. The Pakistan Engineering Council (Amdt) Ordinance, 2009 (LVII of 2009)<br />

LVIII. The Institute of Space Technology Ordinance, 2009 (LVIII of 2009)<br />

LIX. The National Database and Registration Authority (Amdt) Ord, 2009<br />

LX. The Alternative Energy Development Board Ordinance, 2009.<br />

LXl. The Benazir Income Support Programme Ordinance, 2009.<br />

Bills passed by the National Assembly<br />

In addition to the four acts listed above the National Assembly passed the following<br />

2 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


ills during 2009:<br />

1. The Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 2009<br />

2. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

3. The Federal Board of Revenue (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

4. The Modaraba Companies and Modaraba (Floatation and Control) (Amendment)<br />

Act, 2009<br />

5. The NFC Institute of Engineering and Technology Multan Act, 2009<br />

6. The Stock Exchanges (Corporatisation, Demutualization and Integration) Act,<br />

2008<br />

7. The Family Courts (Amendment) Act, 2008<br />

8. The Guardians and Wards (Amendment) Act, 2008<br />

9. The Anti-Dumping Duties (Amendment) Act, 2008<br />

10. Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act, 2009<br />

11. Rulers of Acceding States (Abolition of Privy Purses and Privileges)<br />

(Amendment) Act, 2008<br />

Out of all the bills brought in the National Assembly, the following were introduced<br />

by the government:<br />

1. The Banking Companies (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

2. The Agricultural Pesticides Act, 2009<br />

3. The Anti-Money Laundering (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

4. The Election Law (Amendment) Bill, 2009<br />

5. The NFC Institute of Engineering and Technology Multan, Act, 2009<br />

6. The <strong>Ar</strong>bitration Act, 2009<br />

7. The Holders of Public Offices (Accountability) Act, 2009<br />

8. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

9. The Protection against Harassment at the Workplace Act, 2009<br />

10. The Boilers and Pressure Vessels (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

Private members introduced the following bills in the National Assembly during the<br />

year under review:<br />

1. The Competition (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

2. The Woman Honour Act, 2009<br />

3. The Pakistan Penal Code (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

4. The Pakistan Commissions of Inquiry (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

5. The Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

Laws and law-making 2 1


6. The Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

7. The Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

8. The Civil Servants (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

9. The Banking Companies (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

10. The Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

11. The Disability Concessions Card Act, 2009<br />

12. The Pakistan Pharmacy Council Act, 2009<br />

13. The Protection of Children Act. 2009<br />

14. The Medical And Dental Council (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

15. The Family Courts (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

16. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

17. The Pakistan Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

18. The Factories (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

19. The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

20. The Regulation of Generation, Transmission and Distribution of Electric Power<br />

(Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

21. The Senior Citizens Act, 2009<br />

22. The Family Courts (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

23. The Muslim Family Laws (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

24. The Factories (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

25. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

26. The Restriction on Re-employment Act, 2009<br />

27. The Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

28. The Anti Terrorism (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

29. The Rights of Juvenile Offenders Act, 2009<br />

30. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

31. The Charter of Child Rights Act, 2009<br />

32. The Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

33. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

34. The Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

35. The Special Citizens (Right to Concessions in Movement) Act, 2009<br />

36. The Quality Check on Baby Foods and Cosmetics Act, 2009<br />

Resolutions<br />

The National Assembly passed the following resolutions during 2009:<br />

November 10: Resolution on control on price-hike<br />

2 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


October 12: Resolution on GHQ incident<br />

August 13: Resolution on women parliamentary caucus<br />

August 13: Resolution on protection of minorities’ rights<br />

August 3: Resolution on Gojra incident<br />

June 22: Resolution on Swat situation<br />

June 16: Resolution on condemning the assassination of Dr. Sarfraz Naeemi<br />

April 13: Resolution on Shariah Nizam-i-Adl Regulation 2009<br />

January 20: Resolution on Swat situation<br />

January 12: Unanimous resolution against Israeli aggression on Gaza<br />

Provincial assemblies enactments<br />

NWFP Ministers (Salaries, Allowances and Priveleges (Second Ammendment)<br />

Ordinance, 2008 NWFP Salaries, Allowances and Priveleges Laws (Ammendment) Bill<br />

2009<br />

Punjab Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Bill 2009<br />

Public Procurement Bill and the Colonisation of Government Lands<br />

(Amendment) Bill, 2009<br />

Sugar Factory Control Bill 2009<br />

HITEC University of Taxila Act, 2009<br />

The Supreme Court in its July 31, 2009 verdict declared the Emergency imposed<br />

by Pervez Musharraf and the measures taken during this period unconstitutional and<br />

illegal and directed endorsement of the ordinances promulgated during the period from<br />

relevant assembly. The verdict also covered nine of the ordinances promulgated by the<br />

Punjab governor, making the provincial government table these be<strong>for</strong>e the Punjab<br />

Assembly to make laws <strong>for</strong> covering the measures taken under the ordinances. The<br />

enactments included:<br />

Punjab Rented Premises Act, 2009<br />

Punjab Regulatory Authority Act, 2009<br />

Punjab Government Employees Welfare Fund (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

Punjab Fisheries (Amendment) Act, 2009<br />

Punjab Prohibition of Kite Flying Act, 2009<br />

Punjab Katchi Abadis (Amendment) Act<br />

Hi Tech University of Taxila Punjab Act<br />

Provincial Motor Vehicles (First Amendment) Act<br />

Laws and law-making 2 3


Provincial Motor Vehicles (Second Amendment) Act<br />

LJCP proposals<br />

The Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan proposed a number of changes in<br />

the statutes. At its meeting on 5 December 2009, the LJCP recommended prohibition<br />

of the inhuman practice of <strong>for</strong>cing an accused to walk on burning coals to prove his<br />

innocence. It suggested the insertion of a provision in the Penal Code to the effect that<br />

the perpetrators of trial by fire or water would be punishable with imprisonment <strong>for</strong> up<br />

to three years and fine.<br />

The other decisions/recommendations of the Commission were:<br />

<br />

All child convicts should be sent to Borstal institutions and not to prisons.<br />

Investigation of cases against children should be carried out only by senior<br />

and experienced police officers not below the rank of BPS 17.<br />

Such investigations should be conducted with the assistance of psychiatrists/<br />

psychologists or medical experts. Children should be released <strong>for</strong> good conduct during<br />

trial and on probation after conviction. A child on probation should be given to his<br />

guardian or some institution committed to children’s welfare. A female child on probation<br />

must not be put under the supervision of a man.<br />

The family court rules should be amended to the effect that the plaint <strong>for</strong><br />

dissolution of marriage should contain the name of the union council where the marriage<br />

is per<strong>for</strong>med or registered so that the court can send a copy of its decree to it without<br />

loss of time.<br />

A provision should be added to section 489-F of the PPC to the effect that<br />

be<strong>for</strong>e lodging an FIR on account of a dishonoured cheque a written notice must be<br />

served on the drawer to pay the amount within 10 days. If he fails to pay within 10<br />

days then an FIR may be registered. Through another amendment to this section a<br />

sessions judge should be authorised to call <strong>for</strong> bank record in respect of the dishonoured<br />

cheque.<br />

The Illegal Possession Act 2005 should be amended to provide <strong>for</strong> right of<br />

appeal to the high court against an order of the sessions court (within 10 days of the<br />

passing of the latter’s order.)<br />

Recommendations of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII)<br />

On August 21, 2008, the CII, in its 170 th meeting, made the following<br />

recommendations:<br />

(a) Although there is no clear injunction in Quran and Sunnah against smoking<br />

2 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


tobacco, its use is injurious to human health and must be discouraged at all levels.<br />

(b) In case of a missing husband, whose whereabouts are not known, under the<br />

existing law a woman is allowed to re-marry after waiting <strong>for</strong> her husband <strong>for</strong> four<br />

years. As the means of communication have greatly improved, the waiting period <strong>for</strong> a<br />

woman be<strong>for</strong>e re-marrying should be reduced to two years.<br />

(c) There should be complete ban on child labour. The government needs to take<br />

measures <strong>for</strong> the subsistence and education of children from poor families.<br />

(d) In all documents, the name of a person’s mother should be mentioned along<br />

with the father’s name.<br />

On 14-15 November 2008, the CII, in its 171th meeting, made the following<br />

recommendations:<br />

(a) Legislation should be made to the effect that if a woman seeks divorce from<br />

her husband in writing the husband will be bound to grant her divorce within 90 days.<br />

If the husband does not do so, divorce will take effect except in case of the woman<br />

withdrawing her notice. After the expiry of 90 days, the husband will not have the right<br />

to reconcile with the woman.<br />

is.<br />

(b) Registration of divorce should be made mandatory just as registration of nikah<br />

(c) After divorce, the court can issue an order to the husband to pay a certain<br />

amount of money, Haq-i-Mata, to the divorced woman, according to the injunctions<br />

of Quran and keeping in view the financial position of the man. The amount may be<br />

payable in one go or in installments.<br />

(d) Domestic violence needs to be included in the law of Qisas and Diyat.<br />

(e) An institution needs to be set up on the pattern of federal and provincial<br />

ombudsmen to take notice of incidents of domestic violence and propose legal measures<br />

to check them. The institution needs to be preferably headed by a woman.<br />

(f) Women can freely travel inside and outside Pakistan. The issue of accompanying<br />

a mehram <strong>for</strong> Haj or Umra does not fall within the jurisdiction of Pakistan as it lies<br />

within the purview of Saudi <strong>Ar</strong>abia.<br />

On 26-27 March 2009, the CII, in its meeting number 173, made the following<br />

recommendations:<br />

(a) The clauses 19 (B) and 41(C) of the Guardian and Ward Act 1890 need to be<br />

amended to ensure rights of mother, as required by Islamic law (shariah)<br />

(b) In the existing <strong>for</strong>m of wedding (nikah), clauses 5, 14, 15, 16, 19 and 21 need<br />

to be amended and a new nikah <strong>for</strong>m drafted.<br />

(c) Drafting needs to be made a compulsory subject in the institutions offering<br />

Laws and law-making 2 5


instructions in law.<br />

(d) Competent draftsmen need to be recruited by all law-making bodies including<br />

CII.<br />

(e) A detailed review of law regarding Qisas and Diyat is needed.<br />

(f) The concept of “Aqila” is no more prevalent in the society. If a convict cannot<br />

pay diyat (compensation money) or fine, the government should make the payment of<br />

diyat as determined by the court, and convicts need to be paid a reasonable wage <strong>for</strong><br />

their labour in the prison. The proceeds from this labour can be used to pay diyat.<br />

(g) The definition of injury in clause 332 of Qisas and Diyat law needs to be<br />

amended to include domestic violence.<br />

On 28-29 September 2009, the CII, made the following recommendations:<br />

(a) The writing-off of bank loans is a matter of concern. The government needs<br />

to frame laws of bankruptcy and ensure their en<strong>for</strong>cement.<br />

(b) A clause needs to be added into the nikah-nama (wedding certificate) regarding<br />

serious disease, if any, afflicting the bride and the bridegroom. However, the mention<br />

of the disease needs to be optional and non-compliance should not prevent the two<br />

sides from entering into a wedding agreement. It may be noted that NWFP and Sindh<br />

assemblies have already passed laws calling <strong>for</strong> addition of blood test reports in the<br />

nikah certificate.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Consolidation of the democratic dispensation demands a drastic acceleration of<br />

legislative work by the parliament.<br />

2. Ordinances should only be issued in situations of extreme urgency and must be<br />

regularised by the parliament within four months. The practice of re-issuing ordinances<br />

needs to be discontinued.<br />

3. Legislation that directly benefits the people must receive as much importance, if<br />

not more, as measures aimed at solving the state’s problems.<br />

4. All legislative proposals should be fully publicised and the time-lag between<br />

re<strong>for</strong>m proposals made by competent bodies and their translation into laws should be<br />

reduced.<br />

2 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Administration of justice<br />

To enjoy the protection of law and to be treated in accordance with law is the<br />

inalienable right of every citizen, wherever he may be, and of every other person <strong>for</strong><br />

the time being within Pakistan. In particular (a) no action detrimental to the life,<br />

liberty, body, reputation or property of any person shall be taken except in accordance<br />

with law, (b) no person shall be prevented from or be hindered in doing that which is<br />

not prohibited by law; and (c) no person shall be compelled to do that which the law<br />

does not require him to do.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 4(1) and (2)<br />

No person shall be deprived of life or liberty save in accordance with law<br />

All citizens are equal be<strong>for</strong>e law and are entitled to equal protection of law.<br />

There shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex alone.<br />

The state shall ensure inexpensive and expeditious justice<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 9<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 25(1)<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 25(2)<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 37(2)<br />

No property shall be compulsorily acquired or taken possession of save <strong>for</strong> a<br />

public purpose and save by authority of law ...<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 24(2)<br />

Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all<br />

members of the human family is the <strong>found</strong>ation of freedom, justice and peace in the<br />

world.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

Preamble<br />

Administration of justice 2 7


Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person be<strong>for</strong>e the law<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 6<br />

All are equal be<strong>for</strong>e the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal<br />

protection of the law.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 7<br />

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals<br />

<strong>for</strong> acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the Constitution or by law.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 8<br />

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent<br />

and impartial tribunal in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any<br />

criminal charge against him.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 10<br />

No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 17(2)<br />

No one within the jurisdiction of a State Party to the present Optional protocol [on<br />

abolition of death penalty] shall be executed.<br />

Each State Party shall take all necessary measures to abolish the death penalty<br />

within its jurisdiction.<br />

Second Optional Protocol to ICCPR<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 1<br />

Judicial activism, simmering tension between the Supreme Court (SC) and the<br />

executive on the appointment of judges in superior courts, and the continuing backlog<br />

of cases in courts at all levels despite increased budget <strong>for</strong> the judiciary and a judicial<br />

policy <strong>for</strong> expeditious disposal of cases were the main features of the year 2009. The<br />

resource allocation <strong>for</strong> the SC was also raised by 73 per cent - from Rs 2345 million in<br />

2008 to Rs 6135 million in 2009. Also, the President issued an ordinance to raise the<br />

salaries of the judges of the superior courts.<br />

Judicial activism<br />

A defining year in Pakistan’s judicial history, 2009 witnessed a number of<br />

developments regarding Judiciary. In the early part of the year, the lawyers’ movement<br />

<strong>for</strong> the restoration of the judges sacked by ex-President Gen Pervez Musharraf came<br />

to a successful conclusion. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary and other<br />

judges affected by the November 3, 2007 emergency, were restored; judges who took<br />

oath under PCO were removed from their posts; the Supreme Court and the High<br />

Courts asserted their independence and the judges began to play a more pro-active role<br />

in national affairs and matters relating to public interest.<br />

In 2009, the Supreme Court took suo motu notice in scores of cases of human<br />

2 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


ights’ violations and numerous financial scams.<br />

A positive aspect of the judicial activism was that victims of human rights violations<br />

increasingly turned to the superior courts <strong>for</strong> the redress of their grievances against the<br />

high-handedness of the executive or influential people, and in several cases, they actually<br />

got relief. Seeing an<br />

active judiciary taking<br />

notice on media<br />

reports, media also<br />

highlighted incidents<br />

of alleged human<br />

rights violations, such<br />

as torture against<br />

women and children,<br />

- a trend that was quite<br />

helpful in raising mass<br />

awareness on these<br />

issues which<br />

traditionally had been<br />

ignored. In 2009, the<br />

district courts also<br />

provided relief to<br />

thousands of people by recovering and freeing bonded labourers at farms and brick<br />

kilns in Sindh, Punjab and NWFP. The role of the district and sessions courts in freeing<br />

bonded labour, using their delegated powers to hear habeas corpus cases, suggests<br />

that if the jurisdiction of the district courts is further expanded regarding the incidents<br />

of human rights violations, it will benefit the marginalised sections of the society.<br />

While the Supreme Court asserted its independence through the use of public<br />

interest litigation and by taking suo motu notice of issues of ‘public importance,’ several<br />

of these initiatives were criticised either in terms of the process that was adopted or<br />

because of selective use of these extraordinary powers or because the Supreme Court<br />

was seen as extending its jurisdiction to the extent of encroaching into the legislative<br />

and executive domains.<br />

High-profile cases<br />

Lawyers celebrating the restoration of Chief Justice Iftikhar<br />

Muhammad Chaudhry<br />

The Supreme Court delivered important judgments in some high profile cases<br />

such as the disqualification of the Sharif brothers, restrictions on the movement of Dr<br />

A. Q. Khan and Murtaza Bhutto murder case. On November 3, the SC declared the<br />

2007 Emergency unconstitutional, and that it will at all costs fulfil its commitment to<br />

uphold the rule of law and supremacy of the constitution. The SC short judgment<br />

Administration of justice 2 9


declaring the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) null and void ab initio made a<br />

huge impact on national politics as it has implications <strong>for</strong> the status of a number of<br />

federal and provincial ministers, some members of the parliament and President Asif<br />

Zardari.<br />

Reinstatement<br />

On March 15, the government announced the reinstatement of the deposed Chief<br />

Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary along with other judges, sparking a wave of<br />

celebrations throughout the country. The government followed its decision by notifying<br />

on March 17 that Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary will resume the office of the<br />

Chief Justice Pakistan of Pakistan from 22 nd of March 2009. Other judges reinstated<br />

through the notification included Justice Javed Iqbal, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday,<br />

Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed and Justice Chaudhary Ijaz Ahmed of the Supreme Court;<br />

Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif, Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhary and Justice Iqbal<br />

Hameedur Rehman of the Lahore High Court; Justice Munir Alam and Justice Maqbool<br />

Babar of the Sindh High Court;and Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan of the Peshawar High<br />

Court. Attorney General Sardar Latif Khosa clarified that since the judges were reinstated<br />

through an executive order they would not be required to take a fresh oath. According<br />

to government notification on April 12 Khawaja Muhammad Sharif was appointed<br />

Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court.<br />

Status of PCO judges<br />

A day after Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary resumed charge two<br />

petitions were moved in the Supreme Court seeking contempt of court proceedings<br />

against the judges who had taken oath under the Provisional Constitution Order (PCO)<br />

and a declaration against those appointed without consultation with the Chief Justice.<br />

The first petition argued that those who had helped the imposition of extra-constitutional<br />

steps through their conduct committed wilful and intentional disobedience in defiance<br />

of the order of a seven-judge bench overruling the state of emergency immediately<br />

after it was proclaimed by <strong>for</strong>mer President Pervez Mushattaf on Nov 3, 2007. Thirtyeight<br />

judges who had taken oath under the PCO were made respondents. They included<br />

outgoing Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Muhammad Nawaz Abbasi, Justice<br />

Faqir Muhammad Khokhar, Justice M. Javed Buttar and Justice Saiyed Saeed Ashhad.<br />

The petitioner pleaded that the judges were liable to be dealt with in accordance with<br />

the provisions of <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 204 (contempt of court) of the Constitution. The second<br />

petition prayed that all judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts regardless of<br />

whether they took oath under PCO or the Constitution should not be entitled to function<br />

if they had been appointed without consultation with the Chief Justice. The petition<br />

argued that <strong>for</strong>mer Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar could not be said to be exercising<br />

3 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


administrative control on the Supreme Court from Nov 3, 2007 to March 22, 2009 and<br />

as such any consultation with him in the context of appointment of judges to the<br />

superior courts was illegal. Thus judges appointed between November 3, 2007 and<br />

July 30, 2009 were declared to have held their office in an illegal manner.<br />

The number of judges who had refused to take oath under the Provisional Constitution<br />

Order of Nov 3, 2007 rose to 18 in the 29-judge apex court when on April 14, 2009,<br />

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary administered the oath of office to four<br />

new judges; Justice Syed Zahid Hussain, Justice (Retd) Ghulam Rasul, Justice (Retd)<br />

Muhammad Sair Ali and Justice (Retd) Mahmood Akhtar Shahid Siddiqui.<br />

Following the Supreme Court’s judgment on July 31, 2009 declaring the imposition<br />

of Nov 3, 2007 Emergency unconstitutional, more than 100 judges of the higher judiciary<br />

were restrained from working and the Islamabad High Court was disbanded. The<br />

verdict, while declaring the termination of the services of Chief Justice Iftikhar<br />

Muhammad Chaudhary as illegal, also ruled that the oath taken by Abdul Hameed<br />

Dogar was unconstitutional.<br />

In the light of the Supreme Court’s decision on July 31, President Zardari issued<br />

orders halting the functioning of 76 PCO judges – 9 from the Supreme Court, 34 from<br />

the Lahore High Court, 20 from the Sindh High Court, 6 from the Peshawar High<br />

Court and 7 from the Islamabad High Court.<br />

On October 5, a 14-member bench of the Supreme Court issued contempt of<br />

court notices to the judges who had violated the apex court’s verdict of Nov 3 by<br />

taking oath under PCO. On October 12 the Supreme Court accepted the apology of 19<br />

PCO judges who withdrew their review petitions against the July 31 decision of the<br />

apex court and tendered unconditional apology. The PCO judges episode finally came<br />

to a close when on Nov 11 the Supreme Court rejected two appeals of Justice (Retd)<br />

Abdul Hameed Dogar challenging the reinstatement of the current judiciary under an<br />

executive order and the July 31 judgment declaring him an unconstitutional judge.<br />

Abolition of Islamabad High Court<br />

On July 31, the Supreme Court struck down the order of establishment of the<br />

Islamabad High Court and reverted the judicial system of Pakistan to its status of<br />

November 2, 2007. All the judges who were part of judiciary on November 2, 2007,<br />

were ordered to return to their original courts. All judges who were not a part of the<br />

judiciary, were told they had ceased to be judges. The employees etc. of the court were<br />

ordered back to their original positions or to the federal surplus pool.<br />

The Islamabad High Court was established under a presidential order on December<br />

14, 2007. However its creation was delayed because of the stay order issued by the<br />

Lahore High Court after its establishment was challenged there. But the Supreme Court<br />

Administration of justice 3 1


had later decided in favour of its establishment. President Pervez Musharraf had<br />

administered oath to the first Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court, Justice Sardar<br />

Mohammad Aslam, on February 7, 2008. The Court, however, started functioning on<br />

February 20, 2008. In one year, that is till February 19, 2009, it decided 10,110 cases<br />

while 9641 cases were pending with it at the completion of the year.<br />

No convict in death cell till final verdict<br />

The LHC Chief Justice, taking suo motu notice, ordered the Punjab Home Secretary<br />

to issue a circular to all superintendents of jails in the province not to keep convicts<br />

sentenced to death by lower courts in death cells till their appeals were decided by the<br />

High Court. The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by the Chief Justice of<br />

Pakistan and attended by the Chief Justices of the four provinces.<br />

Import of pork-contaminated feed<br />

On July 7, a three-member bench of the SC, headed by the CJ, in a suo motu case<br />

directed the companies which had allegedly imported poultry feed contaminated with<br />

pork to re-export the consignment within three weeks of the verdict. The SC ordered<br />

the Customs department to destroy the contaminated feed if the companies failed to reexport<br />

them.<br />

No help to usurpers of power<br />

Soon after the SC judgement of 31 July, the Supreme Judicial Council added the<br />

following clause to the Code of Conduct <strong>for</strong> the judges of superior courts:<br />

“No judge of the superior judiciary shall render support in any manner whatsoever,<br />

including taking or administering oath, in violation of the oath of office prescribed in<br />

the Third Schedule to the Constitution, to any authority that acquires power otherwise<br />

than through the modes envisaged by the Constitution of Pakistan.”<br />

National Judicial Policy<br />

A step towards strengthening the administration of justice in the country was the<br />

<strong>for</strong>mulation of a new national judicial policy. The National Judicial Policy Making<br />

Committee (NJPMC), headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, held two marathon<br />

sessions, lasting over four days (April 18 and 19 and May 16 and 17) to finalise the<br />

policy which was an attempt to streamline the judicial system in the country and make<br />

it more responsive to the present-day needs of society. The policy came into effect<br />

from June 1.<br />

The Committee decided that the Chief Justices of the four High Courts will not<br />

accept appointment as provincial governors and all judges working in executive<br />

3 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


departments of the federal and provincial governments were to be recalled. The policy<br />

also laid stress on proper conduct on the part of the judges in order to maintain a clean<br />

image of the judiciary. To rid the judiciary of corruption, the new policy outlined<br />

measures to nab and punish corrupt judicial officers and court staff.<br />

The policy also laid down strategies and plans <strong>for</strong> quick resolution of disputes and<br />

expeditious dispensation of justice to clear the huge backlog of cases. Special attention<br />

was paid to timely disposal of criminal cases, particularly the cases of under-trial<br />

prisoners languishing in jail and those involving violation of human rights and civil<br />

liberties. Priority is to be accorded to cases relating to good governance and economic<br />

development, trade, commerce, investment and taxes. Family cases, matters involving<br />

juveniles and drug/terrorism cases will also put on fast track <strong>for</strong> quick disposal. The<br />

plan of action outlined in the policy provides <strong>for</strong> disposal of all cases within one year.<br />

The committee held a special session which was attended by the committee members<br />

and representatives of bar councils/associations. The importance of interaction between<br />

the bench and the bar at all levels was stressed.<br />

Some other decisions taken by the committee at its meeting on 19 April were:<br />

No retired judge of a superior court shall accept an appointment to an excadre<br />

post which is lower than his status, including positions on banking courts, customs<br />

courts, administrative tribunals and federal or provincial service tribunals etc. The<br />

government may relieve such judges and the judges should also consider resigning<br />

from their posts.<br />

The committee recommended that the trend of retired judicial officers being<br />

appointed to special courts be discouraged. Qualified serving judges should be appointed<br />

to these posts.<br />

The committee supported the CJ’s policy to show zero tolerance to corruption<br />

amongst judicial officers/staff. A cell <strong>for</strong> the eradication of corruption from the judiciary<br />

will be set up at each High Court.<br />

The committee agreed to prepare a comprehensive strategy <strong>for</strong> clearing the<br />

backlog and expeditious trial proceedings.<br />

Reference case against CJ<br />

On 23 December, a 10 member bench of the SC issued a detailed judgement,<br />

giving reasons <strong>for</strong> this short order of July 20, 2007, whereby it had set aside the<br />

presidential reference filed against Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in the<br />

Supreme Judicial Council on March 9, 2007. The case was heard from May 15, 2007<br />

to July 20, 2007. The detailed judgement ruled that the Constitution conferred no<br />

powers on anyone, including the President, to suspend judges of superior courts or to<br />

Administration of justice 3 3


send them on <strong>for</strong>ced leave or even to restrain them from acting as judges.<br />

The case of missing persons<br />

Hearing the case of missing persons <strong>for</strong> the first time since his reinstatement,<br />

Justice Javed Iqbal<br />

commented that the<br />

relatives of missing<br />

persons were moving<br />

from pillar to post but no<br />

one was paying any heed<br />

to their plight. Taking<br />

notice of a report by the<br />

Interior Ministry that 241<br />

missing persons had<br />

been traced while 125<br />

were still missing, the<br />

Supreme Court directed<br />

Relatives of missing persons protest in front of<br />

Quetta Press Club<br />

missing persons as early as possible.<br />

The Sharif brothers’ case<br />

the Interior Secretary to<br />

strive hard to trace<br />

Masood Janjua and other<br />

The question whether Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif<br />

were eligible to contest elections and hold public offices was finally decided in the<br />

affirmative by a five-member bench of the Supreme Court on May 26.<br />

The Lahore High Court had held in June 2008 that Muhammad Nawaz Sharif<br />

could not contest an election because he had been convicted of hijacking a plane. The<br />

same court had declared Muhammad Sahabaz Sharif ineligible on the grounds of bank<br />

default. (He had meanwhile become Punjab Chief Minister.)<br />

These decisions were challenged in the SC by the federation and Sharif brothers’<br />

proposers. On 25 February, a three-member bench of the Supreme Court, by a short<br />

order ruled that the Sharif brothers were not qualified to hold public offices or contest<br />

elections. Upholding the LHC verdict the court declared null and void the June 3, 2008<br />

notification of the Election Commission in favour of Shahbaz Sharif and ordered the<br />

commission to de-notify his membership. As a result, Shahbaz Sharif lost the office of<br />

the Chief Minister of Punjab and Mian Nawaz Sharif was barred from contesting <strong>for</strong> a<br />

National Assembly seat. This led to the imposition of Governor rule in Punjab in February.<br />

In March, following the restoration of the SC Chief Justice and other judges, the<br />

3 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Sharif brothers moved the SC <strong>for</strong> a review of its earlier decision and on March 31 the<br />

court stayed the operation of the earlier decision and Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif returned<br />

as Punjab Chief Minister. On June 26 the Lahore High Court set aside the conviction of<br />

Nawaz Sharif in the helicopter reference and acquitted him <strong>for</strong> lack of sufficient<br />

evidence. This was followed by a judgment by the Supreme Court on July 17, acquitting<br />

Mian Nawaz Sharif in the 10-year old plane hijacking case, declaring invalid the sentence<br />

of life imprisonment awarded by a Karachi Anti-Terrorism Court in April 2000.<br />

Private torture cells<br />

The SC took suo motu notice of the appeal of the daughter of a Balochistan National<br />

Movement activist, Wahid Bakhsh, who had complained of torture in custody. On<br />

being produced in the court, Wahid Bakhsh declared that he had been kept in an Antiterrorist<br />

Force (ATF) torture cell where conditions of detention were worse than at the<br />

notorious Abu Gharaib jail in Iraq. The Chief Justice inquired whether these torture<br />

cells were run by the government and whether they existed across the country. The<br />

court was in<strong>for</strong>med that the Balochistan Home Secretary had declared the ATF cell a<br />

sub-jail. At the same time, the court disposed of a suo motu notice regarding torture<br />

cells in Islamabad when the Islamabad Police told the court that there was no torture<br />

cell under Islamabad police’s control.<br />

The SC ruling on petrol and gas prices<br />

The Supreme Court on May 14 set a week-long deadline <strong>for</strong> the government to<br />

reduce the continually rising petrol and gas prices. The court also considered the<br />

interim report of the judicial commission appointed by it which said that the various<br />

levies imposed by the government had inflated the fuel prices. The court observed that<br />

the rising fuel prices had made life difficult <strong>for</strong> the lower and middle classes and said<br />

that the government should reduce the rates or the court will pass an appropriate order.<br />

Supreme Court intervened as the government increased the prices of basic facilities<br />

Administration of justice 3 5


On July 7 the Supreme Court gave an interim verdict to suspend the carbon surcharge<br />

tax on petroleum products to lower their prices. Shortly afterwards, on August 20, the<br />

Supreme Court asked the government to explain the imposition of additional taxes on<br />

petroleum products, terming them as unreasonable. In its judgment on petroleum prices<br />

the court on October 20 rejected the government’s 20-year old price fixing <strong>for</strong>mula as<br />

iniquitous because under it the benefit of declining world oil prices was not passed on<br />

to the consumer.<br />

Power tariff<br />

On June 23, the Supreme Court initiated suo motu action against the government’s<br />

move to increase electricity tariff. The Chief Justice took notice of reports in newspapers<br />

that the government intended to raise the power charges by 17 to 20 percent under<br />

IMF pressure, and summoned the heads of WAPDA, National Electric Power Regulatory<br />

Authority (NEPRA) and other companies to explain why a new burden was being put<br />

on the consumer despite prolonged load-shedding. On July 6 the court restrained the<br />

government from raising power tariff, pending a decision in the case, and called <strong>for</strong> a<br />

<strong>for</strong>tnightly break-down of energy generation cost. Vacating its earlier order restraining<br />

the authorities from raising electricity tariff the court on July 23 asked NEPRA to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>m the court in advance be<strong>for</strong>e recommending a tariff increase. The court also<br />

issued notices to the ministries of finance and water and power directing them to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>m the court be<strong>for</strong>e withdrawing the subsidy on electricity.<br />

SC on sugar crisis<br />

Taking suo motu notice of the rise in the price of sugar, the LHC Chief Justice<br />

issued notices to the Attorney General of Pakistan and the Advocate General of Punjab<br />

to appear on August 19 and explain the situation. On September 3, the court directed<br />

the Punjab Government to ensure the sale of sugar at Rs.40 per kg. The court also<br />

ordered the chief secretary to work out a policy so that stockists could declare their<br />

stocks voluntarily and action could be taken against those violating the relevant law.<br />

On September 7, the Lahore High Court rejected a petition by sugar mill owners<br />

seeking a stay order against its earlier order fixing the price of sugar at Rs. 40 per kg.<br />

On September 17, the Communist Party of Pakistan filed a petition in the Supreme<br />

Court demanding that since the 80 sugar mills in the country were committing contempt<br />

of court by not selling sugar at Rs.40 per kg they should be nationalized to end the<br />

sugar crisis. On September 16 the Supreme Court gave its own ruling on the issue<br />

upholding the order of the LHC. A three-member bench headed by the Chief Justice<br />

summoned the acting chairman of Sugar Mills Association and reprimanded him <strong>for</strong><br />

submitting bogus documents on sugar prices.<br />

On September 24 the Lahore High Court issued contempt of court notices to the<br />

federal minister <strong>for</strong> industries, federal commerce secretary, Punjab chief secretary and<br />

3 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Pakistan Sugar Mills Association chairman <strong>for</strong> not complying with its order to fix the<br />

sugar price at Rs.40 per kg. On October 1 the court decided to authorise the Competition<br />

Commission of Pakistan to fix the price of sugar instead of leaving it at the mercy of<br />

market <strong>for</strong>ces. The court also ordered that in the meantime the government would<br />

make arrangements to sell sugar at Rs. 40 per kg. On a request from the government,<br />

the Supreme Court on October 23 allowed the authorities six days to come up with a<br />

comprehensive mechanism to ensure the availability of sugar at Rs.40 per kg. The<br />

sugar episode came to a close on October 30 when the Supreme Court accepted an<br />

interim arrangement proposed by the government <strong>for</strong> supply of sugar to the domestic<br />

consumer at Rs.40 per kg. The arrangement was <strong>for</strong> a short period after which the<br />

open market prices shot up to Rs 60 per kg.<br />

Flogging of a girl in Swat<br />

Taking suo motu notice of a video showing the flogging of a girl by the Taliban in<br />

Swat the SC Chief Justice described the incident as a serious violation of fundamental<br />

rights and ordered the interior secretary to produce the girl in the court. He also constituted<br />

an eight-member bench to hear the case on April 6. The court met again on April 7 and<br />

came down hard on the government <strong>for</strong> its failure to establish its writ in the troubled<br />

valley. Later, taking note of denial on oath by the purported victim and her husband<br />

that the incident had taken place, the court ordered the <strong>for</strong>mation of a five-member<br />

police team to probe the incident. The court also ordered the interior secretary and<br />

NWFP’s chief secretary and police chief to submit <strong>for</strong>tnightly progress reports.<br />

On women allegedly buried alive in Balochistan<br />

On April 15, a three-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice<br />

sought a report from the Balochistan police chief about the alleged burying alive of five<br />

women in Naseerabad, Balochistan, last year. The court rejected an earlier report by<br />

the provincial Advocate General denying that the five women were buried alive and<br />

saying that bodies of only two women had been <strong>found</strong> in a grave by a woman police<br />

officer. The court expressed dissatisfaction over the police investigation and asked <strong>for</strong><br />

a full report to identify the culprits and bring them to book. The case was pending in<br />

the Sessions Court at the end of the year.<br />

Nizam-e-Adl in Swat<br />

Following the peace deal signed by the provincial government and Tehrik Nifaz-e-<br />

Shariat-e-Muhammadi as a way to end militancy in the Malakand division, including<br />

Swat, the President on April 14 approved the controversial Nizam-e-Adl Regulation <strong>for</strong><br />

the en<strong>for</strong>cement of shariah in the region. The presidential action came in the wake of a<br />

resolution adopted by the National Assembly endorsing the regulation. On April 15, the<br />

NWFP governor promulgated the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 providing <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Administration of justice 3 7


establishment of Qazi courts and restoration of executive magistracy in Malakand and<br />

Kohistan. The Regulation envisaged two appellate <strong>for</strong>ums; Darul-Darul Qaza and Darul<br />

Qaza equivalent to the Supreme Court and a High Court respectively. Subsequently,<br />

two judges of the<br />

Peshawar High Court<br />

were nominated to<br />

serve on Darul Qaza in<br />

the Malakand division.<br />

Courts in Swat<br />

stopped functioning on<br />

18 May after Tehrik<br />

N i f a z - e - S h a r i a t -<br />

Muhammadi chief<br />

Maulana Sufi<br />

Muhammad said these<br />

courts were against<br />

Islam and a violation of<br />

The Taliban carried out punishments in public in NWFP the agreement signed by<br />

the provincial<br />

government. Consequently, 16 judicial officers and district and sessions judges and<br />

civil judges did not hold their courts and instead seven qazis, appointed on the directive<br />

of Maulana Sufi Muhammad, heard cases. Later on, because of the continued activities<br />

of the militants in the region the government started military operations in Swat and<br />

cleared it of all elements challenging the writ of the state. However, the NWFP Chief<br />

Minister told the Press on December 22, that the lower courts in Malakand were<br />

working according to Shariah and Nizam-e-Adl was be going to fully implemented in<br />

the division at all costs.<br />

Premier Gilani corruption cases<br />

The Islamabad High Court on February 4 set aside the conviction of Prime Minister<br />

Yousuf Raza Gilani by an accountability court in 2004 in two corruption references<br />

filed by the National Accountability Bureau. Mr. Gilani had been accused of misusing<br />

his authority as Speaker of the National Assembly by recruiting a number of people,<br />

including his friends and relatives, in the NA secretariat without following the prescribed<br />

procedures. In the second reference he was accused of violating rules in the purchase<br />

of a fleet of luxury vehicles which cost the national exchequer Rs.10 million.<br />

Murtaza Bhutto murder case<br />

On March 9, the long pending Murtaza Bhutto murder case once again came up<br />

<strong>for</strong> hearing in the court of the District and Sessions Judge (East), Karachi, but as usual<br />

3 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


it was adjourned at the request of the counsel <strong>for</strong> the PPP Co-Chairperson, Asif Ali<br />

Zardari, who pleaded that his client was busy in meetings in Islamabad. After many<br />

adjournments, the court took up the case on December 5 and pronounced a short<br />

order acquitting all 18 policemen implicated in the shootout near Murtaza Bhutto’s<br />

Clifton residence that resulted in his death. Those acquitted included Shoaib Suddle the<br />

then DIG Sindh police, Masood Sharif, ex-director general, Intelligence Bureau, SSP<br />

Wajid Durrani and ASP Shahid Hayat.<br />

The trial took over 13 years to conclude since a number of judges had sent references<br />

to the Sindh High Court stating that they could not conduct the proceedings and requested<br />

<strong>for</strong> its transfer to another court. The trial was also marked by lengthy cross-examination<br />

of witnesses by the defence, long adjournments sought by the defence counsel, absence<br />

of Asif Ali Zardari when he was staying abroad and a lack of interest on the part of<br />

prosecution witnesses.<br />

Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, who had also been nominated an accused, had moved a<br />

review petition in the Sindh High Court following which on April 9, 2008 Justice Syed<br />

Pir Ali Shah acquitted him.<br />

Release of Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan<br />

Disposing of a writ petition, the Islamabad High Court on February 6 declared the<br />

detained nuclear scientist Dr A. Q. Khan a free citizen under an agreement signed<br />

between him and the government. Dr. Khan was put under house arrest in 2004 after<br />

he confessed on television to supplying nuclear secrets to Iran, Libya and North Korea<br />

and sought the nation’s <strong>for</strong>egiveness. The court order said that Khan will have to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>m the authorities about his movements in advance and asked the government to<br />

provide him VVIP security cover.<br />

Dr Khan later moved a petition in the Lahore High Court challenging his official<br />

protocol which put undue restrictions on his movement and made him feel like a<br />

prisoner. On August 28, the Lahore High Court passed an order lifting the restrictions<br />

on Dr. Khan’s movement and directing the district magistrate and DIG Islamabad to<br />

end his official protocol immediately. However, on an appeal filed by the government a<br />

division bench of the Lahore High Court on September 2 suspended the earlier court<br />

order and allowed the authorities to re-impose restrictions on Dr. Khan’s movement.<br />

On November 5, the case again came up <strong>for</strong> hearing be<strong>for</strong>e the Lahore High Court<br />

which observed that since Dr. Khan’s free movement and security both were important<br />

the authorities should work out a feasible plan to ensure both. Disposing of an intracourt<br />

appeal by the federal government on restoring Dr. Khan’s security protocol,<br />

Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench asked the government to reach an out-of-court<br />

settlement with the nuclear scientist on his security. Finally on December 23 a twomember<br />

division bench of the Lahore High Court rejected the government’s plea seeking<br />

Administration of justice 3 9


to restore security protocol <strong>for</strong> Dr. Khan and allowed him free movement in the country.<br />

Ordinances nullified<br />

The SC nullified Gen Musharraf’s order under Emergency whereby he had made<br />

all the ordinances permanent and referred as many as 37 Ordinances, including the<br />

National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), to the parliament <strong>for</strong> ratification within 120<br />

days.<br />

SC judgement on NRO<br />

On December 16, a 17-member full bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief<br />

Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary, unanimously struck down the National<br />

Reconciliation Ordinance as void ab initio and being in contravention of the constitution<br />

and interests of the country. All criminal and corruption cases dropped under the NRO<br />

were revived and the beneficiaries told to face trial in courts. The Supreme Court also<br />

ordered the government to reopen Swiss cases, involving President Zardari, and take<br />

action against <strong>for</strong>mer Attorney General Malik Qayyum <strong>for</strong> overstepping his authority.<br />

The court also decided to set up monitoring cells to oversee the implementation of the<br />

verdict. Consequent upon the SC verdict on NRO, the National Accountability Bureau<br />

opened hundreds of cases against NRO beneficiaries, including many federal ministers,<br />

party politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen.<br />

By-polls ordered in Punjab<br />

Setting aside the decision of the LHC, the SC, directed the Election Commission of<br />

Pakistan to hold by-election in NA-55, Rawalpindi. Earlier, the LHC had postponed the<br />

polling in the constituency on May 8 on the request of the Punjab government, which<br />

had argued that law and order situation was not conducive to holding the election. A<br />

candidate, Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad, had challenged the LHC verdict in the SC. Later,<br />

the SC also passed a similar order <strong>for</strong> holding the by-election in NA-123 in Lahore.<br />

MMA legislators BA degree case<br />

A 2003 petition challenging the election of 68 legislators, belonging to Muttahidda<br />

Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), on the grounds that their madressa certificates were not equivalent<br />

to B.A. degrees, was dismissed in June. The petition had become infructuous as the<br />

respondents, elected in 2002, had already completed their tenure. Meanwhile, the BA<br />

condition <strong>for</strong> election to a provincial/national legislature had been struck down be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

the 2008 polls.<br />

SC sets aside Field Court Martial verdict<br />

The SC set aside the conviction of two civilians, Ghulam Akbar Niazi and Muhammad<br />

Saleem by a Field Court Martial. They had been convicted <strong>for</strong> inciting PAF officers to<br />

mutiny. Their trial <strong>for</strong> mutiny instead of theft was something unprecedented, the court<br />

said. The appellant, as contractors, supplied jet petroleum to PAF bases. They stole<br />

4 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


fuel in connivance with some PAF officials who were convicted of theft.<br />

LHC sets aside court martial verdict<br />

The LHC (Rawalpindi Bench) set aside on January 12 the 1999 conviction of an<br />

army officer by a Field General Court Martial on charges of concealing his property<br />

and allowed him to claim financial benefits from the army. The convict, <strong>for</strong>mer Lt Col<br />

Munir Ahmad Gill, had come to the court in 2000. He had been arrested in June 1997<br />

on charges of receiving commission on the purchase of 600 tons of sugar <strong>for</strong> the<br />

army, concealing his property and filing incorrect tax returns. He was kept in pre-trial<br />

custody <strong>for</strong> 105 days and after trial (1997-99) he was sentenced to one year’s RI and<br />

dismissal from service on the charge of filing fake income tax returns. The other<br />

charges against him were dropped. His prison term was remitted in 1999 by the COAS<br />

but his plea against dismissal was rejected by the army court of appeal.<br />

Prison term from day of arrest<br />

The Supreme Court (CJ and five judges) ruled that the prison term of a convict<br />

who was allowed the benefit of section 382-B CrPC should be counted from his day of<br />

arrest and not from the date of conviction. The court observed that the pre-sentence<br />

period a convict spent in prison should not go unaccounted <strong>for</strong>. It ruled that refusal to<br />

allow remission of pre-sentence custody period to a convict, whom the court had<br />

granted the benefit of section 382-B CrPC, was tantamount to deprivation of his liberty<br />

within the contemplation of the constitution.<br />

Hafiz Saeed’s habeas corpus<br />

One of the most significant habeas corpus petitions accepted by the LHC concerned<br />

Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, Chief of Jamaat-ud-Dawa. He had been put under house<br />

arrest on December 11, 2008 following the Mumbai terrorist incident. His detention<br />

was extended by 60 days by a review board of the LHC on May 2. Later on the state<br />

had presented be<strong>for</strong>e the court evidence that, according to the Attorney General,<br />

established a link between the Jamat-ud-Dawa and Al-Qeada. A three-member bench<br />

of the LHC ruled on June 2 that there was no sufficient ground to detain Hafiz Saeed or<br />

to link him to the Mumbai incident. The court ordered his release. The court said<br />

reliance could not be placed on the UN Security Council resolution 1267, under which<br />

the Jamaat-ud-Dawa had been proscribed, because the resolution did not demand<br />

anybody’s detention.<br />

A 51-year-old case<br />

The SC decided a 51-year-old case about the sale of a piece of land by one Munsif<br />

Ali in 1958. Hi son, Khadim Hussain, filed a pre-emption suit which was dismissed by<br />

a civil judge. Appeals against the latter’s order were dismissed by the District Judge. In<br />

the SC, 36 hearings had taken place. The CJ set up an appeal bench to dispose of the<br />

Administration of justice 4 1


matter.<br />

SC orders vacating playground<br />

In December, the SC, headed by the CJ, cancelled a lease of the land to Makro<br />

Habib, a wholesale giant, in Karachi and ordered it to close down its huge commercial<br />

outlet in the Lines <strong>Ar</strong>ea in three months and restore the 4.9 acres of land on which the<br />

structure was built to its original status of a playground. The company was given three<br />

months to implement the court decision and hand over the vacant land to the city<br />

district government, Karachi. The court had taken suo motu notice of the matter on the<br />

basis of an article published in a daily.<br />

Relief to trans-gender individuals<br />

In December, a three-member bench of the SC, headed by the CJ, advised the<br />

government to employ trans-sexuals to recover loans from defaulters as was done in<br />

India and to ensure their inheritance rights as duly guaranteed in the constitution.<br />

Earlier, in November, the SC had directed the government to <strong>for</strong>mulate a policy <strong>for</strong><br />

ensuring the rights of trans-gender individuals and creating job opportunities <strong>for</strong> them.<br />

Be<strong>for</strong>e that, in August, SC had directed federal and provincial governments to provide<br />

protection and free of cost health and education facilities to trans-sexuals and submit<br />

report to the apex court on implementation of its directions. The court was hearing a<br />

petition filed by an Advocate against, what he said, the social injustice committed to the<br />

transgender individuals.<br />

Relief to the disabled<br />

In November, Additional Advocate General, Punjab, Muhammad Hanif Khattana,<br />

appearing in a suo motu case told the Lahore High Court that the Punjab government<br />

had appointed 5,941 disabled persons in 27 departments under the two per cent quota<br />

fixed <strong>for</strong> the disabled. He said the government would soon fill up 1,008 vacancies <strong>for</strong><br />

the disabled in 14 different departments, while 2,092 disabled persons had also been<br />

appointed in the private sector. The Chief Justice had taken notice of non-compliance<br />

of the two per cent quota <strong>for</strong> the disabled by government departments, at a ceremony<br />

by Punjab Welfare Trust <strong>for</strong> the disabled, in May.<br />

Registration of Hindu marriages<br />

In November, a three-member bench of the Supreme Court directed the National<br />

Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) to <strong>for</strong>mulate a policy <strong>for</strong> the registration<br />

of Hindu couples, according to their religious customs, in order to enable them to get<br />

computerised national identity cards. The court heard a suo motu case on the application<br />

of a Hindu couple from Rahim Yar Khan regarding the problems the Hindu community<br />

in Pakistan faced in acquiring identity cards. The SC also asked the government to<br />

4 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


introduce legislation in this regard.<br />

Promotion of Ahmedi officer<br />

Shaukat Ali Wahla, an Ahmedi employed at the Auqaf Department, was promoted<br />

as superintendent in BPS 16. In August 1996, the order of his promotion was recalled<br />

on the ground that the Punjab Waqf properties Ordinance did not allow the promotion<br />

of a non-Muslim as an officer. Wahla came to the Lahore High Court and it granted him<br />

relief on the ground that he had been penalised without being heard. Following the<br />

Court judgement, the Auqaf Department withdrew its impugned order and promoted<br />

Wahla to BPS 17 and also allowed him selection grade. In 2001, the department again<br />

started proceedings against him and to meet the requirement of giving him a hearing,<br />

issued him a show cause notice. In January 2002, the Department held that Wahla’s<br />

promotion as Superintendent was illegal and the order of his promotion was withdrawn.<br />

Wahla again appealed to the Lahore High Court and the court again held the order of the<br />

department illegal. In 2009, LHC held the recall illegal saying discrimination on the<br />

basis of religion was against <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 27(1) of the Constitution. Auqaf Department moved<br />

the SC against the LHC judgement.<br />

Sale of acid without license banned<br />

On 20 Nov, the SC ordered a ban on the sale of acid by traders who did not<br />

possess a licence. The court directed the government to regularise the sale and purchase<br />

of acid and issue licences to authorised dealers. The CJ had taken suo motu notice on<br />

a news report about an acid attack on a woman in 2003, in Layyah district.<br />

Corruption in Pakistan Steel<br />

On October 7, the Supreme Court took suo motu notice of media reports of<br />

massive corruption, and a deficit of Rs22 billion in a year in the Pakistan Steel Mills,<br />

and asked the Ministry of Production, FIA and the <strong>for</strong>mer and current chairmen of the<br />

mills to submit written statements. Following up on its action, the Supreme Court on<br />

December 24 asked the interior minister to submit a written reply to a notice issued to<br />

him <strong>for</strong> interfering in the ongoing probe into financial irregularities in the steel mills, by<br />

transferring the DG FIA.<br />

Bank of Punjab loan scam<br />

One suo motu notice taken by the SC related to the Rs 9billion loan scam in the<br />

Bank of Punjab, involving Harris Steel Mills. A number of accused in the case were<br />

arrested and they surrendered properties and assets to re-pay a major chunk of the<br />

loan.<br />

The loans write-off case<br />

A three-member bench of the SC resumed the hearing of a suo motu case about<br />

loans of Rs 54 billion being written off, that had been pending in the apex court since<br />

Administration of justice 4 3


November 2007. On December 23, the State Bank of Pakistan submitted a report that<br />

Pakistan banks wrote off loans amounting to more than Rs 193.403 billion between<br />

1997 and 2009. The report mentioned the names of individuals and organisations that<br />

benefited from the write-off. According to the list, the loans taken by around 19,711<br />

individuals were written off during the 12 years. At the end of the year, the SC case<br />

was still pending.<br />

Blocking controversial sale of land in Karachi<br />

The SC took suo motu notice of a media report about the handing over of 240<br />

acres of state land in Karachi worth billions of rupees, to a private party, <strong>for</strong> a song,<br />

after half-heartedly fighting a case in the Supreme Court. According to the report the<br />

apex court had ordered ETPB to hand over the land to the successful petitioner at a rate<br />

of Rs3-5 lakh per acre, while the ongoing rate <strong>for</strong> property in the area was estimated at<br />

Rs50 million per acre. The Chief Justice issued orders that a survey of land held by the<br />

Evacuee Trust be conducted and its current price fixed. The media report had also<br />

revealed that almost each and every inch of the total 2,380 acres of state-owned land,<br />

belonging to the Evacuee Properties Trust (EPT) Board in Karachi worth a whopping<br />

Rs60 billion, had been grabbed by the land mafia.<br />

Sindh land allotment cases<br />

A media report highlighted a glaring case of contempt of the Supreme Court of<br />

Pakistan in which an official committee, comprising middle ranking officials had allowed<br />

regularization of the sale of 50 acres of land in Karachi, at throw away prices, thus<br />

causing losses running into hundreds of millions to the state exchequer <strong>for</strong> the benefit<br />

of a few. The Supreme Court took suo motu notice of the case that led to the immediate<br />

cancellation of the allotment. However, the Supreme Court had called <strong>for</strong> all allotments<br />

made, involving hundreds of billions of rupees land, during the last ten years by the<br />

Sindh government, to review each and every case.<br />

A total of 1,500 persons were said to be allotted thousands of acres of state land in<br />

Sindh ever the preceding 10 years. In one case, State land measuring more than 75,000<br />

sq yards situated in the heart of Karachi, whose market value was once assessed at<br />

Rs7 billion, was leased out to a private party <strong>for</strong> 99 years by the Sindh government <strong>for</strong><br />

merely Rs155 million.<br />

Punjab land allotments<br />

The Supreme Court has directed the Punjab Board of Revenue to produce all cases<br />

of allotments, made by the government during the last four-five years, amidst reports<br />

that thousands of acres of land was doled out to favourites.<br />

Federal Government Housing Foundation land scam<br />

The SC took suo motu notice on a newspaper column regarding illegal allotment of<br />

4 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


government plots <strong>for</strong> peanuts by the Federal Government Housing Foundation, besides<br />

the controversial purchase of over 2,000 kanals of land in the suburbs of Islamabad <strong>for</strong><br />

a government housing scheme. The Chief Justice ordered the CDA to conduct an<br />

inquiry in this regard. The inquiry confirmed irregularities in allotments. The case is<br />

pending with the apex court.<br />

Carbon tax suo motu notice<br />

In the federal budget 2009-10, the government imposed 10 per cent petroleum<br />

levy which was meant <strong>for</strong> removing polluted <strong>content</strong>s from the petroleum products<br />

<strong>for</strong> betterment of the environment. The government’s financial managers admitted that<br />

despite its name it would simply be a government’s revenue generation source. The<br />

Supreme Court took suo motu notice and nullified carbon tax. However, the government<br />

promulgated another ordinance within 48 hours and re-imposed the same levy on oil<br />

products but under a different name.<br />

Missing persons’ case<br />

The Supreme Court directed the Interior Ministry to submit be<strong>for</strong>e the court details<br />

pertaining to Pakistani citizens who have been handed over to <strong>for</strong>eign countries. A<br />

three-member bench of the apex court, observed that it will not give more time to the<br />

government <strong>for</strong> tracing the missing people.<br />

Case against Musharraf<br />

The SC Chief Justice took suo motu notice and ordered an inquiry into the alleged<br />

theft of electricity by <strong>for</strong>mer President General Pervez Musharraf and some other<br />

influential residents of Islamabad’s Chak Shahzad farmhouses.<br />

Reinstatement of ad hoc lecturers<br />

The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal of the Punjab Government with costs and<br />

directed it to reinstate 90 lecturers within three days. The lecturers had been recruited<br />

in 1994 but their services were terminated in 2001. The apex court had ordered their<br />

reinstatement on September 25, 2002 but the court’s order was not implemented by<br />

the then Punjab Government.<br />

Case against Attorney General Latif Khosa<br />

The Supreme Court took up the case of alleged corruption by <strong>for</strong>mer attorney<br />

general Latif Khosa, on the application and affidavit of a citizen. The citizen had alleged<br />

that Latif Khosa had taken Rs3 million from him <strong>for</strong> influencing a court decision.<br />

Contempt of court notices to PCO judges<br />

The Supreme Court sent contempt of court notices to those superior courts judges,<br />

who violated the seven-member bench verdict of Nov 3 which had barred these judges<br />

from taking oath under any emergency or PCO order of General Pervez Musharraf.<br />

Administration of justice 4 5


Sixteen PCO judges tendered unconditional apology which the SC accepted on<br />

November 2 and discharged cases against them. Justice (retd) Abdul Hameed Dogar,<br />

however, did not tender any apology.<br />

SC Shariat bench<br />

On April 21, the Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court rejected an appeal<br />

against the Federal Shariat Court judgement that had held that death was the only<br />

punishment <strong>for</strong> blasphemy. The appeal had been filed 18 years earlier.<br />

The Shariat Appellate bench of the Supreme Court upheld the FSC verdict to the<br />

effect that in Hudood cases the President/Governor had no authority to commute or<br />

cancel sentences and dismissed Federation’s 18-year old appal. The bench admitted<br />

<strong>for</strong> hearing a petition that had challenged the government’s authority to withdraw<br />

cases during the investigation and hearings.<br />

Sindh High Court<br />

Accepting a writ petition by the Sindh High Court Bar Association, the Sindh High<br />

Court changed the confirmation of one of its judges into a year-long extension of his<br />

tenure as an additional judge, declared the extension of one additional judge’s tenure<br />

invalid and dismissed the plea against another additional judge. One additional judge<br />

was to revert to his post in the judicial service.<br />

The Sindh High Court set aside on June 15 a provincial government notification<br />

that had empowered the Sindh Public Service Commission to hold competitive<br />

examinations <strong>for</strong> recruitment to the provincial civil service (judicial) and select civil<br />

judges/judicial magistrates on the requisition of the high court. The power of recruitment<br />

to the subordinate judiciary rested with the High Court, the court declared.<br />

Case against Musharraf<br />

An Additional Sessions Judge at Islamabad directed the police on August 10 to<br />

register a case against <strong>for</strong>mer President Pervez Musharraf on the charges of detaining<br />

SC judges. The court took action on a petition filed by an advocate five months earlier.<br />

In its short order, the court observed the respondent was liable to be tried under<br />

various provisions of the law.<br />

Compensation to heirs of the drain death<br />

In May, the LHC CJ ordered the Punjab government to provide financial support<br />

worth half a million rupee as compensation to the family of a two-year old girl, <strong>Ar</strong>eeba<br />

Imtiaz, who had died by falling into an open drain near her house in Muhammadpura<br />

Colony, a slum near Mughalpura in Lahore. The CJ had taken suo motu notice of the<br />

incident. The family had complained that despite repeated requests the Water and<br />

4 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Sanitation Authority (WASA) had not built a wall around the drain.<br />

Abolition of advance tax on electricity bills<br />

In May, LHC abolished 10 per cent advance tax levied on electricity bills to build<br />

power projects, while deciding petitions filed by more than 200 consumers in June<br />

2008.<br />

First women sessions judge in Punjab<br />

The Punjab province had its first woman District and Sessions Judge when Ms<br />

Uzma Akhtar Chughtai was appointed to this office in Chakwal.<br />

In November, to supervise the functioning of the lower judiciary, the LHC appointed<br />

11 judges of the HC as inspection judges of different districts.<br />

Corruption in the judiciary<br />

In April, the Supreme Judicial Council took suo motu notice of allegations which<br />

appeared in a newspaper regarding the links of a Lahore High Court Judge, with a<br />

notorious underworld don who died in a police encounter. The DIG Police, Gujranwala,<br />

in a letter written to the Chief Justice of the LHC had provided details of a confession<br />

made by the murderer in which he had also boasted of his connections with the said<br />

judge and other figures in key places. The judge, however, denied all the charges<br />

terming them as lies.<br />

CJ Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry himself admitted in his public statements<br />

corruption in the lower courts and the judicial policy aimed to eradicate the malfeasance<br />

of the judges. An eye-opening statement in this regard came from a <strong>for</strong>mer judge of the<br />

LHC, Shahid Siddiqui, who said that 60 per cent of the judges were corrupt and that<br />

senior judges pressurised junior judges to issue verdicts on their recommendation,<br />

ignoring merit. He alleged that judges in the LHC had indulged in lobbying <strong>for</strong> favourite<br />

judges in the lower judiciary and <strong>for</strong>ming groups to get maximum perks and privileges.<br />

He said the judges of the superior courts were responsible <strong>for</strong> corruption in the<br />

subordinate judiciary because they protected corrupt judges.<br />

Pending cases in courts<br />

At the beginning of 2009, there was a backlog of 85,067 cases in the Lahore<br />

High Court while the court had decided 74,542 cases in the previous year. A total of<br />

78,367 cases were instituted in the LHC during 2008.<br />

A total of 1,251,189 cases were pending in the lower courts of 35 districts of<br />

Punjab at the beginning of 2009. In April, the number rose to 12,880,912 owing to<br />

shortage of judges.<br />

In April, more than 60,000 cases were pending in Rawalpindi District Courts<br />

out of which 55,525 cases were in civil courts and 4,000 cases in courts of district and<br />

Administration of justice 4 7


sessions judges. Nearly 300 cases were added to these cases every month. Local<br />

lawyers attributed the backlog to the shortage of judicial staff and excessive litigation<br />

on false charges.<br />

At the end of 2009, 1.52 million cases were pending in the country’s courts<br />

including superior and lower courts. Out of these, nearly 1.2 million cases were pending<br />

in the Punjab alone.<br />

A total of 110,000 cases were pending in the LHC alone owing to shortage of<br />

the judges. According to the national judicial policy en<strong>for</strong>ced on June 1, all fresh and<br />

pending cases in the SC and the High Courts were to be decided within a year and<br />

those in Balochistan within six months.<br />

The lower number of judges than the approved strength in the High Courts<br />

and lower courts was attributed as a factor behind piling up of the cases. In November,<br />

1,754 judges were working in lower courts of the country against the approved strength<br />

of 2,090, thus revealing a shortage of 346 judges. Similarly, nearly 70 out of total 145<br />

positions in the SC and HCs were lying vacant by the end of 2009. On July 3, the SC<br />

declared the appointment of 102 judges of the superior courts under PCO illegal.<br />

Following removal of PCO judges, 46 judges of the LHC lost their positions. Thus,<br />

against the strength of 60, only 12 judges were left in the LHC. However, 12 judges<br />

were inducted in September. On December 21, LHC CJ sent a summary to the Punjab<br />

Governor recommending 28 names <strong>for</strong> appointment as judges in the LHC. No action<br />

had been taken till the end of the year.<br />

The lower courts in Punjab also suffered from a backlog of cases despite<br />

judicial policy’s directions <strong>for</strong> expeditious disposal of the cases. In Lahore alone, at the<br />

end of November 2009, 95,453 civil and 90,923 criminal cases were pending in the<br />

lower courts.<br />

In the year under review, 29795 bail applications were filed in the lower courts<br />

of Punjab. A total of 11,000 petitions were filed to stop the police from harassment and<br />

17,000 petitions were filed requesting the courts to order police to register FIRs. The<br />

district and sessions judges also heard 1,594 habeas corpus petitions.<br />

The Punjab police presented charge-sheets (challans) in courts in 662 murder<br />

cases, 437 Hudood cases, and 1,772 drug cases. On the other hand, the lower courts<br />

decided 530 murder cases in which 30 convicts were awarded death penalty and 19<br />

were awarded life-term. The sessions courts ordered the release of 200 accused in<br />

murder cases following settlements between the parties.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. The issue of the appointment of judges in the superior courts has time and<br />

again created friction between the executive and the judiciary and affected the provision<br />

of justice to the public. Constitutional amendments are required to settle the <strong>content</strong>ious<br />

4 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


issue.<br />

2. All the vacant positions in the superior judiciary and lower courts should be<br />

expeditiously filled so that disposal of cases could be expedited.<br />

3. The strength of the lower courts need to be more than doubled to reduce the<br />

number of cases handled by each presiding officer and trim down the huge backlog of<br />

the pending cases.<br />

4. Strict measures need to be taken to eradicate corruption in the courts, especially<br />

lower courts.<br />

5. Judicial activism should not assume the shape of intervention in executive<br />

matters which could destabilise the system of governance.<br />

Administration of justice 4 9


En<strong>for</strong>cement of law<br />

III<br />

Law and order 5 1


5 2 State of Human Rights in 2009


Law and order<br />

No person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being in<strong>for</strong>med,<br />

as soon as may be, of the grounds <strong>for</strong> such arrest, nor shall be denied the right to<br />

consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.<br />

Every person who is arrested and detained in custody shall be produced be<strong>for</strong>e a<br />

magistrate within a period of twenty-four hours of such arrest...<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 10(1) and (2)<br />

The dignity of man and, subject to law, the privacy of home, shall be inviolable.<br />

No person shall be subjected to torture <strong>for</strong> the purpose of extracting evidence.<br />

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 14(1) and (2)<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 3<br />

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment<br />

or punishment.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 5<br />

Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent<br />

until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees<br />

necessary <strong>for</strong> his defence.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 11 (1)<br />

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home<br />

or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour or reputation. Everyone has the<br />

Law and order 5 3


ight to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 12<br />

Terrorism<br />

Terrorist activity against innocent civilians and violent conflict between militants<br />

and the government security <strong>for</strong>ces caused the greatest anxieties during the year 2009.<br />

Pakistan faced 108 deadly suicide attacks during the year in which 1,296 people were<br />

killed. The year started with a suicide attack on January 4 on the Government<br />

Polytechnic College near Imam Bargah in Dera Ismail Khan and it ended with a dastardly<br />

attack on the main Ashura procession in Karachi on December 28. Major targets of<br />

militant groups were not only government premises but also included civilian<br />

establishments, mosques, schools, courts, media organizations and shrines. In five<br />

deadly attacks on mosques, 194 people were killed during the prayers. At least 250<br />

persons were killed in seven suicide attacks on innocent civilians in markets.<br />

According to non-official estimates, 2,586 terrorist, insurgent and sectarian-related<br />

incidents were reported in 2009 in which 3,021 people were killed and 7,334 injured.<br />

The highest number of incidents (1,173) was reported from the NWFP, followed by<br />

792 in Balochistan and 559 in Fata; 46 attacks took place in Punjab, 30 in Sindh, 12 in<br />

Islamabad and five each in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir.<br />

Suicide attacks in 2009 (Date of attack, place, target, area, number of killings)<br />

NWFP<br />

January 4, D.I. Khan: policemen and government college; 11 killed<br />

January 23, Swat: Checkpost; 3 killed<br />

February 5, Mingora: Swat: police station; 13 injured<br />

February 9, Bannu: Police officials and FC checkpost; 18 injured<br />

February 20, D.I. Khan: Funeral procession of the caretaker of an imambargah;<br />

45 killed<br />

February 23, Bannu: DSP office; 1 killed<br />

March 11, Peshawar: ANP Minister Bashir Bilour; 4 killed<br />

March 26, Tank: Peace committee, Jandola; 12 killed<br />

March 30, Bannu: <strong>Ar</strong>my officials colony; 5 killed<br />

April 15, Charsadda: Police checkpost; 18 killed<br />

April 18, Hangu: <strong>Ar</strong>my checkpost; 28 killed<br />

May 5, Peshawar: FC checkpost, Bara Qadeem; 7 killed<br />

May 11, Kohat: FC checkpost Dara Adamkhel; 12 killed<br />

May 21, Tank: FC Fort Jandola, 9 killed<br />

5 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


May 28, Peshawar: police checkpost, Bara Matni; 4 killed<br />

May 28, D.I. Khan: Security checkpost; 5 killed<br />

June 5, Dir Upper: Friday prayers in a mosque; 49 killed<br />

June 9, Peshawar: PC hotel; 18 killed<br />

June 11, Peshawar: Police; 3 killed<br />

June 12, Nowshera: Military mosque; 12 killed<br />

June 22, Mardan: Police checkpost; 2 killed<br />

July 25, Laki Marwat: Police convoy; 1 killed<br />

July 15, Swat: Checkpost; Khwazakhela, 5 killed<br />

August 22, Swat: Security <strong>for</strong>ces Kanju; 3 killed<br />

August 23, Peshawar: Ansar-ul-Islam leaders’ house, Momin Town; 3 killed<br />

August 30, Swat: Police training center, Mingora; 17 killed<br />

September 12, Hangu: Doaba police station; 4 injured<br />

September 18, Kohat: Shia community; 40 killed<br />

September 19, Kohat: Security checkpost, Darra Adamkhel; 2 killed<br />

September 26,<br />

Peshawar: Askari Bank,<br />

Sadar; 13 killed<br />

September 26,<br />

Bannu: Police station; 15<br />

killed<br />

September 28, Bannu:<br />

Leader of a peace committee;<br />

5 killed<br />

October 9, Peshawar:<br />

Khyber Bazar; 52 killed<br />

October 12, Shangla:<br />

Aftermath of the Peshawar blast (October 2009)<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>my officials colony; 47<br />

killed<br />

October 15, Kohat: Police station; 11 killed<br />

October 16, Peshawar: CIA office; 15 killed<br />

October 28, Peshawar: Pepal Mandi; 118 killed<br />

November 3, Lachi Kohat: PF firing range building;<br />

November 8, Peshawar: Cattle market in Adezai area; 21 killed<br />

November 9, Peshawar: Police Ring Road; 3 killed<br />

November 10, Charsadda: Farooq-i-Azam Chowk; 41 killed<br />

Law and order 5 5


November 13, Peshawar: ISI’s regional headquarters, Khyber Road; 17 killed<br />

November 13, Bannu: Police station Bakakhel; 8 killed<br />

November 14, Peshawar: Police checkpost, Pishtakhara intersection; 13 killed<br />

November 16, Peshawar: Police station; 3 killed<br />

November 19, Peshawar: Judicial Complex; 20 killed<br />

December 1, Kabal, Swat: Awami National Party’s (ANP) provincial meeting; 1<br />

killed<br />

December 7, Peshawar: Sessions court; 13 killed<br />

December 17, Lakki Marwat: District Nazim’s hujra, Isakhel village - no casualty<br />

December 18, Lower Dir: police lines mosque, Timergara; 13 killed<br />

December 22, Peshawar: Press Club; 3 killed<br />

December 24, Peshawar: police checkpost, <strong>Ar</strong>bab Road Sadar; 5 killed<br />

Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>ea<br />

February 6, Khyber Agency: Nato supply trucks, Jamrud; 2 killed<br />

March 12, Khyber Agency: Charbagh, Landi Kotal; 3 injured<br />

March 27, Khyber Agency: Mosque Friday prayers, Jamrud; 80 killed<br />

April 4, North Waziristan: Security <strong>for</strong>ces’ convoy, Miranshah; 14 killed<br />

July 28, North Waziristan: Khasadar checkpost, Miranshah; 2 killed<br />

August 18, North Waziristan: Security checkpost, Miranshah; 7 killed<br />

August 27, Khyber Agency: Khasadar security post, Torkham; 22 killed<br />

Balochistan<br />

March 2, Pishin: JUI (F) provincial leadership, Killi Karbala; 6 killed<br />

June 30, Kalat: NATO containers; 4 killed<br />

Punjab<br />

February 5, D.G. Khan: Procession of Chehlum at imambargah; 40 killed<br />

March 16, Rawalpindi: Buss stand Pirwadhai; 15 killed<br />

April 5, Chakwal: Imambargah; 30 killed<br />

May 27, Lahore: Rescue-15 and ISI provincial head office at plaza chowk; 30<br />

killed<br />

June 12, Lahore: Dr. Sarfaraz Naeemi; 5 killed<br />

July 2, Rawalpindi: A bus of Kahuta Research Laboratory, Choorh Chowk; 29<br />

5 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


injured<br />

October 10, Rawalpindi:<br />

GHQ, 14 killed<br />

October 23, Attock:<br />

Pakistan Air Force (PAF)<br />

Complex, Kamra; 8 killed<br />

October 24, Rawalpindi:<br />

Motorway police officials, Lilla<br />

Kalarkahar; 1 killed<br />

November 2, Rawalpindi:<br />

Officer of an intelligence agency,<br />

Mall Road Sadar; 38 killed<br />

November 2, Lahore:<br />

Checkpost, Babu Sabu<br />

interchange; 1 killed<br />

December 4, Rawalpindi:<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>my officials Mosque, Parade<br />

Lane; 40 killed<br />

December 7, Lahore:<br />

Iqbal Town Moon Market; 70<br />

killed<br />

December 8, Multan: ISI<br />

building, Bela Qasim Cantonment<br />

area; 14 killed<br />

December 15, D.G. Khan:<br />

A market and house of Senior<br />

Advisor to Punjab Chief Minister; 33 killed<br />

Sindh / Karachi<br />

A glimpse of the destruction caused by the Moon<br />

Market bomb blast that claimed 70 lives in Lahore<br />

December 28, Karachi: Ashura-e-Muharram procession, MA Jinnah Road; 51<br />

killed<br />

Azad Kashmir<br />

June 26, Muzaffarabad: <strong>Ar</strong>my officials barracks; 2 killed<br />

December 28, Muzaffarabad: Ashura-e-Muharram procession; 11 killed<br />

Islamabad<br />

March 23, Islamabad: Police station, Sitara Market; 1 killed<br />

April 4, E-7, Islamabad: FC checkpost, Margala Road; 9 killed<br />

Law and order 5 7


A shot of “young jihadis” as they greet each other<br />

June 6, Islamabad: Rescue 15 office, G-8/4; 2 killed<br />

October 5, Islamabad: UNWFP Office, F-7; 5 killed<br />

October 20, Islamabad: International Islamic University, H-10 Sector; 9 killed<br />

December 2, Islamabad: Pakistan Naval Complex, E-8 Sector; 3 killed<br />

December 24, Islamabad: Qasr-i-Sakina Imambargah, Shakrial; 1 killed<br />

Kurram Agency under Taliban control<br />

While the security agencies focussed their attention on operations against Taliban<br />

militants in Swat and South Waziristan, Kurran Agency remained under the control of<br />

Taliban militants till the end of 2009. Pakistani Taliban had been ruling the roost in<br />

Kurram since April 2007, when fugitives from Swat and South Waziristan turned the<br />

lower Kurram into their bastion. They attacked native Shia tribes, Turi and Bangash,<br />

killing at least 700 people and injuring 2,000 others between April 2007 and December<br />

2009. Hundreds of families from Sadda, Balish Khel, Sangina, Bilyamin, Munda, Kass,<br />

Bagzai, Jalamai and Chardiwal villages left their homes to live in other parts of the<br />

country. The only road linking Parachinar, headquarters of Kurram Agency, remained<br />

under Taliban control as they had blocked it <strong>for</strong> public transport since April 2007. The<br />

passengers who tried to use the road were slaughtered like animals with their arms and<br />

legs chopped off and their headless bodies sent to their families. As a result, more than<br />

500,000 people of Parachinar had no access to Peshawar and other parts of the country<br />

and were using Afghan territory to reach Peshawar. The food shortage and unavailability<br />

of other daily items drove the people to the point of starvation while the authorities<br />

5 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


The scene after a bomb went off at the funeral procession of a murdered shia leader<br />

looked the other way.<br />

Sectarian violence<br />

Sectarian attacks against Shias were carried out across the country. At least 7 out<br />

of 108 suicide attacks targeted Shia congregations killing at least 218 people and injuring<br />

hundreds of others. Sectarian bloodshed was more pronounced in Quetta and Kurram<br />

Agency. In 48 sectarian tribal clashes in Kurram, Khyber and Qrakzai Agencies, 282<br />

people were reported killed and 373 injured. Some major sectarian attacks were:<br />

Early in 2009, a warning against the promotion of ‘shrine culture’ was delivered to<br />

the management of the shrine of Sufi poet Rehman Baba in the Akhund Baba graveyard<br />

of Peshawar. Soon afterwards the 17 th century mausoleum was seriously damaged in<br />

an explosion.<br />

On February 5, at least 32 people were killed and 48 others wounded when a<br />

suspected suicide bomber blew himself up amidst a crowd of Shia worshippers outside<br />

a mosque in Dera Ghazi Khan.<br />

On March 2, six people were killed and 12 others, mostly students, sustained<br />

injuries in a suicide attack on a madrassa (seminary) in Kili Karbala in the Pishin District.<br />

Several top leaders of JUI-F were attending a ceremony at the seminary when a 15-<br />

year-old boy blew himself up in front of the stage. However, all the JUI-F leaders<br />

escaped unhurt.<br />

On June 22, three Shias, including a union council chief Talib Agha, were killed in<br />

Law and order 5 9


Quetta by unidentified men. Unidentified armed men opened fire on Talib, Union Council<br />

47 chief in Quetta, when he was on his way home with his driver and security guard.<br />

On September 18, at least three persons sustained bullet injuries during a sectarian<br />

clash which erupted at Iftar time in the precincts of Soldier Bazaar Police Station at<br />

Karachi, Sindh. The clash took place between the Shia community and the people<br />

belonging to the Deobandi school of thought over the use of loudspeaker during Iftar.<br />

On December 28, at least 51 people were killed and more than 90 were injured in<br />

a suicide attack on Ashura procession in Karachi. Enraged people set 29 commercial<br />

buildings around the blast scene on fire and burnt dozens of vehicles. Violence erupted<br />

across the city following this incident.<br />

Military actions against Taliban<br />

As the number of terrorist attacks and casualties increased in 2009, the security<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces also increased their operations against terrorists’ networks and infrastructure<br />

across the tribal<br />

region in the<br />

northwest. The<br />

government launched<br />

operation ‘Rah-e-<br />

Rast’ in Swat in the<br />

summer of 2009 and<br />

operation ‘Rah-e-<br />

Nijaat’ in South<br />

Waziristan in October<br />

2009.<br />

Weapons and ammunition recovered during military<br />

operations against militants<br />

According to<br />

official figures, more<br />

than 12,800<br />

suspected militants,<br />

75 of them belonging<br />

to Al-Qaeda, and<br />

9,739 local Taliban or members of other banned groups, were arrested during operations<br />

conducted by law-en<strong>for</strong>cement agencies and armed <strong>for</strong>ces across the country in 2009.<br />

The overall casualties rose to 12,632 people dead and 12,815 wounded, in 596 operational<br />

attacks during the year.<br />

Extra-legal killings in Swat<br />

During the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ offensive against the militants in Swat, HRCP received<br />

several complaints of human rights violations, revenge killings and extra-judicial killings<br />

6 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


allegedly carried out by security <strong>for</strong>ces. The most harrowing reports were of bodies<br />

strewn upside down with notes attached to them warning that anyone supporting the<br />

Taliban would meet the same fate. HRCP urged the government to set up a parliamentary<br />

committee to conduct inquiry into these complaints, but no one paid attention to this<br />

suggestion.<br />

A few complaints of extra-legal killings in Swat during the 2009 operations are<br />

given below:<br />

Militant leader Maulvi Misbahuddin was arrested by the security <strong>for</strong>ces and later<br />

the bodies of Misbahuddin<br />

and his son were <strong>found</strong> in<br />

Bacha Bazar. The<br />

government claimed they<br />

were killed in an<br />

encounter while witnesses<br />

insisted that they had been<br />

arrested by the police in<br />

Mardan. Maulvi Izzat ,<br />

spokesperson of the Swat<br />

militants, was arrested<br />

from Amandara. Two days<br />

later, the authorities<br />

claimed that Izzat was<br />

killed allegedly by militants<br />

trying to rescue him when<br />

they attacked the vehicle Bodies of two young militants killed in Swat<br />

taking him to jail. The local<br />

witnesses said that the targeted vehicle did not even have an engine.<br />

HRCP received a report from a resident of Dewlai area of Swat, who went to<br />

Kanju township in tehsil Kabal of Swat district, through the mountains of Kala Kalay.<br />

He said that he saw a mass grave in an area situated somewhere between Dewlai and<br />

Shah Dheri. About 15 people were buried in the grave but they could not be identified<br />

and it was difficult to say whether they were Taliban or non-combatant civilians.<br />

In another instance, a resident of Haji Baba area in Mingora said that on June 9,<br />

2009 at 12 midnight two mortar shells hit their street. Next day, he fled the area <strong>for</strong> a<br />

safer place and went to Kookarai village in Babozai tehsil of Swat district. On way to<br />

Kokarai, he said, he saw some people in a graveyard. “When I walked to a point near<br />

them I counted the bodies of 12 persons lying on the ground while some people were<br />

digging a mass grave,” he said. He added that the people killed looked like Taliban<br />

militants. After some time the people digging the grave told him to go away and he left<br />

Law and order 6 1


the place.<br />

A 55 year old man, name withheld <strong>for</strong> security reasons, reported to HRCP he had<br />

decided to leave his area not because of lack of food but after witnessing “the annihilation<br />

of the village of Teeraman Dehri, with about 150 people, and livestock.”The entire<br />

village came under heavy missile attack by the army, killing the entire population. I am<br />

a man of very strong nerves, but that day, I just broke down completely. The following<br />

day, people from adjacent villages came and buried all the dead in a mass grave.”<br />

Drone attacks<br />

According to figures compiled by Pakistani authorities, out of the 44 strikes carried<br />

out by the Afghanistan-based American drones in the Pakistani tribal areas during 2009,<br />

only five hit the actual targets, killing five Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders at the cost of<br />

around 700 civilians. The remaining 39 attacks went wrong.<br />

Of the five successful predator attacks carried out in 2009, the first one came on<br />

January 1, which<br />

reportedly killed two<br />

senior al-Qaeda leaders<br />

- Usama al-Kin and<br />

Sheikh Ahmed Salim,<br />

both wanted by the<br />

American Federal<br />

Bureau of Investigation<br />

(FBI). Kin was the<br />

Students protesting against U.S. drone attacks<br />

chief operational<br />

commander of Al-<br />

Qaeda in Pakistan and<br />

had replaced Abu Faraj<br />

Al Libi after his arrest<br />

in 2004. Another drone<br />

attack, on August 5,<br />

2009, in South Waziristan killed the most wanted fugitive chief of the Tehrik-e-Taliban<br />

Pakistan (TTP); named Baitullah Mehsud, along with his wife.<br />

According to the data provided by authorities, 98 people were killed in two US<br />

drone attacks carried out in Pakistani territory in 2006, 67 more were killed in three<br />

attacks in 2007, another 385 people were killed in 34 attacks in 2008 and 708 more lost<br />

their lives in 44 drone attacks in 2009.<br />

Violence in Balochistan<br />

In Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and poorest province, Baloch militants were<br />

6 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


engaged in a long-running insurgency during 2009. Afghan Taliban groups were also<br />

accused of using Balochistan as a base where most of the terrorist acts had sectarian<br />

motives. (See chapter on freedom of thought, conscience and religion <strong>for</strong> target killings<br />

of Shias in Balochistan.) Moreover, Baloch militant organisations also indulged in the<br />

killing of non-Baloch people (aka settlers) in the province including teachers, businessmen<br />

and skilled labour. Hundreds of non-Baloch families migrated from Quetta to other<br />

parts of the country. The public safety situation became so bad in Quetta that businesses<br />

would close early in the evening. During the year, the incidents of abduction <strong>for</strong><br />

ransom in Quetta sharply rose and not a single perpetrator of the crime was held<br />

accountable. The<br />

business community<br />

was <strong>for</strong>ced to pay<br />

extortion money to one<br />

or the other political<br />

group.<br />

In 2009, 141<br />

incidents of target killing<br />

took place in the<br />

province. In these<br />

incidents, 118 citizens<br />

and 158 security<br />

personnel were killed<br />

while 83 citizens and 7<br />

security officials were<br />

injured. The following<br />

incidents of target killing<br />

/ attacks were recorded:<br />

Balochi women protest against the military operation<br />

in Balochistan<br />

January 5: A police constable Qadir Bakhsh was killed by unknown armed men in<br />

Mashaky Gujar Bazar in Awaran district. Constable Abul Hakeem of Balochistan<br />

Constabulary (BC) was also gunned down the same day.<br />

January 7: Bismillah, a policeman, sustained injuries as he was shot at by unidentified<br />

men in Killi Shabo, Quetta.<br />

January 21: Atiq Ahmed, manager of a bank on Sariab Road, was gunned down<br />

by unidentified men.<br />

January 20: Four men in Kalat were shot at and killed by unidentified men.<br />

January 24: Unidentified men shot dead Ayoub Marri and his gunman Haq Nawaz<br />

in Quetta.<br />

January 25: Two men belonging to Rahim Yar Khan, Shahzad (32) and Farooq<br />

Law and order 6 3


(33), were targeted by unidentified men on Sariab Road.<br />

February 3: Two men, Ibrahim and Toufiq, were killed in Tump, District Kech,<br />

by unknown armed men.<br />

February 4: Ten unidentified armed men raided a house in Dera Bugti during a<br />

wedding ceremony and shot at the people there indiscriminately, thus killing groom<br />

Mun Dost and bride Dura Khatoon, besides Moulvi Gul Din, Kakar, Bahrram, Allah<br />

Dad, Miran Baksh, Ali Baig and Mir Ali while 17 others including children and women<br />

were injured.<br />

February 4: Three labourers from Punjab, namely Muhammad Ajmal, Muhammad<br />

Shahbaz and Haji Farooq, were gunned down by unknown armed men in District<br />

Nushki.<br />

February 4: Haji Jameel, belonging to Bahawalpur, was shot dead by armed men<br />

in Mastung while another settler, Muhammad Rafiq, was injured in Khuzdar.<br />

February 9: A policeman, Ehsan Ullah, was killed in a firing incident on Eastern<br />

Bypass in Quetta by unidentified gunmen.<br />

February 14: A barber, Javaid, was killed on Salachi Street, Quetta.<br />

In another incident, at Mano Jan Road, Quetta, Faisal Mengal and his two children,<br />

Tariq Mengal and Bashir Mengal, were wounded in firing.<br />

February 23: Baloch intellectual Jan Muhammad Dashti and his driver Muhammad<br />

Ali were wounded when they were shot at near Sariab in Quetta.<br />

February 25: Four men, namely Gulab Shah and his three sons, Jalil Shah, Raheem<br />

Shah and Methab Shah, were shot at and killed at Burma Hotel, Sariab Road, Quetta by<br />

unidentified gun men.<br />

March 21: A labourer, Mushtaq, was killed by unidentified armed men in Mand,<br />

Kech district.<br />

March 23: Unidentified attackers shot at an FWO vehicle killing Muhammad Bout<br />

and injuring Junaid and Naseer Ahmed.<br />

March 31: Alam Zehri, Principal, Government Degree College, Kalat was shot<br />

dead by unknown men in Kalat.<br />

April 14: A police constable, Niaz Ahmed, was killed in a firing incident by unknown<br />

men near Degree College, Quetta.<br />

April 14: Hassan Javaid sustained injuries as unidentified men shot at him in district<br />

Mastung.<br />

April 16: A tailor, Imran, and two other men, Shamraiz and Asim, were shot dead<br />

on Double Road, Quetta.<br />

April 21: Saidur Rehman was gunned down on Link Road, Quetta.<br />

May 4: Policemen Gul Khan and Shams were shot dead in Quetta.<br />

6 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


May 29: <strong>Ar</strong>shad Mehmood, Muhammad Asif, Zohaib and Abdul Khaliq Langove<br />

were killed while a passerby sustained injuries as unknown men shot at them on Jail<br />

Road, Quetta.<br />

June 1: A member of PML (N), Haji Naeem Kashmiri, was gunned down on<br />

Jinnah Road, Quetta.<br />

June 6: Three policemen, belonging to the Balochistan Constabulary, were killed<br />

by armed men in Quetta.<br />

June 7: Zulfiqar Ali, a security guard was shot dead on the premises of the CM<br />

House.<br />

June 10: A barber, Muhammad Ajmal, was shot dead by unknown men on Sariab<br />

Road, Quetta.<br />

June 10: Khalid Mehmood, Vice-Principal, Balochistan Residential College (BRC),<br />

Khuzdar, was gunned down by unknown men in district Khuzdar.<br />

June 20: Zia ul Haq Qazi was gunned down along with his reader, Khaliq Dad, by<br />

unidentified men on a Sariab Road Gird Station, Tehsil Dasht, District Mastung.<br />

June 23: Abdul Ghani was killed in a firing incident on Jinnah road, Quetta.<br />

July 7: Javaid Lodhi, Principal, Government Pilot Secondary School, was gunned<br />

down in district Mastung.<br />

July 23: Haji Muhammad Mohsin, headmaster of Govt. High School Sariab Mills,<br />

was killed by armed men on the premises of the school located on Sariab Road, Quetta.<br />

July 24: Professor Amanat Ali Baig, Principal Govt. Commerce College Quetta,<br />

was shot at and killed on Quarry Road.<br />

July 25: Professor Ghulam Sarwar, Head of Chemistry Department, was killed by<br />

unknown men in his house on Sariab Road, Quetta.<br />

July 25: Two young men, namely Zafar and Khalid, were killed by unidentified<br />

armed men in Muslim Town, Quetta.<br />

July 26: Tahir Memon, manager Pepsi Cola, was killed along with two colleagues,<br />

Ali and Hameed, by unidentified armed men on the Eastern Bypass, Quetta.<br />

July 27: Three labourers, Sikander, Abdul Rauf, and Faqir Hussain, sustained<br />

injuries when shot at by unidentified men on Joint Road, Quetta.<br />

Aug 26: Unidentified men shot dead four Christian citizens, namely, Naveed,<br />

Shahzad, Asif Chand and Joseph, while Omar sustained wounds at a laboratory located<br />

on Jinnah Road, Quetta.<br />

August 31: Muhammad Rafiq and Saleem were killed by unidentified men on<br />

Spiny Road, Quetta.<br />

October 24: Balochistan Minister <strong>for</strong> Education, Shafiq Ahmed Khan, was<br />

Law and order 6 5


assassinated by unidentified gunmen near his residence on Ali Bahduar Road, Quetta.<br />

Nov 25: Norez Ahmed, Vice-President Balochistan National Party (BNP), was gunned<br />

down in Usta Muhammad, distrct Jaffarabad.<br />

Target killings in Karachi<br />

The ruling coalition parties in Sindh were engaged in fighting each other in tit-<strong>for</strong>tat<br />

killing in Karachi. Each political party harboured its own band of toughs and any<br />

attempt by the police to bring them to justice met stiff resistance from their political<br />

patrons. The city was flush with legal and illegal arms. Every MNA was entitled to<br />

issue 25 licences per year <strong>for</strong> prohibited and 20 <strong>for</strong> non-prohibited weapons while<br />

MPAs were allowed five licences <strong>for</strong> prohibited bores a year.<br />

According to the Interior Minister, around 256 target killings took place in Karachi<br />

during 2009. Those killed included 69 people belonging to the MQM, 60 to the MQM<br />

(Haqiqi), 28 to the PPP, 23 to the ANP and other political parties and 41 people belonging<br />

to religious groups.<br />

However, the database maintained by HRCP gives a somewhat higher figure of<br />

target-killings in Karachi. As per HRCP database, a total of 747 persons were killed in<br />

Karachi during 2009. Out of these, 1,415 were men, 198 women and 134 children.<br />

Among these, 291 people became victims of target killing and 209 out of them were<br />

political workers.<br />

Political parties<br />

Killed<br />

MQM 75<br />

MQM (H) 62<br />

PPP 20<br />

ANP 16<br />

STPP 4<br />

Tehreek-e-Talban (Banned) 2<br />

PML(N) 2<br />

JI 4<br />

PML(F) 1<br />

JSQM 1<br />

PPI 1<br />

SS (Banned) 1<br />

Jiay Sindh 3<br />

Non-political persons 82<br />

Total 291<br />

Non-political people 82<br />

Political workers 209<br />

6 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


198 women were killed in Karachi during 2009.<br />

75 women were killed by unknown people.<br />

69 women were killed by their relatives <strong>for</strong> the following reasons:<br />

25 were killed during personal rifts.<br />

15 were killed because of love marriage.<br />

11 were killed because their<br />

character was doubted.<br />

10 were killed <strong>for</strong> unknown<br />

reasons.<br />

3 were sexually abused and<br />

killed.<br />

2 were killed because of<br />

rejection of marriage.<br />

2 were killed because of<br />

personal enmity<br />

1 was killed because of personal<br />

dislike.<br />

30 women died of burning.<br />

7 women died in a railway accident.<br />

6 women died while resisting<br />

dacoits.<br />

Target killings became a norm in Karachi<br />

5 women died as Kari.<br />

4 women died in a bomb blast.<br />

2 women died in linguistic clashes.<br />

At least 134 children were killed in Karachi during 2009.<br />

34 children died of unknown fire.<br />

26 children died of rapid fire in cottages.<br />

11 children were kidnapped, abused and killed.<br />

10 children died of negligence of KESC, KBCA, and city government.<br />

10 children died after falling in manholes, sewage canals and ditches.<br />

8 dead bodies were <strong>found</strong> at different places.<br />

6 children drowned in under-ground tanks.<br />

4 children died of suffocation while getting free food stuff.<br />

3 corpses of infant children were <strong>found</strong> in garbage heaps.<br />

3 children died in railway accident.<br />

3 children died in bomb blast.<br />

2 children died of gas cylinder explosion.<br />

Law and order 6 7


2 were killed by their step-father<br />

2 were killed in linguistic clashes.<br />

2 were killed during Lyari gang war.<br />

2 were killed while resisting dacoits.<br />

1 was killed by a teenaged car driver.<br />

Other crimes<br />

In Punjab, the incidents of armed robberies (dacoities) shot up by 10 per cent in<br />

2009 as compared to 2008. During 2009, the police registered 2,352 cases of armed<br />

robberies as compared to 2,136 cases in 2008.<br />

Punjab Police claimed that during 2009 it solved 2,450 organised crimes and arrested<br />

8,532 gang members, 72,158 proclaimed offenders and 36,981 absconders. It also<br />

claimed to have recovered 103,310 illegal arms and stolen goods worth Rs 903 million.<br />

The Islamabad police claimed it traced 103 murder cases out of a total of 130 in<br />

2009 – a success ratio of more than 50 percent. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 5,569 crime cases were<br />

registered in Islamabad in 2009 as opposed to 5,656 cases in 2008. According to police<br />

sources, a decline was witnessed in the cases of attempt to murder (115 cases in 2009<br />

as compared to 124 cases in 2008). During 2009, ‘hurt cases’ in the capital numbered<br />

304 as compared to 332 in 2008. Over 100 cases of fatal road accidents, 100 cases of<br />

non-fatal road accidents, 33 cases of looting, 257 robbery cases, 54 day burglary and<br />

134 night burglary cases, 259 general theft cases, 420 car theft cases, 107 cases of<br />

theft of other vehicles, 129 cases of motorcycle theft, 77 cases of tampering with<br />

chassis numbers of cars were registered in the capital.<br />

According to the CIA Police, Lahore, almost 120 criminal gangs were cracked and<br />

515 members of these gangs, who had looted property worth over Rs. 125 million,<br />

were arrested in Lahore during 2009. The accused had also been involved in more than<br />

2,247 other cases during the recent past. The CIA was also successful in arresting 13<br />

members of women criminal gangs who had robbed houses and abducted children in<br />

the city of Lahore.<br />

According to Lahore’s Investigation police, around 1,888 motorcycle lifting cases<br />

were registered in the city during 2009 against 166 accused persons, who had committed<br />

many crimes including 11 cases of murder, four cases of looting-cum-murder, 34 of<br />

looting, 614 of robbery, 768 of burglary and 517 other cases.<br />

The leader and nine members of the Imran Safaya gang were arrested by the<br />

police and stolen property worth Rs. 10 million recovered. The gang confessed to<br />

committing 90 crimes in Lahore, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Jehlum, Gujranwala, Sahiwal,<br />

Sialkot, Faisalabad, Islamabad, and Karachi.<br />

As in previous years delays in courts contributed to failures to control crime and<br />

6 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


hardened criminals continued to believe they could get away with anything. For example,<br />

during the last days of 2009, a court in Gujranwala announced verdict in a murder case<br />

after 15 years of hearing. The convict had killed the victim over a petty issue on March<br />

19, 1995.<br />

Crime situation - vital statistics<br />

Balochistan<br />

Crimes against persons 2008 2009<br />

a. Murder 607 628<br />

b. Culpable Homicide 3 6<br />

c. Attempt to Murder 634 596<br />

d. Grievous Hurt 551 611<br />

e. Simple Hurt 1070 981<br />

f. Rioting 325 370<br />

g. Assault on Public Servant 218 238<br />

h. Kidnapping/Abduction 201 199<br />

i. Kidnapping <strong>for</strong> Ransom 44 42<br />

j. Child Lifting 16 8<br />

k. Suicide 0 0<br />

l. Attempt to Suicide 16 15<br />

Total: 3685 3694<br />

Violence against women<br />

a. Karo Kari/Siya Kari 59 52<br />

b. Rape/Zina 21 37<br />

c. Gang Rape 0 0<br />

d. Burning through acid 0 0<br />

e. Burning through stove 0 0<br />

f. 354 PPC 97 69<br />

Total: 177 158<br />

Crime against property<br />

i. Dacoity -Highway 46 27<br />

ii. Bank robbery 1 0<br />

iii. Petrol Pump robbery 5 3<br />

iv. Others 116 126<br />

i. Robbery -Highway 4 11<br />

ii. Bank 1 1<br />

iii. Petrol Pump 0 1<br />

iv. Others 181 196<br />

Total: 354 365<br />

Law and order 6 9


2008 2009<br />

c. c. Burglary 242 208<br />

d. d. Car theft 159 134<br />

ii- Car snatched 83 62<br />

iii- Motorcycle theft 213 249<br />

iv- Motorcycle snatched 342 424<br />

v- Other M/Veh: theft 113 159<br />

vi- Other M/Veh: snatched 145 189<br />

Total: 1055 1217<br />

e. Mobile phone i- Mobile theft 36 19<br />

ii- Mobile phone Snatched 30 29<br />

Total 66 48<br />

f- Cattle Theft 93 140<br />

g- Other Theft 430 384<br />

h- Receiving stolen property: 411 81 91<br />

i- Theft u/s 382 PPC 29 17<br />

Total: 633 632<br />

Miscellaneous 1204 1121<br />

i- Terrorism (Bomb blast) 346 481<br />

ii- Rocket firing 44 72<br />

Total: 390 553<br />

i- T/Accident - Fatal Accidents 235 195<br />

ii- Non-fatal Accident 247 196<br />

Total: 482 391<br />

Blasphemy 1 9<br />

Local & Special law<br />

i. Prohibition Ordinance 569 684<br />

ii. <strong>Ar</strong>ms Act 885 1057<br />

iii. Gambling 38 48<br />

iv. Smuggling 1 0<br />

Other Local & Special Laws 457 364<br />

Total: 1950 2053<br />

Punjab<br />

Some 224 cases of kidnap <strong>for</strong> ransom took place in Punjab during 2009 as<br />

compared to 248 in 2008.<br />

<br />

<br />

Police registered 5,386 murder, and 2,352 armed robbery cases.<br />

70,025 proclaimed offenders and 131 fugitives arrested.<br />

7 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


5,807 people were nominated in murder cases and 2,908 in armed robbery<br />

(dacoity) cases.<br />

<br />

Police busted 2,379 gangs (8,038 members).<br />

In 307 police encounters, 28 policemen were killed while 102 police officials<br />

were wounded. Some 36 fugitives and 253 proclaimed offenders killed during these<br />

encounters. 363 proclaimed offenders arrested in the encounters.<br />

In Lahore, police registered 19,050 cases of heinous crimes including armed<br />

robberies (dcoities) and theft.<br />

<br />

Sindh<br />

Sixty people were killed in Lahore while resisting robbery.<br />

According to non-official estimates, below are the statistics of major crimes in the<br />

province.<br />

In the province, excluding Karachi, 346 persons were murdered -103 women,<br />

240 men and three children.<br />

<br />

In Karachi, 747 persons were killed.<br />

485 people, including women, committed suicide during 2009.<br />

163 people were kidnapped <strong>for</strong> ransom or due to personal enmity. A majority<br />

of incidents took place in Upper Sindh districts (Dadu, Jacobabad, Larkana, Sukkur,<br />

Ghotki and Khairpur).<br />

<br />

More than 697 incidents of dacoity and robbery.<br />

According to the police’s Crime Situation Report 2009, there was a significant<br />

fall in crime in many categories: vehicle-snatching fell by 30 percent, cell phone snatching<br />

declined by 38 percent, kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom by 19 percent, highway robbery by 33<br />

percent and bank robbery by 37 percent.<br />

<br />

38 terrorist gangs busted; six suspected terrorists killed and 92 arrested.<br />

Police killed or arrested 74 outlaws carrying Rs 50.9 million reward money<br />

and 183 other dacoits, arrested 11,733 suspected criminals and robbers. It busted<br />

1,009 gangs of criminals, arrested 4,021 proclaimed offenders, 46,198 absconders<br />

and 228 patharidars <strong>for</strong> harbouring robbers.<br />

<br />

During the year, 52 policemen were killed and 193 injured in encounters.<br />

In Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur regions of Sindh, following was the crime<br />

situation from January 1 2009 to 15 November 2009, according to statistics provided<br />

to media by the Sindh Home Minister:<br />

Karachi Police registered 132 cases of armed robberies (dacoities), 1,046<br />

Law and order 7 1


obberies, 44 murders and 1,030 incidents of car snatching/lifting.<br />

Police arrested 8,541 suspected armed robbers (dacoits) in 2,151 police<br />

encounters up to November 15 while 166 suspects were killed in these encounters.<br />

Besides, 3,534 proclaimed offenders and 38,058 absconders were arrested<br />

and 144 kidnapped persons were recovered.<br />

In Karachi, 6,230 suspected dacoits were arrested and 79 killed in 809 police<br />

encounters, 329 proclaimed and 2,940 absconding accused were arrested while 19<br />

kidnapped people were recovered.<br />

In Hyderabad region 345 suspected dacoits were arrested and 25 killed in 207<br />

police encounters, 195 proclaimed and 9,533 absconding accused arrested and 14<br />

kidnaped persons recovered.<br />

Sukkur region 1,966 suspected dacoits were arrested and 62 killed in 1,135<br />

police encounters, 3,010 proclaimed and 25,585 absconding accused arrested and 111<br />

kidnaped persons were recovered.<br />

Forty (40) police officers and personnel lost their lives and 160 were injured<br />

during the operations/actions against criminals in the three regions.<br />

Karachi Police killed Rehman Dakait of Lyari in a so-called encounter at Bin<br />

Qasim Road. He had escaped from the police custody in 2006.<br />

A total of 3,760 cases of possession of illegal arms and ammunition were<br />

registered at 100 Karachi police stations during the first seven and half months (January<br />

1 to August 15) of 2009, with an average of 16 cases a day. In 2008, the average of<br />

registration of cases stood at seven cases a day.<br />

NWFP<br />

Offences 2008 2009<br />

Total Reported Crime 114089 114677<br />

Murder 2936 3195<br />

Attempted Murder 2893 2972<br />

Hurts 3001 2697<br />

Zina u/S 376 (5,6,10) 81 69<br />

Sodomy 84 88<br />

Kidnapping 297 414<br />

Kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom 35 178<br />

Child lifting 331 21<br />

7 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Offences 2008 2009<br />

Abduction 341 396<br />

Assault on Police 331 380<br />

Assault on other government servants 132 168<br />

Dacoity 57 87<br />

Highway Dacoity 4 4<br />

Bank Dacoity 4 12<br />

Robbery 182 192<br />

Proclaimed offenders arrested / killed<br />

2008 2009<br />

At large 9262 9297<br />

Added 13293 12764<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>rested 13163 12528<br />

Killed / died 95 124<br />

Balance 9297 9409<br />

Abduction <strong>for</strong> ransom<br />

Kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom continued to be a major cause of concern <strong>for</strong> both the<br />

police and the people. However, the Punjab police claimed that the incidents of<br />

kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom declined by 10 per cent in 2009 as compared to 2008. In 2009,<br />

the police registered 224 cases of kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom and out of the 256 people<br />

kidnapped 227 were recovered safely while the abductors killed 18 people. According<br />

to the Punjab police, most of the cases of kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom took place in the<br />

leading business cities including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Multan.<br />

A Canadian journalist, Khadija Abdul Qahaar (Beverly Giesbrecht), was kidnapped<br />

in Islamabad and the kidnappers demanded a hefty amount as ransom. Two videos<br />

were broadcast on the internet during the first quarter of 2009, showing Khadija asking<br />

the authorities to pay up to US $375,000, and saying that her captors would kill her in<br />

case the demanded money was not paid.<br />

On Feb 1, a US national, John Solecki, head of the UN refugee agency in Quetta,<br />

was kidnapped and his driver killed after his vehicle was ambushed in Quetta. A militant<br />

organization, the Baloch Liberation United Front (BLUF), claimed responsibility and<br />

demanded of the UN to play its role <strong>for</strong> the release of Baloch missing people as a<br />

Law and order 7 3


Police with a gang arrested <strong>for</strong> one of the 71 cases of kidnapping <strong>for</strong> ransom in Karachi<br />

condition <strong>for</strong> the release of Solecki. The official was released after two months in<br />

captivity on April 3. The BLUF announced it freed Solecki on humanitarian grounds.<br />

Government on the run<br />

In 2009, at least 55 suicide attacks were made on the personnel and offices of<br />

police, intelligence agencies and paramilitary <strong>for</strong>ces. Out of these, 41 attacks were<br />

launched in NWFP and FATA.<br />

On April 22, unidentified militants threw a hand grenade at policemen on duty on<br />

the outskirts of Quetta in the Hazar Ganji area, injuring four policemen and a passer-by.<br />

On September 2, the federal minister <strong>for</strong> religious affairs, Hamid Saeed Kazmi,<br />

was seriously injured in a terrorist attack in Islamabad while his driver and a police<br />

guard were killed.<br />

Three police officials were injured in a bomb blast at Spiny Road, Quetta. The<br />

blast took place near a police van which was on a routine patrol.<br />

Some unidentified armed men killed the Balochistan Chief Mines Inspector, Ashraf<br />

Ali, a member of the Shia Hazara community, on Sariab Road in Quetta on October 12.<br />

On October 25, unidentified gunmen killed the Balochistan Education Minister<br />

Shafiq Ahmed Khan, a member of the Pakistan People’s Party, outside his residence in<br />

Quetta, while his brother’s father-in-law, Hydayat Jaffar, was injured.<br />

An ASI and five policemen were taken hostage and kept in detention in the Bhooral<br />

Shaikh village in the Rawnti area of Ghotki district, Sindh, where the police party had<br />

7 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


GHQ: The target of terrorist attack in October 2009<br />

gone to raid the house of a suspected criminal named Bhooral Sheikh. A few villagers<br />

snatched the official weapons of the police and detained them <strong>for</strong> a few hours. They<br />

were released only after negotiations were held with the police that assured the hostagetakers<br />

that no action would be taken against them.<br />

Human trafficking<br />

If newspaper reports are to be believed, the trafficking of children <strong>for</strong> camel races<br />

in Dubai has been eliminated. The Punjab government acquired land measuring 3.5<br />

acres in Rahim Yar Khan to build a child protection institute at a cost of Rs. 40 million.<br />

As many as 450 camel jockeys were said to have been brought back to Rahim Yar<br />

Khan since 2005.<br />

Policing problems<br />

Disciplinary action against a large number of police officials was one of the many<br />

indications of the poor per<strong>for</strong>mance of the law and order personnel.<br />

In Punjab, disciplinary action was taken against 1,688 police officials, including<br />

DSPs, SHOs, inspectors and sub-inspectors, under the orders of the Chief Minister on<br />

charges of misconduct and inefficiency during the first 11 months of 2009. The<br />

Inspection and Vigilance teams carried out surprise inspection of 136 police stations<br />

during the year across Punjab, and discovered cases of illegal detention, torture,<br />

registration of false cases, non-registration of cases and defective investigations.<br />

According to the IGP, Islamabad, dozens of police officers were suspended during<br />

the year 2009 on charges of corruption. Three SHOs of Sialkot police were suspended<br />

Law and order 7 5


The police had quite a few of its own problems<br />

by the Regional Police Officer (RPO) Gujranwala region on charges of corruption and<br />

laziness in duties during December 2009.<br />

In the first week of December, the District and Sessions Judge, Karachi South,<br />

issued arrest warrants <strong>for</strong> the SP, Special Investigation Unit (SIU), and other officials<br />

<strong>for</strong> keeping citizens in detention illegally. A court bailiff had raided the SIU centre in<br />

Karachi and <strong>found</strong> four persons illegally detained there.<br />

Security arrangements made by the government<br />

During 2009, the government tried to restrict the issuance of arms’ licences.<br />

Proposals were sought from the provinces <strong>for</strong> the control and monitoring of arms’<br />

licences and weapons. The provinces were asked to computerise the record of all<br />

licences so that the use of <strong>for</strong>ged licences could be eliminated. Considering the large<br />

number of licences <strong>for</strong> prohibited bores influential men in authority had acquired, the<br />

failure of the campaign caused no surprise.<br />

During the year 2009, police officials, <strong>for</strong> the first time in the country’s history,<br />

employed sniffer dogs to detect explosives in vehicles entering the city of Lahore. The<br />

areas under high security checks included Ravi and Saggian bridges, Babu Sabu, Thokar<br />

Niaz Baig interchanges and Ferozepur Road. Vehicles were searched at both entry and<br />

exit points of the city. In Lahore, there were 20 sniffer dogs which were used as a part<br />

of counter terrorism strategy apart from being used <strong>for</strong> security checks.<br />

Issues of policing<br />

In 2009, there were more than 83,000 constables in the police <strong>for</strong>ce in the Punjab<br />

7 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


out of which more<br />

than half of the <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

was deployed outside<br />

the police stations,<br />

mostly on providing<br />

security to VIPs. The<br />

Punjab police budget<br />

went up from Rs 8<br />

billion to nearly Rs 30<br />

billion, in about ten<br />

years, but that made<br />

little impact on the<br />

ever-increasing crime<br />

rate in the province.<br />

A make-shift police check-point on a road in Lahore<br />

Extra-legal killings<br />

Extra-legal killings, mostly in the so-called police encounters, again became a major<br />

cause of concern to the people in 2009. The Punjab police chief said 253 ‘gangsters’<br />

were killed in encounters with the police in the province. He said all the 307 encounters<br />

were genuine except one which aroused suspicion and was under investigation. He<br />

said 28 policemen were killed in the crossfire with the gangsters while 102 other<br />

policemen were wounded.<br />

Chronology of police encounters<br />

Out of the 226 ‘encounter killings’ recorded at HRCP, 181 took place in Punjab, 31<br />

in Sindh, 13 in NWFP and one in Balochistan. The Sabzazar colony in Lahore led the<br />

police stations with 6 killings.<br />

Following is a chronology of police encounters during 2009:<br />

January 2, Rawalpindi: A man, Haji Munir, and his son, Abbas Munir, were shot<br />

at and killed by the police at a security checkpost near Faizabad. The Chief Justice of<br />

the Supreme Court took suo motu notice of the incident.<br />

January 2, Sheikhupura: Yaseen, described as a robber was killed in a so-called<br />

encounter on G T Road near Kala Shah Kaku.<br />

January 2, Narowal: A proclaimed offender, Mubashir Butt, wanted in connection<br />

with the murder of seven people, was killed when, according to the police, he resisted<br />

his arrest.<br />

January 4, Karachi: Police opened fire at a car in which four young men from<br />

Chaman, Balochistan, namely Haji Tahir, Obaidullah Khan, Muhammad Ibrahim and<br />

Law and order 7 7


Zainuddin, were travelling. All of them were killed.<br />

January 7, Gujranwala: A proclaimed offender, Shiraz, was killed at Nawab<br />

Chowk in what police said was an encounter.<br />

January 12, Okara: A man, Ashraf, accused of robbery, was killed in what the<br />

police said was an exchange of fire.<br />

January 14, Khanewal: Sajjad, wanted in some criminal cases, was killed in an<br />

encounter with the police. Two policemen were wounded in the incident.<br />

January 15, Lahore: A man, Imran, was killed in what police said was an exchange<br />

of fire.<br />

January 16, Lahore: A man, Musa, was killed by police at Batapur, in what police<br />

said was an encounter with it.<br />

January 18, Lahore: In five separate incidents, police killed five people, namely<br />

Akram Yasir and Akhtar in EME Colony, Imran in Gujjarpura and Mustafa in Batapur.<br />

Police said they were all criminals and were killed in an exchange of fire with the<br />

police.<br />

January 18, Lahore: Two proclaimed offenders, namely Gulzar and Shakeel,<br />

were killed at Kasurpura, Shafiqabad in what police said was an encounter.<br />

Jnauary 18, Gujranwala: Nannu Goraya, a proclaimed offender with a head<br />

money of Rs two million, and his two accomplices, Tahir Kana and Manzoor, were<br />

shot at and killed in crossfire, the police said.<br />

January 19, Hafizabad: A villager was killed as police shot at some people<br />

watching television in an open area. One police constable was arrested on the charge<br />

of shooting at the people.<br />

January 25, Shikarpur: Two unidentified men, accused of robbery and abducting<br />

a police constable, were killed and four others, namely Haji Gulsher, Sudheer, Lundo<br />

and Ali Nawaz were injured when police raided a house in Roos Marfani Village in Golo<br />

Daro <strong>for</strong>est area. Four police officials were also wounded in the crossfire.<br />

January 26, Lahore: CIA Police shot at and killed two unidentified men in Allama<br />

Iqbal Town area and said they were riding a stolen car and illegal weapons were<br />

recovered from them.<br />

January 26, Karachi: Saifullah, suspected to be a robber, was shot at and killed<br />

by police in Orangi Town.<br />

February 1, Faisalabad: Three unidentified men, who allegedly robbed a house<br />

owned by Ahmed Jamal Dogar and made the inhabitants captive, were killed in what<br />

police said was an encounter.<br />

February 1, Gujranwala: Hasnain, suspected of kidnapping, was killed by police.<br />

February 7, Lahore: Six suspects, namely Mukhtar Mitho, Abdul Ghani, Manzoor<br />

Jhoori, Khalid Pervaiz Aali, Wazir Ali Varyam and Rasheed Ahmed Sheeda, were killed<br />

7 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


y police in Sattu Katla in a so-called encounter. The mother of one of the victims,<br />

Abdul Ghani, alleged that police took bribe from her to allow her to see the body her<br />

son and was demanding Rs 50,000 <strong>for</strong> handing over his body. Ashraf Varyam, the<br />

brother of another suspect, Wazir Ali Varyam, also made similar allegations.<br />

February 9, Peshawar: A man suspected of involvement in kidnapping, Shah<br />

Sarwar, was shot at and killed by the police.<br />

February 10, Faisalabad: Police operation at Agriculture University led to the<br />

killing of an unidentified man suspected to be a robber who was hiding there.<br />

February 11, Dadu: A suspect, Aijaz Jamali, was killed in what police said was an<br />

encounter with it. A case was registered against the police officials on murder charges.<br />

February 12, Sukkur: Two suspected outlaws and three policemen were killed<br />

in crossfire.<br />

February 13, Gujranwala: Two suspects, Babar and Akhtar wanted by police <strong>for</strong><br />

murder were killed when, according to the police, their accomplices tried to free them<br />

from police custody.<br />

February 14, Lahore: Three men suspected of murder and abduction <strong>for</strong> ransom,<br />

Noman, <strong>Ar</strong>shad and Azhar, were killed in what Batapur police said was a crossfire.<br />

February 21, Karachi: A man was shot dead when, according to the police, he<br />

tried to break into a bank. Police recovered explosives and a pistol from the suspect.<br />

February 22, Lahore: Three suspected robbers were killed at Mughalpura in<br />

what police said was an encounter. A police van was damaged in the shootout.<br />

February 23, Faisalabad: Three men, suspected of robbing a bank, were killed<br />

by the police.<br />

March 2, Vehari: A unidentified was killed in an encounter with police which also<br />

left a policeman injured.<br />

March 5, Peshawar: An encounter between the police and suspected kidnappers<br />

left one suspect and one policeman dead on the Canal Road.<br />

March 9, Faisalabad: A policeman was killed in an exchange of fire with a thief<br />

near SSP Police office.<br />

March 9, Faisalabad: A policemen, <strong>Ar</strong>shad Ali, was killed and another, Akmal,<br />

was injured when they exchanged fire with two men suspected of robbing a bank.<br />

March 9, Karachi: A suspected robber was killed by police.<br />

March 11, Karachi: Two accused, released by court on bail, were killed in what<br />

police said was an encounter.<br />

March 23, Multan: Three suspected robbers, namely Shabbir Hussain, Zulfikar<br />

Ali and Mobarak Ali, were killed in what police claimed was an exchange of fire at a<br />

Law and order 7 9


police check-post.<br />

March 24, Sahiwal: Three unidentified men, suspected of snatching a car, were<br />

killed in shooting by Faisalabad Police near Dad Fatyana Ada.<br />

March 28, Lahore: <strong>Ar</strong>med guards of a senior police officer, DIG Elite Force, shot<br />

at two men and killed them as they were allegedly robbing people in a market.<br />

April 11, Nowshera: A man, charged with murdering a policeman, was shot dead<br />

in an ‘encounter’.<br />

April 18, Karachi: Four suspects, namely Mashooq Mugheri, Idrees Merrani,<br />

Abdul Hameed Soomro and Abdul Rehman Mughari, were shot dead by Gulshan-i-<br />

Iqbal Police.<br />

April 18, Lahore: Two suspected robbers, Kamran Khan and Bilal Khan, were<br />

killed in the Gujjarpura area during a crossfire.<br />

April 19, Lahore: Two unidentified suspected robbers were killed in the Sanda<br />

area as a result of police firing at a car which did not stop at a check-post.<br />

April 19, Sheikhupura: A suspected robber, Iftikhar, was shot dead by the police<br />

on the Lahore-Sheikhupura highway.<br />

April 22, Lahore: A suspected robber, Zaryata Khan, was killed in the Allama<br />

Iqbal Town area. Police said he along with his accomplice were escaping after robbing<br />

a shop when police intercepted them and which led to a crossfire.<br />

April 26, Sheikhupura: Two proclaimed offenders, Sarwar Sarri and Ibrar ibrari,<br />

were killed in an exchange of fire with the police when, according to the police, they<br />

tried to free their two accomplices who were already in police custody at Dogran Saim<br />

Nala.<br />

May 2, Faisalabad: A suspected robber was shot dead by the police on Kahna<br />

Road in what Dijkot police said was an encounter.<br />

May 5, Hafizabad: Four suspected robbers, belonging to Docha gang, were killed<br />

in an ‘encounter’. Two policemen also suffered injuries.<br />

May 2, Peshawar: Three suspected kidnappers were killed in what police claimed<br />

was an encounter.<br />

May 5, Bahawalpur: A suspected robber was killed in a shootout with police.<br />

Police said he had robbed a van.<br />

May 8, Sargodha: A suspected thief was shot dead by police.<br />

May 9, Faisalabad: Shahid Hussain, a broadcaster and a school teacher, was shot<br />

dead by the police on Samundri Road. Police said he was a robber and was killed in an<br />

‘encounter’.<br />

May 9, Faisalabad: Five suspected robbers, wanted <strong>for</strong> murder and kidnapping<br />

<strong>for</strong> ransom, were killed in two ‘encounters’.<br />

May 14, Lahore: Nawankot Police killed a proclaimed offender, Nasri, in the<br />

8 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Sabza Zar area.<br />

May 14, Gujranwala: A suspected robber was killed in an ‘encounter’.<br />

May 14, Jaranwala: Two suspected robbers were shot dead by police in an<br />

‘encounter’. Police said they had injured a policeman by shooting at him.<br />

May 9, Faisalabad: Two suspected kidnappers and a school teacher, Shahadat<br />

Sial, in their custody were killed when police fired upon them on Samundri Road.<br />

May 10, Gujranwala: Two suspected kidnappers, Imran Masih and Javed Masih,<br />

were killed by police in what it said was an encounter.<br />

May 20, Lahore: A proclaimed offender, Zulfiqar Masih, was killed in an exchange<br />

of fire with police at a house in the Badami Bagh area.<br />

May 21, Sheikhupura: A policeman and a suspected outlaw were killed in a<br />

shootout at a village near Sangla Hill.<br />

June 9, Lahore: Police killed two suspected Afghan militants in Mughalpura.<br />

Police said it opened fire at a vehicle when it did not stop at a security check-post.<br />

June 10, Lahore: Police killed two suspected robbers, in Shahdara in an alleged<br />

encounter.<br />

June 18, Thatta: A peasant, Suleman, was shot dead by two policemen near<br />

Temani village.<br />

June 20, Karachi: A suspected outlaw was shot dead by Darakhshan Police in an<br />

‘encounter’.<br />

June 20, Lahore: Police shot dead two suspected robbers Qaiser Shaukat and<br />

Asif Achi at Masti Gate in an ‘encounter’.<br />

June 22, Sahiwal: Police killed two suspected robbers, Nazir Ahmed and<br />

Muhammad Tufail, in what it said was an encounter.<br />

July 24, Okara: In an ‘encounter’, a proclaimed offender, and a policeman were<br />

killed.<br />

July 30, Rawalpindi: In an encounter, a suspected drug pusher and a policeman<br />

were killed at Fateh Jang.<br />

July 30, Multan: Hanif, a suspected robber, was killed in what police said was an<br />

encounter.<br />

July 31, Peshawar: A man killed in an encounter at Chamkani was described by<br />

the police as a robber.<br />

August 5, Lahore: Four suspected robbers, Shahzad Khan, Abdur Rauf, Khalil<br />

Ahmed and Asghar Shahzad, were killed in an ‘encounter’ in the Hanjarwal area.<br />

August 8, Chiniot: Two proclaimed offenders, Mummi Goltar and Amjad, were<br />

said to have been killed in an exchange of fire with the police.<br />

August 17, Faisalabad: Three suspected robbers, Rashid Rashi, <strong>Ar</strong>if and Imran,<br />

Law and order 8 1


were killed in what police said was an encounter.<br />

August 20, Lahore: Two suspected robbers were killed by the police in an<br />

‘encounter’ at Gulshan-i-Ravi.<br />

September 1, Lahore: Two suspected robbers, Mansha and Hanif, were killed in<br />

what police said was an exchange of fire.<br />

September 1, Gujranwala: One suspected robber was killed in what the police<br />

said was an exchange of fire.<br />

September 15, Lahore: A man, nominated as an accused in a murder case, was<br />

killed in what police said was an encounter.<br />

September 16, Lahore: Five proclaimed offenders were killed in crossfire with<br />

National Highways and Motorway Police in two separate ‘encounters.’<br />

September 17, Lahore: Two suspected kidnappers, Shabbir and Irfan, were said<br />

to have been killed in an exchange of fire with the police.<br />

September 18, Lahore: A suspected outlaw, Mohaila, was killed in what police<br />

wrote down as an encounter in Sabza Zar colony.<br />

October 1, Gujranwala: Three suspected outlaws, Khurram, Shahzad and Perwaz,<br />

were gunned down in what police said was an encounter.<br />

October 3, Gujranwala: In an exchange of fire with the police, a man wanted in<br />

several robbery cases was killed near Garhi Bhala while a policeman was injured.<br />

October 4, Karachi: Two suspected outlaws including Rehman Dacoit and three<br />

policemen were killed in an armed clash in the Lyari area.<br />

October 5, Sialkot: Three suspected robbers were killed in what police said was<br />

an encounter.<br />

October 7, Nowshera: Three suspected outlaws, Haroon, Sumander and Mumtaz,<br />

were killed in what police said was an encounter.<br />

October 9, Okara: Two policemen and a suspected robber were killed in an<br />

exchange of fire.<br />

October 9, Peshawar: Two men, suspected of stealing cars, were killed in what<br />

police said was an exchange of fire.<br />

October 10, Faisalabad: A suspected robber was killed while a policeman was<br />

wounded in an exchange of fire on Sargodha Road.<br />

October 11, Chiniot: Bali, a man charged with the murder of a senior police<br />

officer, Ashiq Marth, was killed when according to the police, his accomplices opened<br />

fire to get him freed when he was being taken to Jhang.<br />

October 12, Karachi: A suspected robber was killed at Orangi Town in what<br />

police said was an exchange of fire.<br />

October 18, Gujranwala: Rana Faisal, a proclaimed offender wanted in 30 cases,<br />

8 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


was killed in an ‘encounter’ with the police.<br />

October 18, Danga (Sialkot): A proclaimed offender, Ehsan, was killed in what<br />

police said was an encounter with it.<br />

October 20, Sargodha: An unidentified man suspected of being a robber was<br />

killed in an ‘encounter’ with the police.<br />

October 24, Mardan: A policeman and a suspected robber were killed in an<br />

‘encounter’ at Khada Bridge.<br />

October 24, Mardan: A policeman and a proclaimed offender, Khawar, were<br />

killed in an ‘encounter’.<br />

October 25, Gujranwala: Two men, Javed and Iqbal, wanted by police in abduction<br />

<strong>for</strong> ransom cases, were killed in what police said was an encounter.<br />

November 3, Quetta: A suspected kidnapper, wanted by police, was killed at<br />

Dhadar <strong>Ar</strong>ea in an ‘encounter’.<br />

November 4, Faisalabad: Three suspected robbers were killed and one policeman<br />

injured at Chak 205 R.B in an exchange of fire.<br />

November 5, Lahore: Rashid, wanted in a murder case, was killed in Sabza Zar<br />

colony in what police said was an exchange of fire.<br />

November 5, Lahore: Rashid, wanted in several murder cases, was killed in<br />

Sabza Zar colony in what police said was an encounter with it.<br />

November 7, Khanewal: Jaffar, a proclaimed offender, was killed and two men<br />

arrested after an ‘encounter’ with the police in Ahmadabad Village.<br />

November 9, Gujranwala: Two suspected outlaws, were killed in an ‘encounter’.<br />

November 9, Kasur: Bhaoli Gujjar, a proclaimed offender, was killed in what<br />

police said was an encounter with it.<br />

November 9, Kasur: Ghulam Nabi, wanted in a murder case, was killed in an<br />

‘encounter’.<br />

November 11, Jehanian (Khanewal): Three suspected robbers, namely Rashid,<br />

Iftikhar and Tehseen, wanted in dozens of robbery cases, and two policemen belonging<br />

to the Elite Force were killed in an exchange of fire.<br />

November 14, Jaranwala: Two suspected robbers, Murtaza and Kashif, were<br />

killed and one was arrested on Bachayana Road in what police said was an encounter<br />

with it.<br />

November 14, Jhang: Khan Khanoo, a proclaimed offender, one of his accomplices<br />

and a policeman were killed in Shor Kot in an encounter.<br />

November 15, Gujranwala: Asad Iqbal, suspected of kidnapping a trader, was<br />

killed by the police. The police claimed he died when action was taken to get the<br />

Law and order 8 3


hostage, Sheikh Azam, released.<br />

November 15, Toba Tek Singh: A suspected robber, Suhail Ahmed, was killed in<br />

what police said was an encounter.<br />

November 18, Allahabad: A suspected robber was killed and another injured<br />

when police shot at them. Police said it took action against them as they were robbing<br />

people on a link road.<br />

November 19, Karachi: A suspected robber Zafar Iqbal was killed by the police in<br />

the Dalmia area.<br />

November 24, Faisalabad: Khalid Current, a proclaimed offender, was killed by<br />

police on AC Road.<br />

November 26, Lahore: Obaidullah, nominated in the murder of four people, was<br />

killed in what police said was encounter with it.<br />

November 26, Lahore: A suspected robber was killed by the police in Sabza Zar<br />

colony.<br />

November 30, Ghakkar Mandi: Muhammad Asif Cheema was killed when police<br />

shot at him <strong>for</strong> not stopping his vehicle at a security check-post near Dhalle Police<br />

Station.<br />

November 30, Lahore: Yasir, 22, was killed by police in Sabza Zar colony in what<br />

police said was an encounter.<br />

December 1, Chishtian: Mazhar Dhadhi, a suspected robber, was killed by the<br />

police. Police had chased him and his accomplices after they had allegedly injured a<br />

man, Muhammad Akram, on resisting robbery.<br />

December 2, Khanqah Dogran: Imran aka Mano, a suspected robber, was killed<br />

in an encounter with police while the police van chasing other suspects crashed into a<br />

passenger bus leaving two policemen dead and seven injured. Chief Justice LHC ordered<br />

a judicial inquiry into the incident as Imran’s heirs termed the encounter fake.<br />

December 2, Lahore: Shahbaz Tiwana, a suspected robber and charged with<br />

killing two policemen, was killed by police in Nishter Colony.<br />

December 4, Ahmedpur East: Two proclaimed offenders, Juma aka Jimmi Baloch<br />

and Muhammad Ajmal aka Bhagga Baloch, were killed by Dhorokot Police.<br />

December 9, Sahiwal: One suspected robber, Ishtiaq, was killed while his two<br />

accomplices, Nasir and Iftikhar, were arrested by police in Chichawatni.<br />

December 9, Dipalpur (Okara): A suspected robber, Mukhtar Makhi, was killed<br />

at Bakhu Shah-Basirpur Road.<br />

December 9, Karachi: Two suspected robbers were killed by Karachi Police<br />

while patrolling in the Lines <strong>Ar</strong>ea.<br />

December 10, Gujranwala: <strong>Ar</strong>shad, nominated in several cases of killing children<br />

after subjecting them to sexual abuse, was killed by the police.<br />

December 17, Okara: Muhammad Nawaz, a suspected robber, was killed by the<br />

8 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


police at a check-post as he did not stop <strong>for</strong> checking.<br />

December 17, Gujranwala: Ahmed Hasan and Tanveer, wanted by police in<br />

robbery and murder cases, were shot dead by the police.<br />

December 18, Lala Musa: Khalid and Azhar, two suspected robbers, were killed<br />

by police.<br />

December 21, Thatta: Two suspected robbers, Rano Channo and Khan Muhammad<br />

Domki, were killed by police in the Khadi <strong>for</strong>est area.<br />

December 25, Bahawalpur: A suspected robber, Ramzan, was killed by police in<br />

Chandi Pir and his three accomplices were arrested.<br />

December 26, Pakpattan: A suspected robber, Taj aka Taji, was killed by the<br />

police near Chak Ameer Sohawa.<br />

December 30, Jaranwala: Imran, wanted in murder cases, was killed by the<br />

police.<br />

In addition to the killings in the so-called encounters, some of the cases of death<br />

in custody and in firing on protesters were:<br />

January 2, Gujranwala: A factory worker, Kashif, resident of Banne Wala Mohalla,<br />

was killed as a result of alleged torture by CIA Police. A case was registered against<br />

eight policemen in Sabzi Mandi Police Station.<br />

February 12, Sialkot: Asim, was killed in police custody in Haji Pura Police<br />

Station. A case was registered against four policemen.<br />

March 25, Faisalabad: Bilal, charged with a murder, was killed in police custody.<br />

His father, Ghulam Mustafa, a policeman himself, said police tortured his son to death.<br />

April 7, Bahawalnagar: A suspect, Shabbir, died in police custody owing to what<br />

his family said was torture. He was arrested without nomination in any case.<br />

May 3, Lahore: A body was <strong>found</strong> at Moon Market, Allama Iqbal Town, allegedly<br />

thrown by Iqbal Town Police after his death in their custody.<br />

May 4, Lahore: A man, 45, died in Gawalmandi Police custody.<br />

May 4, Lahore: Hasan, 21, died in police custody.<br />

August 16, Faisalabad: Sheikh Naeem, <strong>for</strong>mer bankder and suspected robber,<br />

died in police custody.<br />

August 21, Lahore: A young man, Amin, died in CIA Kotwali Police’s custody.<br />

September 1, Lahore: A suspected robber, Salamat Ali, died in the custody of<br />

Allama Iqbal Town Police.<br />

September 3, Mansehra: Police shooting at protesters left two persons killed.<br />

September 10, Rawalpindi: Police shot at protesting Railways workers that left<br />

Law and order 8 5


one man killed.<br />

September 18, Phalia: A man, Inayat, died in police custody.<br />

October 1, Karachi: A young man died in Sohrab Goth’s police custody.<br />

December 2, Gujranwala: Nazir Ahmed, 60, a resident of Abu Bakr Town, died<br />

in police custody. He was arrested <strong>for</strong> possessing alcohol. Police ordered a departmental<br />

inquiry into the incident.<br />

December 3, Gujranwala: Five policemen were booked <strong>for</strong> the death of a man in<br />

custody.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. The government must continue its drive against the militants strongholds in<br />

the northwestern tribal region and bring to justice the leaders/commanders of the<br />

militants.<br />

2. Intelligence needs to be beefed up to bust supporting infrastructure of terrorism<br />

across the country.<br />

3. A parliamentary committee should surprise the military operations in the NWFP<br />

and the tribal areas in order to look into the complaints of human rights violations<br />

against the security <strong>for</strong>ces and their collaborators.<br />

4. The parliament needs to look into the complaints of the excesses committed<br />

against citizens by security personnel in Balochistan.<br />

5. Non-Baloch and Shia-Hazara population in Balochistan needs to be provided<br />

adequate security to prevent their target killings.<br />

6. Measures need to be taken in Karachi to prevent tit-<strong>for</strong>-tat killing of political<br />

activists, allowing all political parties to freely carry out their activates all over the<br />

city.<br />

7. Police in all the provinces need to be provided with adequate personnel, proper<br />

training and latest anti-crime equipment.<br />

8. The killing of suspects in so-called police encounter must be stopped.<br />

9. It should be made mandatory <strong>for</strong> the police in all the four provinces to issue<br />

statement of crime situation on monthly basis.<br />

10. Effective mechanism needs to be developed to check police from concealing<br />

crime through non-registration of cases. The process of filing an FIR needs to be made<br />

simple, and easy.<br />

8 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


Jails, prisoners and<br />

‘disappearances’<br />

No person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being in<strong>for</strong>med,<br />

as soon as may be, of the grounds <strong>for</strong> such arrest, nor shall be denied the right to<br />

consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.<br />

Every person who is arrested and detained in custody shall be produced be<strong>for</strong>e a<br />

magistrate within a period of twenty-four hours of such arrest.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 10(1) and (2)<br />

The dignity of man and, subject to law, the privacy of home, shall be inviolable.<br />

No person shall be subjected to torture <strong>for</strong> the purpose of extracting evidence.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 14(1) and (2)<br />

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment<br />

or punishment.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 5<br />

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person be<strong>for</strong>e the law.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 6<br />

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 8<br />

Facilities <strong>for</strong> prisoners remained abysmal throughout the year with frequent reports<br />

of poor conditions of detention, denial of proper healthcare and facilities to contact and<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 8 7


meet families, and officials routinely assaulting prisoners across the country.<br />

Overcrowding in the prisons remained as grave as ever, with dozens being lodged in<br />

cells designed <strong>for</strong> four to six prisoners and the police often failing to produce the<br />

under-trial prisoners be<strong>for</strong>e a court. The situation was worse <strong>for</strong> imprisoned women,<br />

children, members of religious minorities and those facing charges of blasphemy. Some<br />

initiatives were taken by the government, including the introduction of the National<br />

Judicial Policy, to ensure swift trials, but conclusive evidence of any positive outcome<br />

was not visible by the end of the year.<br />

New incidents of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances continued to be reported throughout<br />

2009 from across the country. Though the reinstated superior judiciary eventually<br />

started hearing petitions against the illegal practice in November, no substantial headway<br />

was made in the case as far as the recovery of the disappeared or accountability of the<br />

perpetrators is concerned.<br />

The government failed to follow through on an announcement it had made in<br />

2008, that it was working on recommendations to abolish capital punishment in the<br />

country. An in<strong>for</strong>mal moratorium remained in place on execution of the death sentence<br />

but 276 persons were awarded the death penalty in 2009.<br />

State of prisons<br />

The state of the country’s prisons remained utterly unsatisfactory <strong>for</strong> a larger part<br />

Most jails in Pakistan continued to house numbers far beyond their capacity<br />

8 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


of 2009, with the size of the prison population constantly on the rise and few steps<br />

being taken to enhance capacity or look at alternatives to imprisonment. Corruption<br />

and drug abuse remained rampant in the prison system. In October, during the Lahore<br />

High Court (LHC) Chief Justice’s visit to Camp Jail in Lahore, the jail superintendent<br />

admitted that the jail was overcrowded – with 4,651 prisoners detained there against<br />

the capacity of 1,050. The story of most prisons elsewhere in the country was not<br />

very dissimilar.<br />

Out of a population of over 8,700 detainees in Karachi’s jails, most could not be<br />

released on parole and probation, because of the 20 sanctioned posts <strong>for</strong> probation and<br />

parole officers, 18 had been lying vacant. Without these officers it was not possible to<br />

release prisoners on parole since they were required to review the record of conduct<br />

and crime history of a prisoner and prepare report <strong>for</strong> the parole committee’s<br />

consideration <strong>for</strong> a release to be ordered. The parole officers are required to monitor<br />

the conduct of released convicts and ensure that they abide by the undertaking they<br />

sign in courts at the time of their release.<br />

For all the overcrowding in prisons, it took visits by the Chief Justice of Pakistan<br />

and other judicial authorities <strong>for</strong> many prisoners detained <strong>for</strong> petty crimes to be released.<br />

These visits highlighted the high ratio of people detained <strong>for</strong> minor offences and led to<br />

the release of hundreds of such prisoners.<br />

As many as 120 prisoners involved in petty crimes were released from the<br />

Peshawar Central Prison after a judicial magistrate conducted court proceedings inside<br />

the prison in February. The visit followed in<strong>for</strong>mation by the prison superintendent that<br />

very few police officials were assigned to take prisoners to the courts owing to the law<br />

and order situation in the city. The superintendent said the prison population had been<br />

on the rise due to non-production of prisoners be<strong>for</strong>e courts.<br />

As many as 38 prisoners detained <strong>for</strong> petty offences were released on a single<br />

day when judicial officials visited the Kasur district jail in February.<br />

185 detainees held <strong>for</strong> petty crimes were released during the visit of a district<br />

and sessions judge to the two jails in Lahore in March.<br />

25 prisoners detained in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat Jail <strong>for</strong> petty offences were<br />

released following a visit by a district and sessions judge in April.<br />

On May 2, the Chief Justice of Pakistan visited Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore and<br />

ordered the release, on bail, of 185 prisoners detained <strong>for</strong> petty offences.<br />

In September, the Chief Justice of Pakistan visited Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on<br />

Eid day and ordered the release of 14 detainees imprisoned <strong>for</strong> minor offences.<br />

In October, during a visit to Camp Jail Lahore, the LHC Chief Justice ordered<br />

the release of 100 prisoners detained <strong>for</strong> minor offences. On a visit to Lahore’s Kot<br />

Lakhpat Jail in November, the Lahore High Court Chief Justice ordered the release of<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 8 9


five such detainees.<br />

In July, a district judge while visiting the two jails in Lahore ordered the release<br />

of 165 prisoners detained <strong>for</strong> petty offences. A similar visit in September led to the<br />

release of 68 such detainees and a third, in August, to the release of another 217.<br />

In October, a district judge’s visit to Rahim Yar Khan District Jail led to the<br />

orders <strong>for</strong> the release of 28 detainees detained <strong>for</strong> petty offences.<br />

In May, the Chief Justice of Pakistan visited prisoners in the Lahore and Karachi<br />

jails. About a month later the Supreme Court ruled that barring convicts <strong>for</strong> certain<br />

offences, prisoners’ sentences would begin from the time of arrest and not the day of<br />

conviction. During his visit to Kot Lakhpat Jail, the Chief Justice expressed concern<br />

over the cramped conditions of detention <strong>for</strong> the around 550 death row detainees.<br />

According to a Supreme Court statement, during his nine-hour visit to the Karachi<br />

Central Prison, the Chief Justice was very disturbed at the congestion in the prisons<br />

where against “the capacity of 1,690 more than 5,000 prisoners are languishing in the<br />

jail”.<br />

“[M]any prisoners were <strong>found</strong> to be languishing in prison despite the fact that they<br />

had already completed the maximum period of punishment prescribed <strong>for</strong> the offence<br />

yet their cases are pending,” according to the statement. “In some cases under-trial<br />

prisoners were not being produced be<strong>for</strong>e the courts <strong>for</strong> a variety of reasons, including<br />

non-availability of police escort.” The Chief Justice <strong>found</strong> that “some of the prisoners<br />

were suffering from serious life threatening diseases but were not being treated or<br />

receiving medicines” and was dismayed that “special food was prepared <strong>for</strong> the prisoners<br />

on account of his expected visit”. The CJ ordered the release of a number of prisoners<br />

held on minor charges. According to the statement, the Chief Justice was upset by the<br />

“sub-human existence in prison”.<br />

The Chief Justice was so shocked by the conditions of prisons during various<br />

visits that he ordered home secretaries of all provinces to submit a comprehensive<br />

report on overcrowding in prisons and the deplorable state of prisoners across the<br />

country. In July, the Supreme Court ordered the provincial advocates-general to resubmit<br />

reports on the state of prisoners held in their respective provinces. The advocatesgeneral<br />

of Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan were asked to resubmit their reports, as their<br />

earlier submissions had been <strong>found</strong> unsatisfactory. The court directed them to follow<br />

the pattern in preparing their reports that had been adopted by Punjab, whose report<br />

the court declared satisfactory.<br />

The court directed the attorney-general to commission a state-of-the-art prison in<br />

the federal capital in collaboration with the Interior Ministry. The court said funds <strong>for</strong><br />

the Access to Justice Programme could be utilised <strong>for</strong> the purpose. However, till the<br />

end of 2009, there was no progress on the proposed project.<br />

Despite release of under-trial prisoners by judges during their visits to prisons, the<br />

9 0<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


main issue of release of under-trial detainees was never addressed. In 2001, the statutory<br />

provision <strong>for</strong> bail <strong>for</strong> under-trial prisoners was repealed when the third and fourth<br />

provisos to Section 497 of the Criminal Procedure Code were repealed through the<br />

Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Ordinance of October 10, 2001. That<br />

amendment took away the right of under-trial prisoners to be granted bail after two<br />

years, or after one year of imprisonment, if the trial was not concluded during that<br />

period through no fault of theirs.<br />

HRCP teams visited a number of prisons / detention facilities in the Sindh province<br />

during the year 2009 to assess the state of prisoners there.<br />

The teams observed that the number of detainees exceeded sanctioned capacity at<br />

almost all prisons they visited.<br />

Central Jail-I Sukkur has the authorised capacity of 1,498 prisoners and 1,692<br />

prisoners were detained there when the HRCP team visited the detention facility in<br />

August. Of these, 1,322 were under trial. Out of a total of 47 juvenile prisoners, 41<br />

were under trial. As many as 39 prisoners were on the death row.<br />

Central Jail-II Sukkur has the capacity to hold 550 prisoners and 407 inmates were<br />

detained there when the HRCP team visited in August. An overwhelming majority, 372,<br />

were under trial. All but one of the 14 women prisoners were under trial.<br />

Table I: Number of detainees and capacity of prisons<br />

Province Number of prisons Capacity Prisoners<br />

Punjab 32 21,500 56,030<br />

Sindh 22 10,000 15,000<br />

NWFP 22 7,980 7,445<br />

Balochistan 10 2,020 2,934<br />

Total 86 41,500 81,409<br />

An HRCP fact-finding team visited the Karachi Women and Youth Offenders’ Prison<br />

and Central Prison on September 16. At the Youth Offenders’ section, where inmates<br />

younger than 17 are kept, 192 children out of a total of 211 were under trial. Nine<br />

juvenile Indian fishermen were also detained there. At the Women’s barracks, 62 of the<br />

93 inmates were under trial.<br />

At Karachi Central Prison <strong>for</strong> men, 3,515 of the total 4,440 were under trial. The<br />

prison is meant to detain no more than 1,700 prisoners.<br />

An HRCP fact-finding team visited Landhi Jail, in Karachi’s Malir district, on October<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 9 1


21. The jail has the capacity to hold 1,100 prisoners and the team <strong>found</strong> 2,449 inmates<br />

were detained there. Of the 649 detained <strong>for</strong>eigners, 572 were Indian fishermen.<br />

During the visits, the HRCP teams <strong>found</strong> that Muslim prisoners were generally<br />

facilitated with regard to their religious practices. It was learned that there are 25<br />

mosques at Karachi Central Prison. Though non-Muslim prisoners were generally<br />

allowed worship in accordance with their religious beliefs there was no specific place<br />

of worship <strong>for</strong> them at any of the prisons visited.<br />

Jails authorities had no provision or instructions to cater to dietary needs of religious<br />

minorities. While prison staff catered to those need out of goodwill, dietary needs of it<br />

prisoners from religious minorities were generally ignored.<br />

The overcrowding at prisons appeared attributable primarily to delays in judicial<br />

determination of<br />

cases; inability of<br />

prisoners to af<strong>for</strong>d<br />

bail; state’s failure to<br />

consider alternatives<br />

to imprisonment; lack<br />

of legal assistance;<br />

and an ineffective<br />

parole system.<br />

Unprofessional policing and use of torture remained endemic<br />

when the HRCP team visited.<br />

As many as 200<br />

prisoners from<br />

Central Jail-I Sukkur<br />

were awaiting<br />

decision on their<br />

applications <strong>for</strong><br />

release on parole<br />

Hospitals and healthcare facilities at the prisons were generally improperly equipped<br />

and medicines were in short supply.<br />

Vocational facilities were not in working order in most of the prisons. A facility <strong>for</strong><br />

weaving carpets and another <strong>for</strong> making clay pots were not being used at Sukkur’s<br />

Central Jail-I on account of the prisoners’ refusal to work there. The staff at Central<br />

Jail-I said prisoners set up gangs on the basis of clan and tribal affiliations and routinely<br />

clash with prisoners associated with rival gangs. The staff stated that it was difficult to<br />

discipline prisoners as they enjoyed support of local politicians and influential persons.<br />

They stated that most of the inmates keep mobile phones in violation of rules and call<br />

9 2<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


their political contacts to seek intervention in case of any action by the jail staff.<br />

Remission<br />

The president announced special remissions ranging from 30 to 90 days <strong>for</strong> prisoners<br />

a number of times during the year. Such remission was awarded on Eid Milad-un-<br />

Nabi, Pakistan Day, Independence Day, International Human Rights Day and Eidul Fitr.<br />

The concession only applied to those who had completed a certain part of their sentence<br />

and were not convicted <strong>for</strong> offences such as terrorism or espionage.<br />

During an inspection of a Karachi prison in May, the Chief Justice directed the<br />

prison authorities and the judicial officers to work together to give prisoners the benefit<br />

of remissions granted by the government on special occasions. The top judge made the<br />

order after learning that prison authorities were not correctly calculating the remissions.<br />

When the remissions were counted it was revealed that a number of prisoners had<br />

already completed their sentence. They were subsequently released.<br />

Prison riots<br />

Poor living conditions caused<br />

by overcrowding, denial of rights,<br />

and delay in determination of<br />

pending cases regularly led to<br />

rioting by detainees. The main<br />

incidents of rioting and protest in<br />

jails during 2009 included:<br />

In January, a group of<br />

prisoners of the Central Jail-I<br />

Sukkur took jail officials hostage<br />

and climbed on the roofs of the<br />

barracks and torched their clothes<br />

and bedding to draw attention<br />

towards their problems, including<br />

refusal to allow them to meet their<br />

relatives, and non-production in<br />

Denial of dignity of person was common<br />

courts. A few days earlier they had<br />

protested on the roofs of barracks against admission of prisoners from other provinces<br />

even though no case had been registered against them in Sindh. They said prisoners<br />

from other districts were not produced in courts and were kept in solitary confinement<br />

if they protested against this non-production. They demanded that prisoners from<br />

other provinces who faced no case in Sindh should be sent to jails in their home<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 9 3


districts.<br />

In February, prisoners in Mianwali Central Jail rioted against solitary<br />

confinement and other harsh punishments awarded by the jail staff and razed an inner<br />

Indictment of criminal justice system<br />

In a case appalling even by the standards of Pakistan’s tardy<br />

criminal justice system and indifference to human misery in prisons,<br />

the media reported in September the acquittal of an 85-year-old man<br />

after he had been languishing in captivity <strong>for</strong> 38 years without any trial.<br />

Saeedul Haq, arrested in a murder case nearly four decades ago,<br />

was discharged by a district and sessions court in Karachi <strong>for</strong> want of<br />

evidence.<br />

The long-suffering man was originally charged with murder in 1971<br />

and arrested on January 20, 1971. The First In<strong>for</strong>mation Report (FIR)<br />

did not identify the victim and there are no details of the crime. Two<br />

years after his arrest, he was transferred to a mental hospital in<br />

Hyderabad and then to various hospitals and prisons until 1999, when<br />

his lawyer wrote to then prime minister who referred the matter to the<br />

Sindh Home Department, which ignored Saeed’s misery <strong>for</strong> almost<br />

another decade.<br />

During his 38 years in captivity – in various prisons and psychiatric<br />

units – Saeed was never tried by a court, much less convicted of any<br />

offence, because the police file of the case had reportedly been<br />

misplaced.<br />

When Saeed’s lawyer prayed to the court <strong>for</strong> his acquittal, the public<br />

prosecutor requested the court to grant time to the police to trace the<br />

record of the case. However, the court ordered the acquittal when the<br />

police failed to produce any record except a copy of the FIR.<br />

By the time he was released, Saeed was unable to speak, or to<br />

remember who his family were or where he came from. He is being<br />

cared <strong>for</strong> at a shelter run by a charity in Murad Memon Goth area of<br />

Malir, Karachi.<br />

With reports of prolonged detention without trial emerging at regular<br />

intervals, it is chilling to realise that many prisoners like Saeed may still<br />

be held in the country’s prisons.<br />

9 4<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


wall.<br />

In February, two police personnel and three prisoners were injured after<br />

prisoners at Rajanpur District Jail (Punjab) rioted to demand their rights according to<br />

Jail Manual.<br />

Also in February, under-trial prisoners went on a hunger strike to protest the<br />

unhygienic conditions and substandard food at the prison in Ghalanai, agency<br />

headquarters of Mohmand Agency in the Federally Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas.<br />

In March, prisoners climbed the roofs of barracks at Larkana Central Prison<br />

and torched bed sheets and clothes in protest against the prison authorities’ failure to<br />

produce them in court and the abusive behaviour of jail staff towards them and their<br />

relatives.<br />

The Toba Tek Singh (Punjab) District Jail superintendent, his 13 subordinates<br />

and 10 prisoners were injured in a clash in jail in March.<br />

In April, 261 prisoners in Swat jail threatened to commit mass suicide if their<br />

cases were not heard <strong>for</strong>thwith.<br />

Six prisoners were injured in April, when police baton-charged the detainees at<br />

the Mirpurkhas (Sindh) district prison who were protesting against extortion, torture<br />

and non-provision of facilities by the prison staff as per the Jail Manual.<br />

Also in April, a large number of under-trial prisoners protested in the judicial<br />

lock-up of the Sukkur district and sessions court when their hearing was put off due to<br />

shortage of judges in lower courts.<br />

In May, prisoners in Faisalabad District Jail turned violent during a protest<br />

against a long electricity shutdown and poor upkeep of hospital barracks and the record<br />

room. Two prisoners were injured in a clash with the police.<br />

Prisoners in Hyderabad Central Prison held 23 jail officials hostage in May<br />

while protesting against the shifting of an under-trial prisoner to Nara prison in the<br />

same district.<br />

In July, prisoners at Balochistan’s largest jail, Machh Central Jail, rioted against<br />

alleged torture by the authorities, overcrowding and lack of health facilities amid reports<br />

that a large number of the detainees were suffering from hepatitis. They took over 15<br />

jail staff hostage and set ablaze a carpet factory, a barber shop, library, and food<br />

provisions. They demanded all facilities allowed under the jail manual and an inquiry<br />

into alleged torture on prisoners. The rioting ended after the provincial prisons minister<br />

arrived to assure the protestors that their complaints would be addressed. The jail, built<br />

in 1928, was meant <strong>for</strong> 650 prisoners, but was housing over 1,100.<br />

<br />

In July, the detainees in Sukkur Jail torched clothes, bed sheets in protest<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 9 5


against not being released despite the completion of their prison term.<br />

In August, prisoners at the District Jail, Jacobabad, held five guards hostage,<br />

climbed on roofs of the barracks and chanted slogans against the jail administration<br />

over alleged manhandling of prisoners.<br />

In September, prisoners at Sukkur Central Jail-I climbed on the roofs of the<br />

barracks to protest against the appointment of the new superintendent and non-provision<br />

of facilities. At least 15 were injured in tear-gas shelling by police when prisoners<br />

started pelting stones at vehicles passing along a nearby road. The protest lasted <strong>for</strong><br />

around a week.<br />

Also in September, the prisoners at Dadu (Sindh) District Jail climbed on the<br />

rooftops of barracks to protest against the failure of prison authorities to provide them<br />

proper medical facilities. The protest was sparked by the death of a prisoner, following<br />

an asthma attack the previous night. The protesters refused to hand over the body to<br />

the jail authorities and claimed that he had died because of the negligence of the jail<br />

administration.<br />

On October 16, more than 600 prisoners observed a hunger strike in Lahore’s<br />

Kot Lakhpat Jail to protest against the excessive workload allegedly because they were<br />

unable to pay the bribe sought by prison staff.<br />

Prisoners in Hyderabad’s Nara Jail barracks’ climbed roofs in November and<br />

protested against torture and denial of food and facilities in accordance with the prison<br />

rules.<br />

Delay in disposal of cases<br />

A substantial portion of the prison population consisted of under-trial prisoners,<br />

most of whom were languishing in jails due to delays in the disposal of their cases.<br />

In September, the Sindh minister <strong>for</strong> prisons stated that in Karachi, 700 prisoners<br />

were regularly produced in courts but proceedings in cases of hardly 30 to 40 of those<br />

prisoners were held, which ultimately led to frustration among the prisoners.<br />

The minister also announced a plan to prepare a centralised database of all prisoners,<br />

including their photographs and fingerprints. It was also proposed that the planned<br />

database should include record of prisoners’ production in courts and hearings of their<br />

cases. Improvment in health facilities and food quality and hygiene at prisons was also<br />

suggested.<br />

A media report citing Police Department data said that in July as many as 14,607<br />

under-trial prisoners (UTPs) were sent back to jail without any hearing of their cases<br />

being held at the district courts of Karachi. On an average, 471 UTPs were sent back<br />

without their cases being examined every day during the previous month. The city’s<br />

9 6<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


132 trial courts issued 19,860 production orders <strong>for</strong> UTPs during the same month, and<br />

according to police data, all of those prisoners were produced.<br />

Table II: Number of under-trial and convicted prisoners<br />

Province Under-trial Convicted<br />

Punjab 38,776 17,254<br />

Sindh 12,673 2,327<br />

NWFP 1,139 1,795<br />

Balochistan 4,968 2,477<br />

Total 57,556 23,853<br />

However, only 5,253 cases were heard during July and 14,607 UTPs were sent<br />

back to prison without ever actually being produced be<strong>for</strong>e a judge, as summoned,<br />

according to the police department. The data suggests that during July a daily average<br />

of 169 cases were heard by the various courts.<br />

Similarly, the Special Superintendent of Police <strong>for</strong> Investigation (East I) said that<br />

only around 26 percent of witnesses produced in courts in Karachi were being examined,<br />

while the rest were going back unexamined. He added that policemen were often listed<br />

as prosecution witnesses on behalf on the state, and they too were not regularly<br />

examined.<br />

The Sindh prosecutor-general said that “100 percent results are hard to come by”<br />

and added that under-trial prisoners also returned without a hearing because of absence<br />

of judges, non-production of a witness, want of a document, or a chemical examiner’s<br />

report resulting in a delay in the proceedings and in the cases growing more and more<br />

drawn out.<br />

In a crucial ruling in August 2009, the Sindh High Court made it mandatory <strong>for</strong><br />

investigation officers to hand in all supporting documents – such as medico-legal officer’s<br />

reports, chemical examiners reports, etc – at the time of filing the charge-sheet, in a<br />

bid to speed up the legal process.<br />

National judicial policy<br />

In May, the Supreme Court announced the new National Judicial Policy, aimed at<br />

ensuring speedy justice and eliminating corruption from the judiciary. The policy<br />

mandated a three-month timeframe <strong>for</strong> deciding criminal cases, while cases attracting<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 9 7


the death penalty were to be resolved in six months. At the time, 19,055 cases were<br />

pending in the Supreme Court, 2,092 in the Federal Shariat Court, 84,704 in the Lahore<br />

High Court, 18,571 in the Sindh High Court, 10,363 in the Peshawar High Court and<br />

4,160 in the Balochistan High Court. As many as 1,565,926 cases were pending be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

the subordinate judiciary in the four provinces.<br />

Healthcare<br />

The healthcare facilities in the prisons remained generally poor, skin ailments were<br />

regularly reported from overcrowded prisons. The Sindh Assembly was in<strong>for</strong>med by<br />

the provincial prisons minister in April that screening of 10,000 prisoners in jails in the<br />

province had <strong>found</strong> 770 prisoners suffering from hepatitis and 22 from HIV or AIDS.<br />

The minister said the main causes of the diseases was substance abuse as most offenders<br />

were addicts, while the jails staff was involved in supplying drugs in jails. The minister<br />

praised the steps being taken to improve prisons but expressed the fear that jails would<br />

become “good hostels” as a consequence.<br />

Out of 1,170 prisoners at Lahore’s two jails screened by June, 169 tested positive<br />

<strong>for</strong> hepatitis-C, 64 <strong>for</strong> hepatitis-B, and 23 <strong>for</strong> HIV. A member of the doctors’ team that<br />

conducted the tests said the conditions in the prisons were most unhyginic and cited<br />

polluted drinking water as the main cause <strong>for</strong> the spread of hepatitis.<br />

Two prisoners died and over 100 fell sick on account of ‘food poisoning’ or<br />

consumption of allegedly contaminated water in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail in late October.<br />

In March, there were media reports of the spread of skin allergy in Rawalpindi’s<br />

Adiala Jail. As many as 5,786 individuals were detained in the prison against the authorised<br />

capacity of 1,996 persons. The jail’s superintendent said: “It is natural that skin allergies<br />

and other diseases would spread among prisoners because of the prevailing situation.”<br />

Every barrack had a space <strong>for</strong> 288 persons while more than 800 prisoners were<br />

detained in each. The prison only had two doctors <strong>for</strong> the 5,786 prisoners.<br />

Juvenile prisoners<br />

The negative influence that the atmosphere could have on juveniles detained in<br />

prisons, where they come into contact with hardened outlaws, has long been a cause<br />

<strong>for</strong> anxiety, prompting apprehensions that the children could become accomplished<br />

criminals instead of getting an opportunity of being re<strong>for</strong>med and rehabilitated.<br />

In November, members of the National Assembly expressed concern on the floor<br />

of the House over detention of minors in jails and lack of legal aid <strong>for</strong> them.<br />

They drew the attention of the interior minister towards children in jails and nonavailability<br />

of facilities to minor children of prisoner mothers, including 30 such children<br />

9 8<br />

State of Human Rights in 2009


detained along with their mothers in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail alone.<br />

In December, the government in<strong>for</strong>med the National Assembly’s Standing<br />

Committee on Social Welfare and Special Education that there were around 1,800<br />

minor prisoners in the country, with the majority facing trial. The interior minister<br />

in<strong>for</strong>med the National Assembly that in all around 70 children below 18 years of age<br />

were in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.<br />

The Sindh prisons minister in<strong>for</strong>med the provincial assembly in June that there<br />

were 40 children living with their mothers in various prisons of the province. The<br />

assembly was in<strong>for</strong>med that instead of the children’s being kept in jails with their<br />

mothers, the government had initiated a proposal to allow them to live with their<br />

grandparents, but the mothers were not ready to let their children go.<br />

In January, the superintendent of Adiala Jail in<strong>for</strong>med the Supreme Court that 114<br />

juveniles were detained in the prison – the youngest was 12 and the oldest 18 years old.<br />

Charges against them included murder, robbery, sexual assault, narcotics peddling,<br />

abduction, vehicle theft, burglary and fraud.<br />

Religious rights<br />

In January, Adiala jail became the first prison in the country to have a church on its<br />

premises. The jail authorities had provided land <strong>for</strong> the church and the local Christian<br />

community provided the Rs 1.2 million needed <strong>for</strong> constructing the building <strong>for</strong> around<br />

250 Christian prisoners in the jail.<br />

Contact with outside world<br />

Complaints about difficulties in meeting visitors and keeping contact with the outside<br />

world were rampant, as were reports of criminals bribing jail staff to acquire mobile<br />

phones and using them to threaten witnesses, opponents, and even running criminal<br />

gangs from the prisons. In January, the Sindh minister <strong>for</strong> home affairs said that<br />

mobile signal jammers would soon be installed in prisons to curb the use of mobile<br />

phones, admitting that prisoners remained in contact with the outside world through<br />

cellular phones.<br />

In July, the Punjab government slapped a complete ban on mobile phone use in the<br />

province’s jails. Even officials on duty or on visits were barred from using the phones.<br />

The measure was taken to address complaints of ban violation by prisoners. Any jail<br />

official <strong>found</strong> violating the ban was going to be sacked.<br />

Later in the same month, the Punjab government issued orders to install jammers<br />

inside prisons to stop the service of mobile phones on the premises.<br />

In October, NWFP prisons chief ordered the closure of public call offices in the<br />

province’s jails out of fears that the Taliban held in prisons were keeping contact with<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 9 9


militants outside. Prison authorities were also ordered to ensure the ban on the use of<br />

mobile phones by prisoners was not violated.<br />

FSC verdict<br />

A ruling by the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) in August, recognising the fundamental<br />

rights of prisoners, raised hopes <strong>for</strong> an improvement in the appalling conditions in<br />

Pakistani jails.<br />

The verdict came on petitions first submitted in 1992 that challenged various<br />

provisions of prison laws <strong>for</strong> being against Islamic injunctions.<br />

The court held that all prisoners were entitled to receive spouses and exercise their<br />

conjugal rights in jails across the country, adding that a prisoner convicted <strong>for</strong> terms<br />

exceeding five years should be allowed to keep his or her spouse and children aged less<br />

than six at special facilities within the jail or be released on short parole to visit his<br />

family. “Denial of conjugal rights or sex deprivation to married prisoners always gives<br />

rise to sexual abuse of fellow inmates or drug addiction,” the court said in its 290-page<br />

judgement.<br />

The Federal Shariat Court – authorised to determine whether legal provisions<br />

con<strong>for</strong>med to Islamic injunctions – also highlighted the need <strong>for</strong> a “proper and respectable<br />

place” on jail premises <strong>for</strong> meetings between the prisoners and their relatives.<br />

The court held prisoners should have the right to appeal against the discretionary<br />

powers of jail superintendent, and declared void the transfer of prisoners from one jail<br />

to another within a province without providing them with copies of orders.<br />

The court also directed that salaries of the jail staff should be brought at par with<br />

those of the police and the dietary allowance <strong>for</strong> prisoners should be doubled.<br />

Declaring the living condition of condemned prisoners as inhuman and against the<br />

principles of Quran and Sunnah, the bench observed that confining six to seven prisoners<br />

in a single cell measuring 9x12 feet amounted to inhuman treatment.<br />

The court ordered the authorities to examine international prison systems and<br />

gauge what improvements needed to be made in Pakistan. Prisoners who were deemed<br />

to have improved their behaviour should be allowed family visits and the concept of<br />

“open jails” should also be investigated, the court said.<br />

Prohibition on keeping reading and writing material in the cell was declared repugnant<br />

to Islam. The judgement also said that keeping continuous check on the prisoners was<br />

against the Islamic injunctions. The court also pointed out 32 more flaws in jail<br />

regulations and directed their removal.<br />

The FSC demanded an amendment in Section 382(b) of the Criminal Procedure<br />

Code to authorise automatic deduction of the time spent by a prisoner in custody<br />

100 State of Human Rights in 2009


during and be<strong>for</strong>e initiation of the trial from duration of sentence awarded to him on<br />

conviction.<br />

Provincial prisons ministers said the government was making arrangements <strong>for</strong><br />

providing time and space to prisoners to exercise their conjugal rights in prisons.<br />

Militancy in prison<br />

As the number of Taliban militants being rounded up and jailed grew, a number of<br />

media reports cautioned against the militants’ interaction with other detainees leading<br />

to recruitment of militants and making plots <strong>for</strong> terrorist activities.<br />

In July, prison authorities in Kohat district of NWFP called in additional <strong>for</strong>ce after<br />

‘Taliban’ detainees resorted to protest against the arrest of their colleague from the jail<br />

mosque.<br />

According to the police, the Taliban detainees – arrested during the security<br />

operations in the FATA region and various parts of NWFP areas – slapped and kicked a<br />

fellow prisoner, accusing him of selling drugs. The victim complained to the staff after<br />

which police arrested a Taliban prisoner inside the mosque.<br />

This infuriated the Taliban who got together, and accused the police of desecrating<br />

the mosque. The protesters urged the jail authorities to stop the sale of narcotics and<br />

use of mobile phones by some prisoners in the jail. Four prisoners who were believed<br />

to have started the commotion were transferred to a prison in Dera Ismail Khan.<br />

Death in prison<br />

A high mortality rate among prisoners was reported in 2009 too, on account of<br />

alleged torture by prison staff, state’s inability to protect the detainees or lack of<br />

healthcare.<br />

As many as 54 prisoners died or were killed and 156 injured in the country’s<br />

prisons during 2009. They included Fanish Masih, a Christian youth accused of showing<br />

disrespect towards the Quran. On September 15, he allegedly committed suicide in<br />

prison, while the family maintained he had been tortured to death.<br />

The fatalities also included at least two prisoners accused of blasphemy. On April<br />

3, a prisoner, Anees Mallah, who was accused of blasphemy was attacked by a mob of<br />

around 200 prisoners in the Sanghar prison, and tortured be<strong>for</strong>e being shot dead. His<br />

face was later mutilated and his head cut off. The police could not recover the firearm<br />

used to shoot him dead. Mallah had been transferred from the Mirpurkhas prison on<br />

the day of his murder.<br />

On July 26, a detainee held in the DG Khan prison on charges of blasphemy was<br />

killed when an unidentified individual slit his throat with a razor. An assistant<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 101


superintendent and five wardens were suspended after the murder.<br />

The casualties also included a detainee whose death was believed to have been<br />

caused by food poisoning at Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail in September. As many as 36 jail<br />

staff and 100 prisoners were also treated, and dozens of them hospitalised. The provincial<br />

prisons chief later stated that the prisoner had died of a heart attack and polluted water<br />

was responsible <strong>for</strong> the staff and prisoners falling ill.<br />

Foreigners in Pakistan’s prisons<br />

In April, the Ministry of Interior in<strong>for</strong>med the National Assembly that at least 6,169<br />

<strong>for</strong>eigners, including 162 women, were imprisoned in Pakistani jails during a 14-month<br />

period from January 2008 to March 2009. The highest number of <strong>for</strong>eigners held <strong>for</strong><br />

illegally entering Pakistan, 5,087, was imprisoned in Balochistan, the ministry stated.<br />

The federal interior minister said in September that at least 41 <strong>for</strong>eigners including<br />

11 Germans, seven Turks and four Swedes were held in Pakistan on terrorism-related<br />

charges.<br />

The maritime<br />

security agencies of<br />

Pakistan and India<br />

continued to pick<br />

up fishermen<br />

straying into the<br />

exclusive economic<br />

zone of the other<br />

country in the<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>abian Sea, in<br />

most cases<br />

following an error<br />

of judgement as the<br />

Indian fishermen released by Pakistan begin the journey home maritime borders are<br />

not visibly<br />

demarcated and the boats the fishermen lack modern instruments to guide them with<br />

regard to geographical distances.<br />

The seized fishermen are routinely accused of border violations, and are swapped<br />

in exchanges. The reciprocal release of fishermen by both countries came to an end<br />

after the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.<br />

Fishermen from Sindh took out a protest rally in Islamabad in October to press <strong>for</strong><br />

the release of hundreds of fishermen languishing in Indian and Pakistani jails. They said<br />

India and Pakistan were using innocent fishermen as political tools and ‘bargaining<br />

102 State of Human Rights in 2009


chips’ to pursue the ‘number game’ of prisoners between the two countries.<br />

The protesting fishermen held that the coastal fishing communities of the<br />

subcontinent had been working peacefully <strong>for</strong> centuries be<strong>for</strong>e the creation of modern<br />

nation-states. They said there were no marked boundaries in the water, but Indian and<br />

Pakistani coastal authorities had been arresting fishermen <strong>for</strong> ‘trespassing’.<br />

There have been complaints of fishermen being subjected to inhuman arrests and<br />

torture in both countries. In December, Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF), an organisation<br />

working <strong>for</strong> the release of the two countries’ fishermen held by either, put the figure of<br />

Pakistani fishermen detained in Indian prisons at 225, and that of Indian fishermen held<br />

in Pakistani prisons at nearly 700.<br />

The organisation stated that a large number of fishermen detained in either country<br />

had completed the period of their detention, but had still not been released. It held that<br />

Pakistan had released nearly 100 Indian fishermen a day be<strong>for</strong>e the Mumbai attacks<br />

and that all the paperwork regarding the release of many Pakistani fishermen held in<br />

India had been completed, but their release was deferred and the process stopped after<br />

the terrorist attacks.<br />

The tensions between the two countries seemed to hold the judicial process to<br />

ransom <strong>for</strong> the detained fishermen, who appeared to be held indefinitely, at least <strong>for</strong> the<br />

near future. However, in December, following Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s<br />

announcement that Pakistan would unilaterally release 100 Indian fishermen as a goodwill<br />

gesture the fishermen were released on December 25. The released fishermen included<br />

91 men and nine boys below 18 years of age. The National Assembly Standing Committee<br />

on Human Rights was in<strong>for</strong>med in January 2010 that 6,191 Pakistanis were detained in<br />

<strong>for</strong>eign prisons.<br />

Death penalty<br />

Pakistan has one of the highest rates of conviction to capital punishment in the<br />

world, with nearly 7,700 people on the death row. Over two dozen offences in the<br />

country carry the death penalty today. HRCP rejects the argument that the systematic<br />

and generalised application of the death penalty serves as a deterrent, or has led to a<br />

reduction in crime. In 2008 the government announced that it was working on<br />

recommendations to abolish capital punishment in the country. In June 2009, the prime<br />

minister announced in the National Assembly that he had asked the Interior Ministry to<br />

submit a summary to the president to convert the death sentence of condemned prisoners<br />

into life imprisonment. However, no decision was announced on the summary until the<br />

end of 2009. Soon after these announcements, the Supreme Court took suo motu<br />

notice of the government’s move to commute the death sentence. The matter had not<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 103


een decided until the end of 2009.<br />

A ruling by the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) in August held that a person should not<br />

be declared a prisoner carrying death sentence from the day a trial court pronounced<br />

its judgement. The trial court’s order, the verdict said, was not executable until it was<br />

upheld by the high court, but it usually took almost a decade be<strong>for</strong>e the fate of the<br />

convict was decided. “Since delay is not the fault of prisoners, an inmate should only<br />

be declared a condemned prisoner after his appeal is rejected by the high court.”<br />

In October 2009, the Sindh Assembly was in<strong>for</strong>med that the president had asked<br />

the provincial governments to file their recommendations on conversion of the death<br />

penalty into life imprisonment. It was stated that the federal government would make a<br />

decision after receiving of suggestions from all the four provinces. The Sindh Assembly<br />

was in<strong>for</strong>med that the provincial government was considering extending life term from<br />

25 years to 30 years. The federal government gave no timeframe <strong>for</strong> the decision.<br />

The last execution of a death row convict in the country was carried out in December<br />

2008, in Rawalpindi. An in<strong>for</strong>mal moratorium remained in effect throughout 2009 and<br />

no execution was carried out, but 276 individuals were awarded the death penalty<br />

during the year, including one woman.<br />

Disappearances<br />

Involuntary disappearances have been a grave and recurring violation of human<br />

rights in Pakistan in recent years, notably since the beginning of the so-called war on<br />

terror. Since then the practice has picked up at some times and ebbed at others. The<br />

issue remained an explosive one in Pakistan in 2009, especially in Balochistan where<br />

more persons have gone missing than in any other part of Pakistan.<br />

Campaigning <strong>for</strong> the return of the disappeared<br />

In February, the<br />

HRCP called upon<br />

the government to<br />

set up a highpowered<br />

and<br />

i n d e p e n d e n t<br />

commission to deal<br />

with cases of<br />

e n f o r c e d<br />

disappearance in<br />

Balochistan. It<br />

demanded the release<br />

of all persons in<br />

unacknowl edged<br />

custody of state<br />

agencies. Also in<br />

104 State of Human Rights in 2009


February, an insurgent group abducted UNHCR official John Solecki and killed his<br />

driver in Quetta. Solecki’s abductors threatened to kill him unless hundreds of people<br />

allegedly detained by security agencies were released. Mr Solecki was eventually released<br />

in April.<br />

In April, <strong>for</strong>mer president Pervez Musharraf denied the role of state agencies in<br />

en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances. In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Musharraf claimed that most<br />

of the “disappeared” persons had gone missing on their own as they wanted to join<br />

jihad.<br />

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan rejected the claim as “absolutely<br />

untenable” and drew attention to state agencies’ well documented role in the illegal<br />

practice of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance and numerous accounts of those who had regained<br />

freedom after being missing <strong>for</strong> various periods.<br />

Meanwhile, the HRCP continued to receive fresh complaints of disappearance<br />

throughout the year. It managed to verify the details of at least 30 new cases of<br />

disappearance, which were brought to the notice of the Supreme Court. Hundreds of<br />

incidents were reported to the HRCP where adequate in<strong>for</strong>mation was lacking and<br />

where ef<strong>for</strong>ts to verify<br />

the in<strong>for</strong>mation were<br />

underway. At the end of<br />

the year, 133 persons on<br />

HRCP’s list submitted to<br />

the Supreme Court were<br />

still missing.<br />

In the latter half of<br />

2009, HRCP started a<br />

drive to persuade the<br />

government to ratify the<br />

International Convention<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Protection of All<br />

Persons from En<strong>for</strong>ced<br />

Disappearance. The<br />

president, the prime<br />

minister, the <strong>for</strong>eign<br />

minister and all<br />

Police did not always set good examples<br />

parliamentarians were petitioned <strong>for</strong> helping the ratification of the convention.<br />

Hearings by the Supreme Court of petitions filed by the HRCP and other petitioners<br />

about en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances had stopped with the November 2007 promulgation of<br />

emergency and sacking of superior court judges by Pervez Musharraf. Even though<br />

the sacked judges were reinstated in March 2009, the hearings were not resumed until<br />

the end of 2009. The Supreme Court ordered the acting attorney general to furnish<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 105


particulars of the individuals handed over to <strong>for</strong>eign countries as well as a latest report<br />

about the missing persons who were in jails. The acting attorney general in<strong>for</strong>med the<br />

court that particulars of 31 persons had become available and these had been sent to<br />

the respective provinces so that they could be recovered and tried if there was any<br />

case against them.<br />

In Balochistan, the release of victims of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances became one of<br />

the major public demands. The Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package, announced<br />

by the prime minister on November 24, put the matter high on the list of issues that<br />

needed to be resolved. It included an assurance <strong>for</strong> the recovery and release of the<br />

missing persons. On November 26, the prime minister said many of the disappeared<br />

individuals from the province would return home that very day.<br />

However, Baloch parties claimed that a small number of the missing persons had<br />

been released after the package. They said some Bugti tribesmen that had been released<br />

had in fact never gone missing, as they had been detained in a jail in Sui.<br />

On December 8, the Balochistan Ministry of Home and Tribal Affairs issued a list<br />

of 992 persons that were missing from different areas of Balochistan. The provincial<br />

home department appealed to the families of the missing persons to provide further<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation about the individuals on the list. <strong>Ar</strong>ound the same time, the federal Interior<br />

Ministry started collecting data of the missing persons from Balochistan. The ministry<br />

placed a <strong>for</strong>m on its official website <strong>for</strong> reporting details of missing persons.<br />

In his speech to a joint sitting of parliament on December 9, the prime minister said<br />

the number of missing persons from Balochistan was 6,000 to 8,000 be<strong>for</strong>e his<br />

government took over. “According to our investigation, this figure stands at 992, out<br />

of which 262 people are now back in their homes… I assure you that the remaining<br />

persons would also meet their families soon,” he added. A press release issued by the<br />

Supreme Court on November 4 said: “[The] Supreme Court is pursuing the case<br />

vigorously with a view to providing relief to the relatives of missing persons and is<br />

leaving no stone unturned to ensure their safe recovery.”<br />

Despite the resumption of hearings by the apex court, the proceedings had little<br />

impact in terms of recovery of the missing persons as well as ending impunity <strong>for</strong> the<br />

perpetrators.<br />

List of missing persons from Balochistan submitted to the Supreme<br />

Court by HRCP (updated January 9, 2010)<br />

Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

Parentage<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

1. Abdul Hai<br />

Bangalzai<br />

Abdul Wahab<br />

Bangalzai<br />

29-8-09 Missing<br />

106 State of Human Rights in 2009


Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

2. Abdul Hameed<br />

Baloch<br />

3. Abdul Qadir<br />

Langove<br />

Parentage<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

Ghulam Shad 14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

08-9-09 Missing<br />

4. Abdul Raheem 26-12-06 Gadani Missing<br />

5. Abdul Rasool<br />

Marri<br />

6. Abdul Whaid<br />

Baloch<br />

Samail Khan 01-2-08 Quetta Missing<br />

Haji Aali 14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

7. Alam Pirkani 24-9-2000 Missing.<br />

8. Ali Ahmed Baloch 02-5-09 Missing<br />

9. Ali Asghar<br />

Bangulzai<br />

18-10-02 Missing<br />

10. Ali Muhammad 21-2-05 Missing<br />

11. Aman Ullah 30-10-06 Karak Traced<br />

person<br />

12. Attaullah Baloch 27-3-09 Missing<br />

13. Aziz Ullah (Late) Wadera<br />

Shah Nawaz<br />

Marri<br />

25-9-06 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

14. Bakhtiar Bangalzai 03-3-09 Missing<br />

15. Beurg Marri 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

16. Chakar Khan<br />

Marri<br />

Jamil Ahmed 03-9-09 Missing<br />

17. Daad Rehman 26-12-06 Gadani Missing<br />

18. Debarg 15-2-07 Traced<br />

Person<br />

19. Din Muhammad 26-12-06 Gadani Missing<br />

20. Dr. Muhammad<br />

Hanif Bugti<br />

13-11-05 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

21. Faiz Muhammad 15-3-07 Traced<br />

Person<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 107


Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

Parentage<br />

22. Fazal Baloch Dur<br />

Muhammad<br />

23. Fazal Karim Sher<br />

Muhammad<br />

24. Fazal Karim<br />

Baloch<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

01-7-09 Quetta Missing<br />

14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

25. Fazaluddin 27-9-09 Mastung Missing.<br />

26. Ghulam<br />

Muhammad<br />

27. Ghulam<br />

Muhammad<br />

Baloch<br />

Muhammad<br />

Ayyab Baloch<br />

28. Gohram Saleh Saleh<br />

Muhammad<br />

08-12-05 Traced<br />

Person<br />

(killed on<br />

08-4-2009)<br />

03-12-06 Karachi Traced<br />

Person<br />

08-8-04 Gwadar Traced<br />

Person<br />

29. Gul Muhammad Haji Parthwani 18-11-05 Sibi Traced<br />

Person<br />

30. Gul Muhammad 15-2-07 Kech Missing<br />

31. Habib Ullah Wadera<br />

Shahnawaz<br />

Marri<br />

32. Hafiz Saeed-ur-<br />

Rehman<br />

Allah Bukhsh<br />

Mangalzai<br />

25-9-06 Kohlu Traced<br />

Person<br />

04-07-03 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

33. Haji Farooq Marri 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

34. Hashim Pirkani 21-9-2000 Missing<br />

35. Hassan Bugti Haji Abdul<br />

Wahid<br />

36. Hidayatullah<br />

Bangalzai<br />

37. Ibrahim Khalil<br />

Marii<br />

Muhammad<br />

Akbar<br />

10-6-05 Traced<br />

Person<br />

03-9-09 Missing<br />

Ahmed Khan 09-3-06 Kohlu Traced<br />

Person<br />

38. Imran Baloch 02-5-09 Missing<br />

108 State of Human Rights in 2009


Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

Parentage<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

39. Jaffar Khan Marri Ali Jan 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

40. Jalal Khan Marri 21-2-05 Traced<br />

Person<br />

41. Jalil Raki Baloch Abdul Qadeer 06-2-09 Missing<br />

42. Jasim Baloch Saleh<br />

Muhammad<br />

14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

43. Kabeer Ahmed Ghous Bux 27-3-09 Khuzdar Missing<br />

44. Kaka Marri Pehlwan Marri 21-10-06 Missing<br />

45. Karim Bukhsh<br />

Mengal<br />

46. Khai Jan Marri Baz<br />

Muhammad<br />

47. Khalil Ahmed<br />

Langove<br />

26-12-06 Gadani Traced<br />

Person<br />

4-7-07 Quetta Missing<br />

09-10-06 Quetta Missing<br />

48. Khuda Dad 26-12-06 Gadani Missing<br />

49. Khuda-e-Rahim<br />

Baloch<br />

50. Mir Chakar Khan<br />

Marri<br />

51. Mir Muhammad<br />

Marri<br />

52. Mir Safar Khan<br />

Marri<br />

Hassan Baksh 03-8-07 Washuk Missing<br />

Mir Taj<br />

Muhammad<br />

Murri<br />

05-6-06 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

Ali Jan 05-6-06 Missing<br />

Mir Alam khan 04-7-07 Quetta Missing<br />

53. Mir Samad Marri 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

54. Mir Zafar Yaqoob<br />

Nosherwani<br />

Nawabzada<br />

Yaqoob<br />

Nosherwani<br />

55. Moheem Khan Yar<br />

Muhammad<br />

56. Moheem Khan<br />

Marri<br />

21-8-09 Missing<br />

09-2-07 Turbat Traced<br />

Person<br />

03-2-07 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 109


Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

57. Mr. Din<br />

Muhammad<br />

Baloch<br />

58. Muhammad<br />

Anwar<br />

59. Muhammad Iqbal<br />

Baloch<br />

60. Muhammad<br />

Sadullah Baloch<br />

61. Muhammad<br />

Saleem Langove<br />

62. Mujeeb ahmed<br />

Baloch<br />

63. Mushtaq Ahmed<br />

Baloch<br />

Parentage<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

Qadir Bakhsh 28-6-09 Khuzdar Missing<br />

26-12-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

Abdul Rehman 14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

Haji abdul<br />

Rahim<br />

Muhammad<br />

Siddique<br />

25-8-09 Khuzdar Missing<br />

17-11-08 Quetta Missing<br />

Abdul Majeed 01-9-09 Missing<br />

Muhammad<br />

Ali<br />

27-3-09 Khuzdar<br />

Khattan<br />

Missing<br />

64. Mushtaq Ali Rodaani 27-3-09 Khuzdar Missing<br />

65. Najeebullah Ghulam Qadir<br />

Kambrani<br />

22-10-09 Quetta Missing<br />

66. Naseer Ahmed 11-11-09 Quetta Missing<br />

67. Nasir Ali Baloch 03-9-09 Missing<br />

68. Nawaz Ali Baloch Ghulam<br />

Yaseen<br />

14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

69. Niaz Muhammad 08-12-05 Quetta Traced<br />

Person<br />

70. Noor Ahmed<br />

Mengal<br />

Haji Sher<br />

Muhammad<br />

71. Noor 1 Zamurani Muhammad<br />

Hassan<br />

Nagzamurani<br />

26-12-06 Gadani Traced<br />

Person<br />

09-2-07 Kech Traced<br />

Persons<br />

72. Qadir Bukhsh 26-12-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

73. Raza Ahmed<br />

Marri<br />

Ahmedan<br />

Marri<br />

28-8-06 Missing<br />

110 State of Human Rights in 2009


Sr.<br />

No<br />

Name of missing<br />

person<br />

Recommendations<br />

Parentage<br />

Date of<br />

disappearance<br />

District<br />

Remarks<br />

74. Razi Khan Marri - 21-10-06 Sibi Traced<br />

Person<br />

75. Rindo Khan Marri 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

76. Saeed Mengal 3-08 (Approx) Dalbandin Missing<br />

77. Safari Marri Alam Khan<br />

Mandani Marri<br />

78. Saifullah Haji Abdul<br />

Bari Ababki<br />

79. Sanghat Zakir<br />

Majeed Bazinjo<br />

Abdul Majeed<br />

Bazinjo<br />

08-1-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

15-11-05 Quetta Missing<br />

08-6-09 Khuzdar Missing<br />

80. Shah Gul Marri 05-6-06 Quetta Missing<br />

81. Shari Ahmed<br />

Marri<br />

5-06 Missing<br />

82. Surri Ahmad Khan Hajihan Marri 01-10-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

83. Takari Muhammad<br />

Hashim<br />

84. Wadera Jalal<br />

Marri<br />

Ghulam Qadir 21-7-09 Missing<br />

06-5-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

85. Yahya Khan Marri 12-8-06 Quetta Missing<br />

86. Yaqoob Marri Mir1 Tangyani<br />

Marri<br />

87. Yar Muhammad Mehmood<br />

Baloch<br />

03-2-06 Kohlu Traced<br />

Person<br />

09-2-07 Turbat Traced<br />

Person<br />

88. Zafar Mengal 26-12-06 Gadani Traced<br />

Person<br />

89. Zahid Baloch Haji Ibrahim 14-3-07 Kech Missing<br />

90. Zahid Karim<br />

Bakhsh<br />

19-3-06 Traced<br />

Person<br />

1. Jail re<strong>for</strong>ms are crucial and urgently required. Overcrowded and poorly managed<br />

prisons staffed by corrupt officials provide favourable conditions <strong>for</strong> breeding criminals.<br />

Jails, prisoners and disappearances 111


Prison rules and financial allocation need a thorough review to ensure that prisoners<br />

are not denied their basic rights. Steps need to be taken to build new jails, reduce<br />

corruption in jails and sensitise the staff of the existing jails to the prisoners’ legal and<br />

human rights. Separate facilities should be arranged <strong>for</strong> prisoners addicted to narcotics<br />

and <strong>for</strong> those requiring mental therapy or medical assistance.<br />

2. The government should announce a <strong>for</strong>mal moratorium on execution of the<br />

death penalty until it takes a final decision on the fate of the death row prisoners. The<br />

number of offences carrying the death penalty should be reduced to the most serious<br />

crimes only. The government should consider parole <strong>for</strong> those on the death row,<br />

particularly women convicts.<br />

3. People picked up by intelligence agencies must be immediately released or<br />

produced in court.<br />

4. The superior judiciary should take steps to reduce delays in courts. The number<br />

of under-trial prisoners should also be brought down by introducing mandatory bail<br />

provisions and the use of parole.<br />

112 State of Human Rights in 2009


Fundamental freedom<br />

III<br />

Freedom of movement 113


114 State of Human Rights in 2009


Freedom of movement<br />

Every citizen shall have the right to remain in and, subject to any reasonable<br />

restrictions imposed by law in the public interest, enter and move freely throughout<br />

Pakistan and to reside and settle in any part thereof.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 15<br />

Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders<br />

of each state.<br />

Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his<br />

country.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 17(1,2)<br />

Restrictions were placed on politicians, political workers and religious leaders to<br />

prevent them from moving freely within the country and an indiscriminate use of Exit<br />

Control List curtailed the right to freedom of movement. The movement of ordinary<br />

citizens residing in the insurgency-stricken areas of Swat, Malakand and the Federally<br />

Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas bordering Afghanistan was also seriously affected.<br />

Movement within the country<br />

In January, during Muharram, the authorities barred 433 clerics’ entry into certain<br />

Freedom of movement 115


As the police raised barriers to movement in cities, commuters were faced with<br />

delays and detailed interogations<br />

areas. The Islamabad administration banned the entry of eight clerics in the capital.<br />

Restrictions were placed on 123 clerics’ entry into Sindh and 190 into Punjab. Moreover,<br />

34 clerics (khatibs) were barred from entering in Jhang district, 22 in Sheikhupura, 35<br />

in Lahore, 23 in Daska, 13 into Kasur, 11 in Rawalpindi, 21 in Taxila and Wah Cantt,<br />

106 in Faisalabad and 38 in Chakwal.<br />

In January, in the wake of Mumbai blasts in India, restrictions were placed on the<br />

movements of more than a hundred leaders of the Jamat-ud-Dawa, including their<br />

chief, Hafiz Saeed.<br />

In March the authorities used a variety of means to thwart lawyers’ long march.<br />

The police detained more than 600 opposition activists across Punjab, and 200 in the<br />

capital city of Islamabad. The Punjab government imposed section 144 under which all<br />

kinds of gatherings and movements were prohibited. Lawyers proceeding towards<br />

Islamabad were arrested in Gujrat, Bahawalpur, Vehari, Okara, Sheikhupura, Mandi<br />

Bahauddin, Sialkot, Mianwali, Narowal, Kasur, Multan, Layyah, Gujranwala and<br />

Muzaffargarh.<br />

The police <strong>for</strong>ces were reported to have placed goods containers on the roads to<br />

block the lawyers’ movement.<br />

Visa regime<br />

In November, the government made it mandatory <strong>for</strong> the Pakistani missions abroad<br />

to issue visas to <strong>for</strong>eigners intending to visit Pakistan only after their clearance from<br />

the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Under the new guidelines, the <strong>for</strong>eigners intending<br />

116 State of Human Rights in 2009


to visit Pakistan were required to give the purpose of their visit and duration of their<br />

stay along with an NOC. Those whose visas had expired and needed short duration<br />

visa had to go back to their respective countries to get the visas renewed.<br />

The Exit Control List<br />

The Exit from Pakistan Control Ordinance 1981, promulgated by the repressive<br />

military regime of Gen Ziaul Haq, remains in <strong>for</strong>ce. No democratic government ever<br />

attempted to revise and amend the ordinance although the practice of restraining people<br />

from going abroad without issuing them prior notice and adequately explaining the<br />

reasons why the extreme action is required, is a breach of the fundamental right to<br />

freedom of movement, as duly provided <strong>for</strong> in the constitution. Instead, the successive<br />

governments have used the ordinance as a tool to harass their political opponents. After<br />

almost 29 years of its promulgation, rules through which the Ordinance operates have<br />

not been framed as yet.<br />

However, according to a statement submitted by the authorities in the Supreme<br />

Court in Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan’s case, the interior ministry follows specific criteria<br />

while placing names on the ECL. Citizens’ names would be placed on the ECL if they<br />

were involved in large-scale corruption or misuse of power causing loss to government<br />

funds or property, government employees involved in economic crimes where large<br />

amounts from government funds were embezzled or in institutional frauds, hardened<br />

criminals involved in terrorism, conspiracy and heinous crimes threatening national<br />

security and key directors of firms charged with tax default or liabilities of Rs10<br />

million or above. People identified by registrars of the Supreme Court, the high courts<br />

or banking courts and the names of drug traffickers were also put on the ECL. The<br />

names of those who had absconded or gone abroad would be retained on the ECL so<br />

that they could be apprehended on return and those in judicial custody would also be<br />

on the list because they might be released on bail. Convicts will also be on the ECL till<br />

their sentence ends. Criteria <strong>for</strong> not putting names on the list include people involved in<br />

private disputes where government interest is not at stake, except cases of fraud against<br />

<strong>for</strong>eign banks and reputable companies with significant <strong>for</strong>eign investment. Individuals<br />

involved in crimes like murder and robbery will not be put on the ECL unless special<br />

grounds were furnished by the home department concerned. Names of directors<br />

representing <strong>for</strong>eign investment in business, women or children undergoing education<br />

who are directors merely because of family relationship with major shareholders and<br />

deserters from civil or armed <strong>for</strong>ces will not be placed on the list. Requests <strong>for</strong> placement<br />

on the ECL without full particulars and detailed reasons will not be entertained.<br />

ECL and people banned from travelling<br />

According to an official spokesman 3,924 people in all were on the Exit Control<br />

List (ECL) of the Interior Ministry in January 2009. The authorities declined to share<br />

Freedom of movement 117


A snapshot of the road blocks placed in a high-security area<br />

in Islamabad<br />

the list with the<br />

general public.<br />

The Interior<br />

Secretary said in<br />

June that only the<br />

names of<br />

defaulters of<br />

amounts up to<br />

Rs. 100 million<br />

or tax defaulters<br />

of amounts up to<br />

Rs. 10 million<br />

were placed on<br />

the ECL at the<br />

recommendation<br />

of the Ministry<br />

of Finance and<br />

the State Bank of Pakistan. There were also cases involving politically motivated use<br />

of the ECL which caused great trouble to businessmen. The Senate Standing Committee<br />

on Finance demanded the removal of names of taxpayers and businessmen so that only<br />

wilful defaulters were included in the list.<br />

In April, the Interior Ministry placed the name of a <strong>for</strong>mer Karachi Port Trust<br />

(KPT) chairman Admiral (r) Ahmad Hayat on the ECL on charges of excessive<br />

expenditure and losses incurred by the government in the purchase of vehicles during<br />

his service period. Admiral Ahmad was accused of excess spending of Rs. 224 million<br />

<strong>for</strong> the fitting of a fountain in Karachi and Rs. 145 million embezzlement in <strong>Ar</strong>ea Study<br />

Centre <strong>for</strong> Europe, University of Karachi. He had gone to the United States and did not<br />

appear be<strong>for</strong>e the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) despite several notices after which<br />

his name was <strong>for</strong>warded to the ECL authorities. The same month, Altaf Hussain Unnar,<br />

Larkana district President of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q and a <strong>for</strong>mer Sindh Minister,<br />

was put on the ECL by the federal Interior Ministry. He was on dialysis at the Karachi<br />

Kidney Centre and intended to go to London <strong>for</strong> a surgery but was unable to do so due<br />

to restrictions on his travel. This was described as political victimization by his party.<br />

The ECL after SC’s judgement on NRO<br />

After the decision of the Supreme Court declaring the National Reconciliation<br />

Ordinance (NRO) void in November, the Interior Ministry placed the names of 248<br />

NRO beneficiaries on the Exit Control List on the directives of the National Accountability<br />

118 State of Human Rights in 2009


Bureau (NAB). According to the NAB, the list of<br />

NRO beneficiaries included federal ministers and<br />

bigwigs of government, bureaucracy and political<br />

parties. Rehman Malik, Chaudhry Ahmed<br />

Mukhtar, Babar Ghauri, Salman Faruqui, Aftab<br />

Ahmad Khan Sherpao, Nawab Yousuf Talpur,<br />

Wasim Akhtar, Dr Imran Farooq, Rana Nazir Khan<br />

and Saeed Mehdi were prominent among them.<br />

President Asif Zardari was also a beneficiary<br />

of the NRO as eight of his NAB cases of<br />

corruption and misuse of authority were dropped<br />

under the ordinance, but as President he enjoyed<br />

immunity and his name was not placed on the<br />

ECL.<br />

Under the initial ECL list, Defence Minister<br />

Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar was barred from Ahmed Mukhtar: A victim of ECL<br />

boarding a China-bound flight at Islamabad. This<br />

caused on uproar in the country and prime minister suspended the Interior Secretary<br />

and three officials of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) <strong>for</strong> stopping the minister<br />

from leaving the country on an official visit. On the other hand, NAB issued a clarification<br />

stating that Mukhtar’s name was among 53 individuals sent to the Interior Ministry to<br />

be restored to the ECL.<br />

Afterwards, the Interior Ministry revised the ECL list and reduced the NRO list<br />

from 248 to 165, according to media reports. At least, four NRO beneficiaries, whose<br />

names were put on the ECL, were posted at top positions abroad. Two of them were<br />

ambassadors, Hussain Haqqani and M. B. Abbasi, while the other two are the executive<br />

directors of the world’s top financial institutions – <strong>for</strong>mer secretary finance Javed<br />

Talat, presently Executive Director World Bank, and Siraj Saleem Shamsuddin, Executive<br />

Director Asian Development Bank.<br />

Restrictions placed on Dr Abdul Qadeer’s movement<br />

Nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, who had admitted to leaking nuclear secrets<br />

to Iran, North Korea and Libya, was declared a free man by the high court in February,<br />

five years after he was effectively put under house arrest. Dr Khan had been closely<br />

watched by the Pakistani authorities during the last few years and even after the court<br />

order he considered himself far from being a free man.<br />

In November, Dr Khan repeatedly raised the question of curbs on his freedom of<br />

Freedom of movement 119


movement within and outside the country. His movements were restricted especially<br />

during the second half of the year and he was not allowed to per<strong>for</strong>m Umrah in Makkah<br />

even. He also complained that his passport that had been taken away about two years<br />

earlier had not<br />

been returned. Dr<br />

Khan filed a<br />

petition be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />

Supreme Court to<br />

challenge the defacto<br />

restriction<br />

on his leaving the<br />

country, which<br />

was under hearing<br />

till the end of the<br />

year. Since the<br />

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan talks to media about the curbs on his<br />

freedom of movement<br />

government had<br />

told the court that<br />

the name of the<br />

scientist was not on the ECL, the refusal to allow him to proceed abroad remained a<br />

mystery.<br />

Other restrictions<br />

Hajj passports<br />

According to the Federal Minister <strong>for</strong> Religious Affairs, International Machine<br />

Readable (IMR) passports were made mandatory <strong>for</strong> obtaining Hajj visas in 2009.<br />

Applications without Computerized National Identity Cards (CNIC) and IMR passports<br />

were not entertained causing great inconvenience to the pilgrims.<br />

Foreigners banned entry<br />

The Pakistan High Commission in Dehli refused to issue visas to eight prominent<br />

Sindhi Hindu scholars and writers, due to non-clearance of their names by the Interior<br />

Ministry, denying them an opportunity to participate in the two-day Mirza Qalech Baig<br />

International Conference. The conference was held at the Sindh University, Jamshoro<br />

and was attended by about 70 scholars and writers from all over the world. Several<br />

other organisations complained of their invitees’ failure to attend conferences in Pakistan<br />

due to non-issuance of visas.<br />

Foreign Deportees<br />

Two persons of African origin – Zainab Muhammad of Ghana and Anajemba Peter<br />

120 State of Human Rights in 2009


of Nigeria, were deported from the Peshawar airport in February on grounds of having<br />

<strong>for</strong>ged documents. They had come from Dubai.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. The Exit Control List (ECL) cannot be justified and the Exit from Pakistan<br />

Control Ordinance 1981 needs to be revised and the sections that are in conflict with<br />

fundamental rights dropped.<br />

2. Inordinate delays in the issuance of machine-readable passports amount to<br />

putting restrictions on the free movement of the people. Passports and identity documents<br />

must not be denied to any citizen.<br />

3. The government must not continue with the practice of restricting the movement<br />

of its opponents by detaining them on false charges.<br />

4. The government must not prevent the media from going into conflict areas of<br />

the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan. Instead, independent journalists and other<br />

concerned citizens desiring to visit these areas should be provided adequate security.<br />

5. Rather than placing bars on the movement of clerics, en<strong>for</strong>cement of other<br />

laws intended to curb the preaching of hatred or instigation of violence may prove to<br />

be more useful.<br />

Freedom of movement 121


Freedom of thought,<br />

conscience and religion<br />

... It is the will of the people of Pakistan to establish an order ... wherein shall be<br />

guaranteed fundamental rights, including equality of status, of opportunity and be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

law, social, economic and political justice, and freedom of thought, expression, belief,<br />

faith, worship and association, subject to law and public morality<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

Preamble<br />

Subject to law, public order and morality (a) every citizen shall have the right to<br />

profess, practise and propagate his religion; and (b) every religious denomination and<br />

every sect thereof shall have the right to establish, maintain and manage its religious<br />

institutions.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 20<br />

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed<br />

with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of<br />

brotherhood.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 1<br />

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right<br />

includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in<br />

community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in<br />

122 State of Human Rights in 2009


teaching, practice, worship and observance.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 18<br />

No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have a<br />

religion or belief of his choice.<br />

No one shall be subject to discrimination by any state, institution, group of persons,<br />

or person on the grounds of religion or other belief.<br />

UN Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of<br />

Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticles 1(2) and 2(1)<br />

In an xenophobic atmosphere, created and promoted by conservative clerics and a<br />

section of the media religious minorities are viewed with suspicion and mistrust. They<br />

are seen as constantly conspiring against Islam, Muslims and Pakistan in cahoot with<br />

the infidel <strong>for</strong>eign powers, especially the West. An imaginary combine of Hunud-o-<br />

Yahud-o-Nasara (Hindus, Jews and Christians) is supposed to be conspiring against<br />

Pakistani Muslims all the time in collaboration with the local minorities. This world<br />

view propagated on a large scale, coupled with an unfavourable legal regime, has made<br />

life difficult <strong>for</strong> the non-Muslim citizens. They cannot freely practise their religion and<br />

present their point of view without risking their life, honour and property as is evident<br />

from attacks on them.<br />

The year 2009 saw an increase in violent attacks on religious minorities while the<br />

government failed to take effective preventive measures. The growing intolerance of<br />

religious minorities’ rights, increased frequency of vigilante actions against them and<br />

attacks on non-<br />

Muslims over<br />

allegations of<br />

blasphemy and<br />

desecration of<br />

religious scriptures<br />

caused serious<br />

hardships to them. As<br />

the Pakistan army and<br />

paramilitary <strong>for</strong>ces<br />

conducted military<br />

operations against the<br />

Taliban networks in<br />

Swat and other tribal<br />

Hundreds gather in front of National Assembly in Islamabad<br />

to protest against religious intolerance<br />

areas including South Waziristan, the militants struck with vengeance, in other parts of<br />

the country, at non-Muslim minorities, as well as the Muslim minority Shia sect.<br />

The systematic manner in which the Christian colony in Gojra and the shops in<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 123


Bolton Market in Karachi were burnt down indicated the involvement of organized and<br />

trained militants. It was widely believed that indigenous militant organizations (already<br />

banned) were behind these attacks. That these organizations had close connections<br />

with the Taliban militants and al-Qeada was no secret. The role of main religio-political<br />

parties was mostly inimical to religious minorities. These parties did not condemn the<br />

violence against the minorities and often advanced conspiracy theories about <strong>for</strong>eign<br />

hands being behind violence against minorities. In some cases, the seminaries closely<br />

connected with religio-political parties were used to foment trouble against the minority<br />

communities. On the other hand, the government response, mostly in the <strong>for</strong>m of<br />

belated announcements of financial compensation and some attempts at encouraging<br />

reconciliation at the local level, had usually been insufficient and reactive.<br />

Freedom of religion<br />

Ahmedis<br />

As the most vulnerable community in Pakistan the Ahmadis continued to face<br />

discrimination and violence throughout the year. The blasphemy laws were widely<br />

used against them as five Ahmedi citizens were murdered in target killings in 2009,<br />

raising to 100 their casualties since the introduction of anti-Ahmadiya laws by the Ziaul<br />

Haq regime in 1984.<br />

Christians<br />

As the militancy surged in the northwestern parts of the country, en<strong>for</strong>ced migration<br />

and displacement of thousands of Christians from Swat valley, Peshawar, Mardan,<br />

Nowshera and FATA was reported following threats to them to convert to Islam or<br />

face death issued by the militants. Forced to take refuge with their relatives in Punjab<br />

and Sindh provinces, these families faced immense hardships as the government could<br />

not provide adequate succour. At the same time many Christian families victims of the<br />

blasphemy law were <strong>for</strong>ced to live in hiding in attempts to save their lives. There was<br />

little change in their social ostracization.<br />

Hindus<br />

The lack of a law prevents the Pakistani Hindus from getting their marriages<br />

registered. Abut 80 per cent of the Hindu women did not possess national identity<br />

cards and there<strong>for</strong>e did not have the right to vote. Similarly, 65 per cent of the Hindu<br />

children could not access <strong>for</strong>m B <strong>for</strong> registration because they had no proof of their<br />

parents’ marriage.<br />

In Battagram, during June, the Taliban threatened the Hindus to either pay Jizya (a<br />

medieval tax <strong>for</strong> minorities) or accept Islam in order to save themselves from abduction<br />

and murder. In Battagram, there were around 15 Hindu families who had been living<br />

there <strong>for</strong> generations and had never had any enmity with anyone in the district. Their<br />

124 State of Human Rights in 2009


leader was threatened by militants as well as by the Taliban leader and asked to pay an<br />

amount of Rs. 6 million.<br />

As the law and order situation in Balochistan remained quite serious, the minority<br />

community, especially Hindus, seemed to be the target of both the state and the militants.<br />

Hindu youth suffered because of shrinking employment opportunities, kidnappings <strong>for</strong><br />

ransom and <strong>for</strong>ced conversion of girls. More than 1,000 Hindus lived in the small town<br />

of Kalat. Most of them felt that they were treated as second class citizens. As violence<br />

spread, they did not feel safe in Kalat’s exclusive locality, Hindu Mohallah. They needed<br />

additional space, perhaps in a new locality but they were afraid of shifting out of fear<br />

<strong>for</strong> their security. They complained that they could not go out of town even in daytime<br />

<strong>for</strong> reasons of security. A common complaint was “We live in ghettos and celebrate our<br />

festivals in an atmosphere of fear.”<br />

Sikhs<br />

The country’s small Sikh community had no representation in government and<br />

rarely figured in any of the government’s support programmes. However, the<br />

governmentt made special attempts to provide shelter in gurdwaras to the Sikhs displaced<br />

in militancy-ridden tribal areas. In some respects they were better treated than other<br />

minorities, as was evident from the arrangements made <strong>for</strong> Sikh pilgrims coming from<br />

India.<br />

Cases on religious grounds and blasphemy victims<br />

The blasphemy law proved to be a major contributor to the minorities’ woes during<br />

the year as the Gojra carnage demonstrated. In 2009, a total of 41 complaints of<br />

blasphemy were registered by police. Some 37 Ahmedis were booked under blasphemy<br />

laws and 57 Ahmedis were charged under Ahmedi-specific laws. However, many cases<br />

were registered against Muslims as the rival sects of Islam increasingly used the<br />

blasphemy law against each other, as may be seen in the account given below:<br />

January 2: The Sargodha police booked two men, Mushtaq Ahmed and Muhammad<br />

Ali, on the charges of erasing kalma from the wall of a village mosque.<br />

January 12: A man named Liaquat, was arrested by the police <strong>for</strong> allegedly burning<br />

the Quran in Panwan village near Manawala, Sheikhupura district.<br />

January 17: Chichawatni police booked two men, Pir Syed Athar Shah Naqvi and<br />

Syed Ismail Shah, on the charge of committing blasphemy in their speeches on the<br />

occasion of the birth anniversary of Hazrat Ali. A cleric belonging to Sunni-Deobandi<br />

sect, Mufti Muhammad Usman, had filed a complaint against the two men belonging to<br />

the Sunni-Barelvi sect. Two days later, the workers of Jamaat Ahle Sunnat and the<br />

Anjuman Tajiran Chichawatni staged a protest demonstration outside the office of the<br />

district police officer in Sahiwal against wrongly implicating Pir Athar Shah. The sessions<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 125


judge at Khanewal dismissed the bail application of the accused and the police arrested<br />

one of them.<br />

January 19: A petition was moved in the Lahore High Court against Qurban Ali,<br />

the principal of a<br />

private education<br />

trust in Lahore, <strong>for</strong><br />

allegedly committing<br />

blasphemy by writing<br />

a book, titled “Hero<br />

and Role Model” in<br />

which he listed his six<br />

top heroes of the<br />

world including<br />

Prophet Muhammad<br />

(PBUH) and himself.<br />

Muhammad Younas,<br />

Several cases of blasphemy law used incorrectly and rather Khateeb at a mosque<br />

inhumanely made headlines<br />

moved the police <strong>for</strong><br />

the registration of a<br />

case. On 18 February, an additional sessions judge, ordered police to register a case<br />

against the accused on blasphemy charges.<br />

January 28: Five Ahmedis, including four children, were charged with blasphemy<br />

under section 295-C in Chak 172-TDA, in Layyah district. However, the police foiled<br />

an attempt by the members of a banned organisation to torch the houses of the people<br />

belonging to the Ahmediya community. The four children remained behind the bars <strong>for</strong><br />

six months.<br />

January 30: Businesses were closed down and protest demonstrations were staged<br />

in Mandi Bhauddin (Punjab) against the alleged defiling of the Quran a day earlier.<br />

January 31: Ahsan Tahami, a librarian at the Quaid-e-Azam Library, Lahore, was<br />

booked <strong>for</strong> uttering blasphemous words in a discussion. He fled his home along with<br />

his family and went into hiding.<br />

February 5: Muntazirul Haq Shahjehan, a police officer and station house officer<br />

(SHO) at Raja Jang police station, was booked on blasphemy charges on the complaint<br />

of a local journalist.<br />

February 6: Several political and religious parties staged a demonstration in Quetta<br />

against alleged desecration of Holy Quran in Zhob and urged the government to probe<br />

the incident.<br />

February 9: Muazaffarabd police registered a case against the sellers of a book<br />

126 State of Human Rights in 2009


allegedly containing blasphemy material. The accused got pre-arrest bail from a court.<br />

February 16: The District and Sessions Judge, Jhelum, heard a case relating to<br />

blasphemy charges against one, Khalid Naqash, who had written a book titled, “Quran<br />

aur Hum.” It was alleged that the book contained blasphemous <strong>content</strong> about Prophet<br />

Muhammad (PBUH). Another man, Muhammad Afzal, who had written the preamble<br />

of the book, was also arrested along with the author.<br />

February 18: Clerics in Raiwind called upon the government to register a case<br />

and punish those responsible <strong>for</strong> alleged desecration of Holy Quran in a private hospital<br />

at Syeda Waheeda Memorial Nursing College, Raiwind Road Lahore, run by Fatima<br />

Memorial Hospital Lahore. It was alleged that some Christian students had placed<br />

Quran in shoe boxes. As the clerics protest mounted, the college administration closed<br />

down the institution <strong>for</strong> fear of unrest and violence.<br />

March 1: The Kasur police arrested two Christian men, Wilayat Masih and Mushtaq<br />

Masih, on blasphemy charges in Malloki village. The accused were charged that they<br />

had covered the grave of a Christian relative with a cloth inscribed with Quranic verses.<br />

March 11: Police booked 25 people on blasphemy charges and arrested four of<br />

them in Chak 33 in Kanganpur area, Kasur district. The accused belonged to Ahl-e-<br />

Hadith sect and the complainant to Sunni-Barelvi sect.<br />

March 12: Police registered a case under section 295 and 295-A of the PPC<br />

against unidentified people <strong>for</strong> writing blasphemous words on street walls of Umerkot<br />

and Mirwah Gorchani on March 10. Hundreds of people protested against the alleged<br />

blasphemy, attacked petrol pumps and shops and blocked main highways.<br />

March 23: Police booked four Muslim men <strong>for</strong> attacking a religious congregation<br />

of a different sect and allegedly uttering blasphemous words against Prophet Muhammad<br />

(PBUH) in Pattoki, Kasur district. Two of the accused, Rana Naeem and Rana Zahoor,<br />

were arrested.<br />

March 27: One Irfan was arrested by the police on the charge of burning a Quran<br />

in Mohallah Sabri Colony, Okara.<br />

April 4: Anees Mallah, (25) who was facing blasphemy charges, was <strong>found</strong> dead<br />

in Sanghar jail. He had been moved there only a day earlier from Mirpur Khas, where<br />

he had spent almost a year in prison. Anees’s lawyer said he was subjected to torture,<br />

shot and afterwards slaughtered brutally in the jail by some jail inmates. His elder<br />

brother, Ghulam Rasool Mallah, said Anees was wrongly implicated in a blasphemy<br />

case in March 2008 and murdered inside the jail. He said even medico-legal officers<br />

were afraid to issue a report about the cause of the death. He said on March 21 2008,<br />

his brother’s motorbike had crashed into a gate erected <strong>for</strong> a Milad function which<br />

angered the organisers and they implicated him in a blasphemy case.<br />

April 7: Lahore High Court’s Bahawalpur bench rejected a bail plea of Haider<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 127


Zaman, accused of blasphemy, and sent him to prison. A mob of baton-wielding students<br />

of local seminaries surrounded the court during the hearing and chanted slogans asking<br />

the court to award death sentence to the accused. Afterwards, on 30 June, a threemember<br />

bench of the Supreme Court also rejected his bail plea and ordered the<br />

Bahawalnagar trial court to complete the hearing within three months.<br />

April 8: Police registered a case against a Muslim woman, Ameera Bibi, on<br />

blasphemy charges, under sections 290-A and 295-C of PPC, on the direction of a<br />

court in Chowk Azam, Layyah district <strong>for</strong> saying derogatory remarks against God and<br />

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). A local man, Shabbir Shah, was the complainant.<br />

April 10: An additional district and sessions judge at Kamalia (Punjab) ordered the<br />

city police to register a case against two Shia clerics, Imran Rizvi and Asif Raza Alvi,<br />

on blasphemy charges on the complaint of clerics from a rival Sunni sect.<br />

April 13: Police booked and arrested Bilal Tahir Khawaja, owner of a football<br />

manufacturing factory, on blasphemy charge under section 295-A <strong>for</strong> printing holy<br />

Islamic names on footballs. No lawyer represented the accused in the court as Daska<br />

lawyers association assured the complainant clerics that the bar would not provide<br />

legal assistance to the accused.<br />

April 14: Clerics belonging to Tehreek-e-Tahfuzz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat (Movement<br />

<strong>for</strong> the protection of sanctity of Prophet (PBUH), moved Lahore High Court to get a<br />

blasphemy case registered against the owner of a textile mills in Faisalabad. The<br />

petitioners alleged the factory had printed the name of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on<br />

bed sheets and thus committed blasphemy.<br />

April 21: The Supreme Court (Shariat Appellate Bench) rejected an appeal against<br />

a Federal Shariat Court (FSC) ruling that death is the only punishment that the Islamic<br />

law provides <strong>for</strong> blasphemy. The appeal had been filed by Bishop Dani L. Tasleem 18<br />

years ago after the FSC gave the judgment in exercise of its powers to determine if the<br />

existing laws con<strong>for</strong>med to Sharia. The appellant could not pursue the petition as he<br />

had died.<br />

April 25: Twelve Christian families in Chak 190/AL village of Sahiwal left their<br />

homes in a bid to save their lives on receiving life threats from other Christians and<br />

Muslims – who alleged that these families had committed blasphemy by throwing ink<br />

on the Holy Quran. The village had a huge Christian population. Unidentified people<br />

had broken into Harappa Government Community Model Girls Primary School in the<br />

village. In the morning, students <strong>found</strong> on the ground a page of the Holy Quran smeared<br />

with black ink and gum. The words on the blackboard led to the assumption that a<br />

Christian was responsible <strong>for</strong> what had happened.<br />

May 9: The Pasrur Police registered a case against a Shia cleric who was accused<br />

of saying something derogatory about the companions of the Prophet (PBUH) during a<br />

128 State of Human Rights in 2009


speech.<br />

May 30: A mob staged a protest demonstration in Sukkur against a doctor belonging<br />

to Hindu faith. A medical representative, Asghar Channa, complained that assistant<br />

professor Pawan Kumar of Ghulam Muhammad Medical College had allegedly uttered<br />

blasphemous words against Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The protesters dispersed<br />

after the police assured them that a case would be registered against the accused.<br />

Afterwards, the police registered a case on blasphemy charges against him. On 23<br />

June, a Sukkur magistrate ordered the police to present the challan against the accused.<br />

June 27: Bashir Ahmed, imprisoned in Dera Ghazi Khan Jail and facing trial on the<br />

charges of saying disrespectful words against the companions of Prophet Muhammad<br />

(PBUH), was slaughtered by another prisoner with a sharp razor inside the jail.<br />

July 1: A young man, Imran Masih, was captured by a mob and tortured on the<br />

charge of burning the Quran and Islamic books in Faisalabad. Police arrested the man<br />

and registered a case against him.<br />

July 9: The Talagang police in Chakwal district registered a case on blasphemy<br />

charges, under sections 295-A and 295-C, against a man, Pir Muhammad Ishaq, who<br />

allegedly claimed to be God and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).<br />

July 18: FIA Karachi arrested a man, Murad, resident of Gizri, on the complaint of<br />

journalist Ansar Abbasi who allegedly received hate mails from him. The accused was<br />

also charged with publishing blasphemous material against Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)<br />

on a website.<br />

July 26: Workers belonging to Sunni Tehreek staged a protest demonstration and<br />

blocked the main Sheikhupura highway in Khararianwala area in Faisalabad district to<br />

pressurise the local police <strong>for</strong> registering a case against 32 Ahmedis, of 194 RB village,<br />

on the charge of writing Quranic verses on the outer walls of their houses. The Police<br />

registered a case under sections 295-A and 295-C.<br />

July 27: The Sambrial police registered a case under section 295-B, against a man<br />

named Maqsood Ahmed, on the charges of desecrating the Quran in Chak Ikhtiar near<br />

Sambrial in Sialkot district. The next day, a civil judge sent the accused on 14-day<br />

judicial remand.<br />

July 28: Police arrested a man, Amir Haider, on the charge of sending a message<br />

allegedly derogatory against the companions of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).<br />

August 5: A mob surrounded the house of a middle aged woman, Akhtari Malkani,<br />

in a katchi abadi in Sanghar, Sindh on the charge that she had desecrated the Quran.<br />

Police took the woman into custody to save her from the mob and assured protesters<br />

that if evidence was <strong>found</strong> it would register a case against her. Angry protesters,<br />

demanding the custody of the woman, threw stones at the police station and burnt<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 129


tyres on the road. Police shot in the air to disperse the crowd. Afterwards, the<br />

complainant, Siddique <strong>Ar</strong>ain, a shopkeeper, who had some monetary dispute with the<br />

accused, disappeared when the police contacted him to file a complaint against Ms<br />

Malkani. The woman told the police she had thrown an account book on the ground,<br />

not the Quran as the complainant initially accused her, provoking the protests. A 10<br />

member committee headed by the Sanghar Taluka Nazim, absolved the woman of the<br />

blasphemy charge after initial investigation and interviews with the witnesses.<br />

September 4: A couple was booked and arrested in Jamber village in Phoolnagar,<br />

Kasur district, on the charge of declaring their 10-month-old son Imam Mehdi. More<br />

than 500 villagers protested against Abdullah and his wife, Shazia, and blocked the<br />

main highway demanding a blasphemy case be registered under 295-C against them.<br />

September 11: A mob torched a local Catholic church in Jaithikey-Sambrial, in<br />

Sambrial Tehsil of Daska district over alleged desecration of the Holy Quran in the<br />

village. A Christian young man, Robert Fanish Masih, 25, was accused of snatching a<br />

chapter of the Holy Quran from a local girl and throwing it into a drain. After the<br />

alleged incident, local Muslims armed with bricks, stones and sticks attacked the church.<br />

They set it ablaze by sprinkling petrol and kerosene oil on it. As no person was present<br />

in the church, no casualty took place. Meanwhile, the agitators led by local clerics took<br />

out rallies demanding immediate arrest of the accused persons. All the shops and markets<br />

remained closed in the village and its surrounding areas while thousands of scared<br />

villagers locked themselves up in their homes. The Christian community left the troubled<br />

area immediately to save their lives. One day later, the police arrested the accused who<br />

was <strong>found</strong> dead on 15 September in Sialkot Jail. When his family took his body <strong>for</strong><br />

burial in the native village, a mob attacked the funeral procession, snatched the body<br />

and dragged it on the road. He was finally buried in Sialkot district.<br />

October 30: Police registered a blasphemy case against Qaisar Ali Haideri, the<br />

author of a book, on the complaint of Mumtaz Ahmed Dar in Kotla <strong>Ar</strong>ab Ali, Gujrat<br />

district. On 11 November, hundreds of people brought out a procession against the<br />

police <strong>for</strong> not arresting the accused.<br />

November 1: Police arrested a man, Sadiq Abbas, and registered a case against<br />

him on the charge of burning dozens of copies of Quran in a mosque in Chak 302 JB,<br />

Noorpur in Toba Tek Singh district.<br />

November 11: Gojra Additional District and Sessions Judge handed down death<br />

sentence and fined Rs100,000 to a blasphemy accused, Muhammad Aslam of Shahabad<br />

Colony, on the charge of using blasphemous language publicly on Oct 5, 2008. The<br />

court allowed the convict to file an appeal against the sentence be<strong>for</strong>e the Lahore High<br />

Court within a week.<br />

Damages to and acquisition of places of worship<br />

In April, clashes between Christians and Pakhtuns in Taiser Town in Surjani area,<br />

130 State of Human Rights in 2009


Karachi, led to the killing of one Irfan Masih while three others were injured. The riot<br />

took place after the walls of church were <strong>found</strong> splashed with graffiti asking the<br />

Christians to embrace Islam or give jizya. A church wall carried pro-Taliban slogans.<br />

Three churches in Karachi were reportedly burnt down creating panic and terror<br />

amongst the Christian community.<br />

During September, scores of Christian women and school children held a rally<br />

against the occupation by land grabbers of the land of Church of Scotland and the<br />

ground of Cathedral School in a Christian town, Sialkot. The government did not take<br />

any step to redress the complaint as the land mafia allegedly produced fake revenue<br />

documents to acquire the land.<br />

On September 24, some unidentified people damaged and destroyed decoration<br />

items, lighting arrangements, installed equipment and bathrooms of Gurdwara Kiyara<br />

Sahib in Nankana Sahib. A protest was held against the lack of protection and security<br />

<strong>for</strong> the gurdwara and slogans were chanted against the Evacuee Trust Property Board.<br />

On September 11, a mob protesting against the alleged desecration of the Holy<br />

Quran by some Christian youths set a church in a village near Sialkot on fire. The<br />

protestors were armed with bricks, stones and sticks and caused great damage to<br />

properties in the surrounding area. They also ransacked two houses adjacent to the<br />

church.<br />

In October, the representative of the Sikh community requested an HRCP factfinding<br />

mission to help the Sikh community of Quetta to regain the possession of a<br />

Sikh worship place (gurdwara) where the government had set up a school. There were<br />

four Hindu temples in Quetta but their adjacent land was in the possession of the<br />

Evacuee Trust Board which the Hindu community wanted to be restored to these<br />

temples.<br />

In June, an Ahmediya graveyard in Pir Mahal, Toba Tek Singh, was attacked and<br />

desecrated by rioters following which the authorities cancelled the land allotment order<br />

issued to the Ahmedis 20 years ago.<br />

During 2009, in Lahore, Ahmedi worship places in Model Town repeatedly received<br />

threats from the conservative religious groups and hate campaigns were conducted<br />

against the community through wall-chalking, posters and pamphlets.<br />

Seats <strong>for</strong> minorities in parliament<br />

Despite Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s promise made of five reserved seats<br />

<strong>for</strong> minorities in the Senate, religious minorities were not able to secure seats in the<br />

Senate in February 2009. The minorities feel that be<strong>for</strong>e the end of the term of the<br />

present government in 2012, there were very slim chances of their representation in<br />

the Senate. Moreover, all assemblies have 33 per cent representation of women which<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 131


does not include women belonging to minority groups.<br />

Employment opportunities<br />

The government had announced that it would reserve five per cent of the jobs in<br />

government departments <strong>for</strong> educated and skilled members of the minorities, but the<br />

notification was not issued. Estimates suggest that 80 per cent of the minority population<br />

falls below the poverty line and that it has usually been ignored during the various<br />

government support programmes.<br />

The marginalization and isolation of the minorities can be gauged from their extremely<br />

poor representation in the army, judiciary and the police.<br />

Christians were facing problems in obtaining FATA domicile certificates despite<br />

the fact that they had been residing in Khyber Agency <strong>for</strong> many years. This deprived<br />

them of the possibility of acquiring jobs in the country.<br />

Violence against Shias<br />

Despite the tight security provided by the government and private agencies, 2009<br />

witnessed considerable sectarian violence. On 28th December 2009, the tenth day of<br />

the holy month of Muharram, at least 40 people were killed and 60 others injured in<br />

Karachi when a suicide bomber targeted the main Ashura procession. Afterwards,<br />

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the investigations revealed that a sectarian<br />

organization, was behind the attack. It was the third sectarian attack on the minority<br />

community in three days in Karachi in spite of police and security agencies’ ef<strong>for</strong>ts at<br />

maintaining a massive vigil over the traditional procession route. Shia population in<br />

Parachinar also remained under attack from sectarian militants. The road link to<br />

Parachinar remained cut off.<br />

Shia-Hazara under attack<br />

The situation was worse in Balochistan where Hazara-Shia community had been<br />

under attack from sectarian militants <strong>for</strong> six years. More than 260 people belonging to<br />

Hazara community in Quetta had been killed in target shooting and more than 1000<br />

people suffered injuries since 2003. The Hazara community believed that security<br />

agencies and the government were protecting and patronising the perpetrators of crimes<br />

against the Shia community. As an example, they presented the case of two convicted<br />

criminals, Usman Saifullah Kurd and Shafeeq Rind, belonging to the anti-Shia<br />

organization, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, who had mysteriously escaped from a well-guarded<br />

jail of Anti-Terrorist Force (ATF) in Quetta Cantonment where no one could enter<br />

without a pass, implying they were helped by some elements within the security agency.<br />

A number of lawyers belonging to Shia Hazara community were killed in targeted<br />

shootings during the year 2009. Sectarian hit men were said to be responsible; they had<br />

132 State of Human Rights in 2009


declared in courts that on release they would again kill Shias. The Shia-Hazara community<br />

seemed to have lost trust in the provincial government’s capability of bringing<br />

perpetrators of the crime to justice.<br />

Following is the list of attacks on Shias in Balochitsan during 2009:<br />

January 10: Syed Saqlain Naqvi, a leader of Tehrik-e- Jafria, was sitting in his<br />

shop located on Chakar Khan Road, District Sibi along with his gunman Ghulam Ali,<br />

when three men riding a motorbike came and shot at them, killing both.<br />

January 13: Hanif Ali Hazara, a resident of Muslim Ittehad Colony, Quetta, was<br />

shot and killed by armed persons on Kirani Road, Quetta.<br />

January 14: Four police officials, namely Hassan Ali, Ghulam Muhammad,<br />

Muhammad Tariq, and Nasarullah, were gunned down by unknown motorcyclists on<br />

Sariab Road, Quetta.<br />

January 26: Hussain Ali Yousafi, Chairman of Hazara Democratic Party (HDP),<br />

was assassinated by unidentified armed men riding motorbikes on Jinnah Road, Quetta.<br />

February 3: The owner of a furniture workshop, Iqbal Zaidi, came under attack<br />

by unknown persons<br />

on Zarghoon Road<br />

when he was on way<br />

to his house in<br />

Shahbaz Town,<br />

Quetta.<br />

March 1:<br />

Ghulam Sakhi and his<br />

son Ali Asghar were<br />

shot and killed at their<br />

shop on Zarghon<br />

Road, Quetta, by<br />

unidentified gunmen<br />

riding a motorbike.<br />

March 3: Five<br />

men, belonging to the<br />

People gather around the crime scene after the target killing<br />

of yet another lawyer belonging to Shia-Hazara community<br />

Hazara community, namely Haji Mukhtar, Liaquat Ali, Zahid Ali, Naseem Ali and Hayat<br />

Ullah, were killed by unknown armed men on the Eastern Bypass in Quetta.<br />

March 4: Ali Ahmed was shot at by armed men on <strong>Ar</strong>bab Karam Khan Road.<br />

June 23: Talib Agha of Union Nazim Halqa 15, along with his guards, Jawad and<br />

Ali Ahmed, was shot and killed by unknown men on Fatima Jinnah Road, Quetta.<br />

August 21: Allama Maqsood Domki, the President of Jafaria Alliance, Balochistan,<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 133


survived an attempt on his life. His gunman shot dead one of the attackers while the<br />

other one escaped.<br />

September 8: A well known trader, Ahmed Ali Hazara, was killed by armed men<br />

on Sirki Road, Quetta.<br />

October 2: A noted lawyer and a PPP activist, Wilayat Hussain Shah, was gunned<br />

down by unidentified men in Quetta.<br />

Violence against Ahmedis<br />

January 19: An Ahmedi, Saeed Ahmad, was killed in Kotri (Sindh).<br />

February 20: Mubashir Ahmed was shot dead in Karachi.<br />

February 25: A murder attempt was made on Muhammad Iqbal Abid, an Ahmedi<br />

religious teacher in Vehari.<br />

March 14: Shiraz Bajwa and his wife Noreen Bajwa, both doctors, were brutally<br />

murdered in Multan.<br />

April 1: Bashir Ahmed, Advocate, President of the local Ahmadiyya community,<br />

Achini Payan, near Peshawar, was abducted and had not been recovered till Dec 31<br />

2009.<br />

May 8: A well known Ahmedi trader, Mian Laiq Ahmad, was attacked in Faisalabad<br />

by three armed men while sitting in his car. The armed men blocked the road to his<br />

house and shot him dead.<br />

May 9: Rashid Karim, a well-known Ahmedi in Faisalabad, was abducted and<br />

released after five months on the payment of a heavy ransom.<br />

June 24: Two Ahmedis, Khalid Rasheed and Zafar Iqbal, were shot dead in Quetta.<br />

July 6: Rana Ata-ul-Karim was murdered in Multan.<br />

August 6: An Ahmedi, Rana Ata-ul Karim, was shot dead after his wife was<br />

harassed by three Muslim extremists in Multan.<br />

August 7: Two Ahmedis were assaulted <strong>for</strong> their faith in Nankana Sahab near<br />

Lahore.<br />

August 12: Javed Ahmed escaped a murder attempt in Kunri (Sindh).<br />

September 11: Zulfiquar Mansur was abducted in Quetta and a month later his<br />

dead body was <strong>found</strong> on the roadside on the city’s outskirts.<br />

September 26: Ahmed Farooqi was shot dead in Uch Sharif, Bahawalpur.<br />

November 25: Dr Pervaiz Zareef of Bhati Gate, Lahore narrowly escaped an<br />

attempt on his life.<br />

November 26: Rana Saleem Ahmad, the Deputy Amir of Jamaat Ahmediya Sanghar,<br />

134 State of Human Rights in 2009


Activities inciting religious intolerance were ignored rather than punished, often<br />

leading to serious consequences<br />

was shot at and killed.<br />

Major incidents of violence against religious minorities<br />

The Layyah incident<br />

On January 28, a case under Section 295-C of the Penal Code was registered<br />

against five men belonging to the Ahmediya community at Kot Sultan police station of<br />

Layyah district where around half a dozen Ahmediya families lived.<br />

Four of the accused were boys studying at matriculation level. They were accused<br />

of writing the name of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on the walls of a mosque’s toilet<br />

in village 172/TDA. Although the accused denied the allegation made against them,<br />

they were arrested and detained. The fifth accused was a labourer.<br />

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) fact-finding<br />

mission sent to Layyah on February 1, 2009, a few days prior to the lodging of the<br />

FIR, a resident of Chak 173/TDA named Muhammad Safdar saw the name of Prophet<br />

Muhammad (PBUH) written on the mosque’s toilet. He told the prayer leader, Qari<br />

Muhammad Saeed, about the writing. According to Masood Ahmed, representative of<br />

the Ahmadiyya community in Layyah, six Ahmadi families had been living in village<br />

172/TDA <strong>for</strong> over 50 years and had had no dispute or enmity with any other community<br />

member.<br />

The nazim of the area was asked to probe the matter. It was learnt that four<br />

students from the Ahmediya community, namely, Mohammad Irfan, Tahir Imran, Tahir<br />

Mehmood and Naseeb Ahmed, used to offer prayers in the mosque and also used its<br />

toilets. After the investigation, the Ahmedis were stopped from offering prayers in the<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 135


mosque, and it was said the villagers believed that the Ahmedis, being the only non-<br />

Muslims coming to the mosque, must have committed the sacrilege.<br />

After the registration of the case with the police, the Ahmediya community voluntarily<br />

handed over all those nominated in the FIR to the police. The students assured the<br />

authorities that they had not written the Prophet’s name in the mosque’s toilets nor had<br />

committed any other crime. The students told the authorities that their matriculation<br />

examination was due to begin on March 4 and requested to be released.<br />

However, the accused were transferred from Kot Sultan police station, around 20<br />

kilometers from the village, to Saddar police station in Layyah city. The HRCP team<br />

went to the police station and requested permission to talk to the accused, but the SHO<br />

turned down the request and said he was only responsible <strong>for</strong> the custody of the<br />

accused as it was not his police station’s case. However, the police and villagers<br />

conceded that there was no witness or evidence of the Ahmadis’ involvement in the<br />

alleged blasphemy and as required by law, no investigation was carried out by the SP<br />

investigation prior to the arrest of the accused. The bail applications of the boys were<br />

rejected quite a few times and they had to take their examination while in confinement.<br />

Eventually, they were granted bail after six months of their arrest.<br />

The Kasur incident<br />

On June 30, the Christian community of village Bahminawala of District Kasur<br />

staged a protest demonstration to press their demand that the government and local<br />

administration took steps <strong>for</strong> the protection of their lives, property and their right to<br />

free movement after they had been attacked by some people who demolished their<br />

houses and damaged and looted their belongings.<br />

Bahminawala village had a population of more than 800 families, 122 of them<br />

Christian. The HRCP fact-finding team saw broken or demolished houses, badly<br />

damaged vehicles bearing acid marks, broken electricity meters, pedestal and ceiling<br />

fans, water pumps and washing machines, burnt donkey carts belonging to Christian<br />

labourers. It also saw the Christians, men and women both, who had been tortured and<br />

injured by the raiders.<br />

It was reported that on June 29 Sardar Masih of Bahminawala was driving his<br />

tractor back to the village. Finding his path blocked by a motorbike he asked Muhammad<br />

Riaz (a Muslim) to push his motorbike on one side so that his tractor could pass.<br />

Chaudhry Riaz refused to do so, and this led to a brawl between the two. Later in the<br />

night after both had returned to their homes, Riaz’s relations accompanied by eight or<br />

so other Muslims attacked the house of Sardar Masih. Both parties suffered some<br />

casualties.<br />

The next day Shan Ali, an active member of a local organization named “Uqaab”<br />

announced that the Christians of the village had committed blasphemy, and asked the<br />

136 State of Human Rights in 2009


Muslims to gather near a mosque in the village. As similar announcements were made<br />

in surrounding villages, approximately a hundred men gathered and proceeded to attack<br />

the Christian houses.<br />

After the attack on the Christians, a heavy contingent of the police was deployed in<br />

the village to maintain law and order. The Federal and Punjab Provincial Governments’<br />

ministers also visited the affected village and pledged monetary compensation to the<br />

victim families.<br />

The Gojra incident<br />

On August 1, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) received in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

of Muslim extremists attacking a Christian neighborhood of about 60 houses and more<br />

than 100 families in Gojra, a tehsil headquarter in Toba Tek Singh district in Punjab.<br />

The attackers looted Christians’ houses, be<strong>for</strong>e setting them on fire. Seven persons<br />

were burnt alive and several others were killed otherwise, three churches and 47 houses<br />

were torched.<br />

The Gojra attacks occurred two days after the incident of brutal attacks and torching<br />

of Christian houses on July 30, in Korianwala. There allegations of desecration of the<br />

Holy Quran were made against a Christian villager, leading to attacks on the Christian<br />

community.<br />

According to investigations carried out by the HRCP, the wedding ceremony of<br />

Talib Masih’s son was in progress on July 25 during which guests showered currency<br />

notes on the groom as a part of festivities.<br />

The next morning, on July 26, Muhammad Ashraf, belonging to a nearby village,<br />

Chak 95/JB, alleged that he had <strong>found</strong> pieces of paper bearing Quranic verses outside<br />

Talib’s house. He claimed that the papers were among the currency bills that were<br />

thrown at the groom, and that Talib had desecrated the Holy Quran. On July 30,<br />

Ashraf, a local landlord and over a dozen activists of religious parties, some of whom<br />

did not belong to that village, ordered Talib Masih to appear be<strong>for</strong>e their self-styled<br />

panchayat and explain his position regarding the allegations made by Ashraf. Talib<br />

appeared be<strong>for</strong>e the panchayat and denied defiling the Holy Quran, whereupon members<br />

of the panchayat beat him up. Christians accused the panchayat members of blackmailing<br />

Talib <strong>for</strong> money, threatening him with registration of a case <strong>for</strong> alleged defiling of the<br />

Holy Quran if he did not pay them.<br />

Soon afterwards, the religious parties’ activists made an announcement on the<br />

mosque loudspeaker that the Quran had been desecrated and Muslims should teach the<br />

culprits a lesson. Most of the Christian population of Korianwala immediately fled the<br />

village to save their lives as scores of men from nearby villages attacked their houses<br />

within an hour of announcements from mosques. The attackers were carrying firearms,<br />

wooden sticks, iron rods and kerosene oil; they set fire to 57 Christian houses after<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 137


looting or destroying<br />

valuables.<br />

Although a police<br />

contingent reached the<br />

village that night, a Muslim<br />

mob resisted police<br />

attempts to disperse them<br />

and did not allow<br />

firefighters to extinguish the<br />

fires. The mob demanded<br />

suspension of the Sadar<br />

police SHO, expulsion of<br />

Christians ousted from<br />

Gojra: 57 Christian houses were destroyed and looted Korianwala and Talib to be<br />

publicly hanged. The<br />

administration ordered the SHO’s immediate suspension to defuse the situation.<br />

The Muridke incident<br />

On August 4, a factory-owner Najib Zafar was wounded in a scuffle with some<br />

angry factory workers. Police arrived there and hid Najib in a store-room so as to<br />

protect him from violent workers. But the provoked villagers and the factory workers<br />

teamed up to storm the store-room, while the unarmed policemen looked the other<br />

way to save their own skin. The mob was left free to beat Najib to death. A labourer,<br />

Muzammil, also lost his life by coming in the way of a stray bullet.<br />

In this incident, a factory clerk, Qasim Ali, exaggerated and exploited the falling to<br />

the floor of a calendar inscribed with Quranic verses. He described this as desecration<br />

of the Quran to instigate fellow factory workers against the owner. Soon after this,<br />

extremist elements in Muridke area made provocative announcements about the alleged<br />

desecration of the Quran from the mosques of nearby villages without confirming the<br />

facts. In this way they incited the common people to attack the factory owner.<br />

Religious understanding and tolerance in the education system<br />

According to a survey-based HRCP study, “Enhancing religious understanding<br />

and promoting tolerance in education”, extracurricular activities in schools, such as<br />

annual functions, debates, literary competitions, plays, etc, were centred on both<br />

nationalistic and religious themes. The study was based on a survey of 80 public<br />

schools across the country and interviews with nearly 2,500 respondents including<br />

students, teachers, parents and community members.<br />

The survey led to the conclusion that schools in Pakistan generally did not promote<br />

138 State of Human Rights in 2009


eligious intolerance as topics like Jehad, India-Pakistan relations, Kashmir dispute<br />

were hardly ever discussed in schools. The survey revealed that most of the public<br />

schools in Pakistan did not have libraries. In schools where libraries were <strong>found</strong>, most<br />

books were received either from private donors or from the government, hence school<br />

administration had little control over the choice of books which were mostly about<br />

Islam and Pakistani history.<br />

Most schools displayed a combination of religious material (Quranic verses, sayings<br />

of the Holy Prophet that emphasized personal morals and the virtue of seeking<br />

knowledge) and symbols of Pakistani nationalism (pictures of national heroes and their<br />

sayings). Punjab (primarily Lahore and Bahawalpur districts) emerged as the province<br />

with the highest frequency of religious materials displayed in its schools.<br />

It is significant to note that a number of schools mostly in the rural districts<br />

particularly in Quetta and Sibi, were without any kind of displays on school premises.<br />

Only a few schools displayed sayings or symbols which specifically addressed or<br />

promoted religious tolerance. In 12 per cent of the schools, the materials displayed<br />

called <strong>for</strong> encouragement of tolerance, peace and brotherhood but only in general<br />

terms and without reference to people of other faiths. The only two schools where the<br />

issues of religious tolerance and inter-faith harmony were addressed by making reference<br />

to people of other religions were in Tharparker district, where Hindus constitute a<br />

significant minority.<br />

On the other hand, some schools were involved in actively promoting religious<br />

extremism. In around 18 per cent of the sampled schools, religious texts extolling<br />

jehad (sacrificing in the name of religion) and shahadat (martyrdom) were favoured.<br />

Half of these schools were in the Punjab districts. Tharparker and Sibi were the only<br />

districts where no such placards were <strong>found</strong> in any of the schools.<br />

Religious events were almost as common as national days or events in Pakistan’s<br />

public schools. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 73 per cent of the respondents (78 per cent teachers and 68 per<br />

cent students) were of the view that religious activities were always or often held in<br />

their schools. A majority of those who said that religious activities were rare or absent<br />

in their schools belonged to Tharparker (Sindh) and Battagram (NWFP) districts. The<br />

Punjab and Balochistan districts showed the highest frequency of religious events<br />

where 90 per cent of the students reported that religious activities were continuously<br />

or often held in their schools.<br />

There were differences in views on promotion of religious tolerance and interfaith<br />

harmony through extra-curricular activities at school. 84 per cent of the teachers<br />

said that activities held at school promoted religious tolerance and 81 per cent claimed<br />

that the activities ensured inter-faith harmony. However, when students were asked<br />

the same question, around 59 per cent of them said they did not recall such activities<br />

Freedom of thought, conscience and religion 139


The Gojra carnage triggerred widespread protests by the<br />

Christian community<br />

religious tolerance than their counterparts in boys’ schools.<br />

being held at school,<br />

while 9 per cent chose<br />

not to answer the<br />

question. Hence,<br />

cross-verification from<br />

students indicated that<br />

there were fewer<br />

tolerance-promoting<br />

activities than claimed<br />

by the teachers. It also<br />

appeared from the<br />

survey that girls<br />

schools and female<br />

teachers were more<br />

active promoters of<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. A transparent and fair investigation must be carried out soon after any attacks<br />

on minorities in order to en<strong>for</strong>ce justice and ensure that innocent people are not<br />

victimized.<br />

2. The prevailing blasphemy law is arbitrary and should be repealed. The<br />

allegations of blasphemy or defiling of religious scriptures, irrespective of their veracity,<br />

do not warrant vigilante attacks. Nor do they absolve the government of its primary<br />

duty to protect all citizens. Effective prosecution of offenders would serve as a deterrent<br />

to future attacks, while a lack of it would encourage impunity. The federal government<br />

must take action to ensure that laws on the statute books are not abused to harass or<br />

ostracize citizens.<br />

3. Workshops should be held <strong>for</strong> school teachers and administrators to sensitise<br />

them to the issue of religious tolerance as they play a key role in building the school’s<br />

atmosphere and exercise considerable influence over their pupils. The government<br />

should adopt a policy of promoting extra-curricular activities to promote religious<br />

understanding and tolerance in schools. For example, Muslim students may be taken<br />

to places of worship of other religions like churches and temples to familiarize themselves<br />

with religious practices and customs of minority groups.<br />

4. A strict check must be kept on the dissemination of literature and audio-visual<br />

material promoting hatred against any religious communities or sects.<br />

5. Special steps are needed to check the persecution of Ahmadis.<br />

140 State of Human Rights in 2009


Freedom of expression<br />

Every citizen shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression, and there<br />

shall be freedom of the press, subject to any reasonable restriction imposed by law<br />

in the interest of the glory of Islam or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan or<br />

any part thereof, friendly relations with <strong>for</strong>eign states, public order, decency or morality,<br />

or in relation to contempt of court or commission of or incitement to an offence.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 19<br />

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes<br />

the freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 19<br />

In the year under review, independent and free media, on the one hand, faced<br />

threats from violent non-state actors, namely Taliban and their allied militant groups,<br />

and on the other hand, it was subjected to intimidation and restrictions by the powersthat-be.<br />

In tribal areas in the northwest, where Taliban and Pakistani security <strong>for</strong>ces<br />

were locked in an armed conflict, reporting facts accurately became much too hazardous<br />

<strong>for</strong> professional journalists. Similarly, in Balochistan, journalists faced restrictions on<br />

access to certain areas and on reporting independently because of unwritten restrictions<br />

and warning issued by the security establishment and militants.<br />

The relationship between the government and the independent media seems to be<br />

rocky as the government, under pressure to deliver on its promises and facing severe<br />

Freedom of expression 141


criticism from television commentators and newspaper columnists, tried to make the<br />

media scapegoat <strong>for</strong> its own failures. President Asif Zardari came down heavily on his<br />

critics in media dubbing them as ‘political actors’ who, according to him, were part of<br />

the conspiracy to oust him from the Presidency. An aggressive campaign by Jang-Geo<br />

media group <strong>for</strong> expeditious implementation of the Supreme Court verdict in the NRO<br />

case, and on corruption charges against President Asif Zardari and some recent<br />

allegations of corruption by public figures angered the government which responded<br />

by withholding government advertisements from the group.<br />

Laws and role of Pemra<br />

In January 2009, the Council of Pakistan Newspapers Editors (CPNE) rejected the<br />

Printing Presses and Publications Amendment Ordinance <strong>for</strong> newspapers and magazines<br />

and urged the government to cancel the ordinance as it was believed to be against the<br />

basic right to freedom of expression. The CPNE requested the government to hold<br />

talks with them and other journalist organizations in order to resolve the matter.<br />

According to the Federal In<strong>for</strong>mation Minister, the Pakistan Electronic Media<br />

Regulatory Authority (Pemra) hired a private firm in 2009 to monitor the broadcasts of<br />

private news channels to ensure compliance with Pemra laws and regulations. The<br />

firm monitored programmes as well as advertisements aired on news channels.<br />

Furthermore, Pemra utilized its fully operational monitoring wing consisting of experts<br />

in the field.<br />

Banners outside Rawalpindi Press Club condemn Pemra’s<br />

curbs on the freedom of the press<br />

In July 2009,<br />

Pemra urged<br />

electronic media to<br />

report events in a<br />

balanced manner and<br />

to not air views of<br />

persons of banned<br />

organizations. The<br />

operators involved in<br />

airing immoral<br />

programmes were to<br />

be punished under<br />

section C-20 of the<br />

Pemra rules while<br />

licences of erring<br />

cable operators were<br />

to be cancelled under<br />

sections 30 and 33 of<br />

142 State of Human Rights in 2009


the Pemra law.<br />

From March 2008 to July 2009, Pemra issued around 28 licences to private TV<br />

channels. During October 2009, Pemra seized the equipment of three cable operators<br />

<strong>for</strong> broad-casting allegedly indecent and objectionable material. In July 2009, Pemra<br />

also imported latest equipment to block illegal FM radio channels.<br />

The authorities served 64 legal notices on 18 private television channels in the<br />

2008-09 period <strong>for</strong> violating the code of conduct <strong>for</strong>mulated by Pemra – 18 legal<br />

notices were issued to Independent Media Corporation, the owner of Geo News, <strong>for</strong><br />

live coverage of terrorist attacks and footage of Taliban releasing hostages, Recorder<br />

Television Network, which manages Aaj TV, also got notices <strong>for</strong> promoting terrorists<br />

by interviewing Taliban leader Mullah Omar and using provocative language against the<br />

Supreme Court, eight notices were served on ARY Communication mainly <strong>for</strong> showing<br />

scenes after bomb explosions while Dawn News received four notices <strong>for</strong> violating the<br />

terms and conditions of the license.<br />

Curbs on SMS and Internet<br />

Apparently embarrassed by criticism, innocuous jokes, derogatory messages and<br />

scandals of financial corruption related to public figures, the government placed curbs<br />

on SMS messaging and using Internet critical of it. Bypassing the parliament and<br />

avoiding any debate by law-makers on this crucial issue, on July 9 2009, President Asif<br />

Zardari reissued the Prevention of Electronic Crimes, Ordinance (PECO) 2009 which<br />

covers 18 offences that carry severe punishment, including life imprisonment and<br />

death penalty and which had been promulgated by Gen. Musharraf. A special cell was<br />

created with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to investigate and prosecute the<br />

perpetrators of the crime under the Ordinance. The way the Ordinance defined cyber<br />

crime and terrorist intent gives the authorities powers to curb freedom of expression.<br />

Under the Ordinance, search and seizure can take place any time and anywhere on any<br />

number of IT systems.<br />

A group of MNAs, led by members of the IT Standing Committee said that if the<br />

Ordinance was enacted as law as it stood, it would turn Pakistan into a police state and<br />

will lead to punishment of innocent people who could be picked up on the allegation of<br />

terrorist intent. They submitted a resolution against the Ordinance which pointed out<br />

the articles of the Constitution including <strong>Ar</strong>ticles 10, 13, 19, 24, relating to preventive<br />

detention, double punishment, freedom of speech and property rights’ which would be<br />

violated.<br />

A bill to provide <strong>for</strong> an alternative legislation was submitted to the National Assembly<br />

as a private member bill.<br />

In July, media reports suggest, the government started monitoring the internet to<br />

identify anti-state websites, ostensibly those promoting ethnic hatred and terrorism.<br />

Freedom of expression 143


In<strong>for</strong>mation technology experts from the Federal Investigation Agency’s Special<br />

Investigation Group (SIG) detected a website, www.balochunity.org and asked the IT<br />

ministry to block it on the charges of containing anti-state material. The sources said<br />

the FIA was also regularly monitoring national and international websites to detect<br />

material promoting sectarianism and extremism. All SMA messages were also being<br />

monitored to check if they contained anything against the government, its institutions<br />

or leaders.<br />

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) drafted a plan to monitor all<br />

telecommunication traffic, including landlines, mobile services and e-mails. A private<br />

TV channel reported that a code of conduct had been finalized and a draft had been<br />

displayed on the PTA website. The PTA also urged stakeholders to make<br />

recommendations.<br />

Electronic media - curbs and bans<br />

In March 2009, the media was barred from covering the Senate election held in the<br />

NWFP provincial assembly building. The journalists covering these proceedings were<br />

put under these restrictions mainly because of their previous record of highlighting the<br />

unconstitutional practices of the law makers who showed marked ballots to the<br />

government monitors be<strong>for</strong>e casting them into the boxes in the last presidential election.<br />

The journalists held wide protests against depriving people of the right to in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

and putting undemocratic orders into practice.<br />

In June the Frontier government put curbs on The Frontier Post. The paper was<br />

critical of the government’s per<strong>for</strong>mance and was punished <strong>for</strong> this. It was ignored by<br />

the media teams of the federal government as well as the Presidency. For example, it<br />

was excluded from the list of news papers invited to a media briefing by the President.<br />

In October, BBC news bulletins broadcast on various local FM radio channels<br />

including Hum FM, Apna FM, Highway FM, Gujrat FM and Mast 103 FM were banned<br />

by government officials affecting almost half of its broadcast aired via local radio<br />

stations. The radio stations were asked to apply <strong>for</strong> permission from the authorities in<br />

this regard.<br />

Restrictions on press freedom and access to in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

In August a group of Lahore lawyers thrashed a TV channel reporter and some<br />

cameramen following the TV coverage of an incident in which some lawyers had<br />

beaten up a police official in the district courts. The footage of the incident was shown<br />

by almost all television channels after which the lawyers were reported to have abused<br />

and threatened various media persons. Journalist bodies held a country-wide protest<br />

on the call of Pakistan Federation Union of Journalists (PFUJ) to express their anger<br />

and disappointment over the banning of media persons’ entry into Lahore’s district and<br />

144 State of Human Rights in 2009


civil courts premises. Meanwhile, Aitzaz Ahsan, a <strong>for</strong>mer President of Supreme Court<br />

Bar Association, surrendered his Lahore High Court Bar membership over the<br />

maltreatment of journalists carried out by the lawyers.<br />

The government was accused by the Balochistan National Party (BNP) of intimidating<br />

newspapers that published reports and comments about the rights of the Baloch people<br />

and harassed journalists who were reporting security <strong>for</strong>ces’ harsh-behaviour towards<br />

political workers in Balochistan. It was alleged that the government was pressurizing<br />

the management of some newspapers to stop supporting the parties that were struggling<br />

<strong>for</strong> the rights of the Baloch people.<br />

Curbs on newspapers in Balochistan<br />

In 2009, the freedom of the press in Balochistan remained under threat from<br />

coercive state policies. Some independent newspapers’ offices were under virtual siege.<br />

In August 2009, there were reports that the Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel had<br />

laid siege to the Quetta offices of at least two newspapers. On August 18, Urdu daily<br />

Asaap announced suspension of its publication after the security <strong>for</strong>ces cordoned its<br />

Quetta office <strong>for</strong> two weeks and all visitors and employees were frisked, questioned<br />

and humiliated. The FC personnel were also deployed outside the offices of the Urdu<br />

daily Aazdi and nobody was allowed in without submitting to a search and questioning.<br />

Even prior to the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ clampdown, these newspapers were being victimised<br />

and Asaap – one of the widely-circulated Urdu newspaper in Balochistan – had been<br />

denied government advertisements <strong>for</strong> a long time.<br />

Threats and attacks on media<br />

As the wave of suicide attacks and bombings by Taliban swept the country, the<br />

media, especially private television channels, often attacked the militancy and the loss<br />

of civilian lives in such cowardly attacks. This angered the militants, especially belonging<br />

to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, and newspaper offices and renowned journalists across<br />

the country came under attack. The Taliban turned their guns on journalists and<br />

distributed leaflets threatening media persons of “terrible consequences” of their “anti-<br />

Taliban coverage.” However, the government ignored these threats until a suicidebomber’s<br />

dastardly attack on the Peshawar Press Club. According to PFUJ, around 45<br />

journalists had been killed between 2001 and 2009.<br />

Killings<br />

Seven journalists were killed during the year while per<strong>for</strong>ming their duties across<br />

the country; four other journalists were killed in crime related incidents. Kidnappings,<br />

targeting, abduction and violence against media persons showed a sharp increase as<br />

compared to previous years. A total of 163 direct attacks were made against media<br />

Freedom of expression 145


during 2009 including<br />

m u r d e r s ,<br />

kidnappings, threats,<br />

assaults and attacks<br />

on media<br />

establishments. Fiftyfour<br />

of these attacks<br />

were made in Punjab,<br />

52 in NWFP, 28 in<br />

Islamabad, while<br />

three cases were<br />

recorded in<br />

Balochistan.<br />

During the year<br />

under review, 35<br />

cases of restrictions<br />

on publications or<br />

The scene after the bomb blast at the Peshawar Press Club broadcasts were<br />

experienced by media<br />

persons, at least 28 journalists were given explicit threats and 10 armed attacks on<br />

media establishments were made - Peshawar Press Club, the largest media establishment<br />

in NWFP and FATA, was the hardest hit target of militants December 22.<br />

Attacks<br />

January 3: A group of armed men reportedly belonging to the SNF raided the<br />

offices of the Sindhi-language daily Awami Awaz and held its staff hostage.<br />

January 4: Nine people, including two journalists, Muhammad Imran and Saleem<br />

Tahir, were killed in a suicide attack in Dera Ismail Khan.<br />

January 5: A journalist’s house was bombed in Swat by unidentified men.<br />

January 6: Four journalists were beaten and wounded, one of them seriously, by<br />

security personnel of the EME Society, Lahore, when they reached the main gate of<br />

the society to cover a police encounter in which three alleged armed robbers had been<br />

killed.<br />

January 24: Unidentified gunmen shot and killed a senior journalist, Amir Wakeel,<br />

editor of a local daily ‘Awami Inqilab’, in Rawalpindi.<br />

January 29: Transmissions of a news channel were taken off the cable on the<br />

orders of the local administration in Gujrat (Punjab) after it aired live the city policemen’s<br />

beating of the students of the Zamindara College.<br />

February 2: Unidentified men opened fire at senior journalist Kamal Azfar’s car<br />

near Kohat, a week after the killing of his brother, Amir Wakil in Rawalpindi, and<br />

146 State of Human Rights in 2009


warned him against pursuing the murder case. His car was badly damaged, though he<br />

made a narrow escape.<br />

February 2: Mr. Juhar Singh, senior executive producer in NewsX, an Indian<br />

news channel, and his cameraman Mr. Tilak Raj were surrounded by six to nine persons<br />

who searched their pockets, bags and car <strong>for</strong> a couple of minutes when they stopped<br />

near a newspaper store at Anarkali bazaar, Lahore, <strong>for</strong> shooting. The Indian journalists<br />

had been on a one-week visit to cover the tension between the two countries.<br />

February 4: In Bara, members of the Khassadar <strong>for</strong>ce detained and allegedly<br />

tortured reporters from two private TV channels, Ali Khan Shinwari of Duniya News<br />

and Wali Khan Shinwari of Dawn News. The journalists were on their way to the All<br />

Masjid area to do shooting at a historical bridge blasted by militants a day earlier.<br />

February 8: Noor Hassan, a reporter of the Royal News television channel, was<br />

abducted in Swat. He and two colleagues were in Swat to interview internally displaced<br />

people.<br />

February 12: In Khar, a property owned by Mian Saeed-ur-Rehman, a local<br />

journalist, was destroyed in a rocket attack. Earlier, three houses owned by Bajaurbased<br />

journalists were destroyed in similar attacks.<br />

February 17: A bomb explosion damaged the press club building in Wana (SWA).<br />

February 18: Imtiaz Alam, head of SAFMA, was attacked by four young men<br />

with hockey sticks as he drove back home from his Lahore office.<br />

February 18: Musa Khankhel, a reporter of Geo News, was shot dead by<br />

unidentified men in Swat valley. He was working out of the conflict-ridden Mingora<br />

city and was kidnapped from Matta area where he was covering the visit of Tehrik<br />

Nifaz-i-Shariat Muhammadi’s leader, Maulana Sufi Muhammad.<br />

February 19: A bomb exploded inside the Wana Press Club, further damaging the<br />

building, which had been partially damaged in an explosion only a day earlier.<br />

February 20: In Karachi, four journalists were attacked by demonstrators in a<br />

political rally of ANP at different places in the city. ANP had organized a sit-outside the<br />

offices of daily Jang to protest against their meagre coverage in the newspaper. Malik<br />

Munawar Hussain, Shakeel Salwat, Jamshaid Bukhari, and Fazil Jameeli, were beaten<br />

up by the protestors at different spots during the march.<br />

February 24: In Quetta, a senior Baloch journalist, Jan Muhammad Dashti, owner<br />

and editor of the Quetta-based daily Asaap, was seriously wounded when gunmen<br />

blocked his vehicle and shot at him hitting Dashti in the head and in an arm.<br />

March 18: In Miranshah, the Taliban threatened to kill Khadeja Abdul Qahaar, a<br />

Canadian journalists author and producer who was in their custody, if ransom was not<br />

paid by March 30. Qahaar went missing in the Jani Khel area of Bannu in November<br />

Freedom of expression 147


2008.<br />

March 22: Dawn News reporter Malik Tariq Javed was killed in DHA Lahore by<br />

unidentified men. Police said he was killed while resisting robbery.<br />

March 26: Raja Assad Hameed, a senior reporter of The Nation daily, was shot at<br />

four times by unidentified assailants as he arrived at his home in Rawalpindi. He died of<br />

his wounds in a hospital. The motive behind the murder was unclear.<br />

April 4: The building of Radio Pakistan in Wana was blown up by militants who<br />

first broke down the doors and stole the transmission equipment.<br />

April 8: In Faisalabad, Khawar Shafiq, a journalist with daily Waqt, went missing.<br />

He was being harassed by employees of a secret agency.<br />

April 11: In Gilgit, an explosion targeted a booster of PTV in Chilas, headquarters<br />

of Diamer district.<br />

April 17: A newspaper reporter, Wasi Ahmed, died of his wounds in a Karachi<br />

hospital. He had been shot at and badly injured in the Khuzdar district on April 11.<br />

April 28: In Peshawar, the Taliban threatened journalists with dire consequences<br />

if they did not stop reporting incidents that they considered ‘propaganda’ against their<br />

struggle <strong>for</strong> the en<strong>for</strong>cement of Shariah.<br />

April 28: The Swat Taliban announced that they would ‘re<strong>for</strong>m’ the banking<br />

system and journalism in the areas they controlled. Their spokesman said Taliban would<br />

penalize the media <strong>for</strong> “telling lies”. He admitted that the Taliban had issued posters<br />

warning the media in Swat.<br />

April 28: In Peshawar, a reporter of the daily News, Dilawar Jan, was taken away<br />

by a security agency from his office and detained <strong>for</strong> ascertaining the source of a news<br />

item which he had filed about a military operation in Buner. The reporter refused to<br />

disclose the source.<br />

April 29: Three journalists working <strong>for</strong> Al Jazeera, Abdur Rehman, Adnan and<br />

Atta Muhammad, were injured in an attack in Daggar, the district headquarters of<br />

Buner.<br />

May 6: All Swat-based newspapers stopped publication out of fear <strong>for</strong> security.<br />

Swat Press Club President confirmed that all journalists had left the valley.<br />

May 14: A British filmmaker, David Whitney, fled Pakistan after his crew was shot<br />

at near Quetta while shooting Kandhar Break, a film about Taliban rule in Afghanistan.<br />

Whitney and his crew escaped injury.<br />

May 31: In Nowshera, police and security agencies closed down two FM radio<br />

channels run by a religious outfit in Jahangira and Pirpai spreading sectarian hatred,<br />

June 6: In Nawabshah, Wahid Khokhar, a local reporter of Sindh TV and Daily<br />

148 State of Human Rights in 2009


Ibrat, went missing near the Gullan water stop Gupchhani.<br />

June 8: In Islamabad, the workers of the Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT), the students<br />

wing of Jamat-e-Islami, assaulted journalists covering a protest rally of the IJT. Several<br />

journalists were beaten up and had their cameras smashed. One photo journalist had<br />

his arm broken, and another was severely injured.<br />

June 26: A journalist, Hameed Asghar, of an English daily newspaper was murdered<br />

in Gujjar Khan by unidentified people.<br />

July 7: A GEO TV news team was caught in a baton-charge and tear gas barrage<br />

in Karachi when police used indiscriminate <strong>for</strong>ce to disperse violent demonstrators in<br />

the Landhi area.<br />

July 9: The house of journalist Rahman Buneri was blown up by in the Buner<br />

district of the NWFP, reportedly by Taliban.<br />

July 11:<br />

Suspected militants<br />

looted and then<br />

torched the house of<br />

senior journalist<br />

Behroz Khan in Balo<br />

Khan village in the<br />

Buner district.<br />

July 30: In<br />

Lahore, a group of<br />

lawyers attacked two<br />

journalists at the<br />

sessions’ court. The<br />

lawyers were angry<br />

at reports of an During 2009, atleast 38 journalists received death threats<br />

incident in which they<br />

and seven were killed<br />

had been shown<br />

humiliating and beating up a policeman in uni<strong>for</strong>m at the same courts.<br />

August 4: In Karachi, three personnel of “Sindh TV” were detained by armed<br />

men in Sohrab Goth. The attackers said they would not permit the media to telecast<br />

comments against the Nazim and MQM leaders. The armed men locked the team in a<br />

room and seized their camera and mobile phones.<br />

August 14: Aaj TV correspondent Sadiq Bacha Khan was gunned down on his<br />

way to work in Mardan. The police said the attack was motivated by an old enmity.<br />

August 21: In Quetta, the Frontier Corps (FC) besieged the offices of the English<br />

daily Balochistan Express and its sister publication, Azadi, and claimed they wanted to<br />

Freedom of expression 149


“interrogate the newspapers’ staff <strong>for</strong> security reasons”.<br />

August 24: Unidentified gunmen shot at and killed Afghan journalist Janullah<br />

Hashimzada in Jamrud area of Khyber Agency as he was travelling to Peshawar from<br />

Afghanistan.<br />

August 30: In<br />

Landikotal, the<br />

personnel of the<br />

Khassadar <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

beat up a local<br />

journalist Qazi<br />

Fazullah who was<br />

on his way to<br />

Peshawar after he<br />

was made to<br />

disembark at the<br />

Prang Sam checkpost.<br />

The men beat<br />

him till he fell<br />

u n c o n s c i o u s .<br />

Journalists protest the murder of Hameed Asghar, of an English<br />

daily newspaper by unidentified people<br />

Fazullah was<br />

subsequently taken<br />

to a hospital.<br />

September 4: The Frontier Constabulary (FC) beat up and injured a local journalist<br />

in Turbat as he was staging a sit-in outside the Makran Scouts Headquarters, demanding<br />

the release of a recently arrested Baloch writer, Ali Jan Quomi, and his son Mujahid<br />

Quomi.<br />

September 11: In Murree, two flour traders thrashed a Waqt News team, harassed<br />

its senior producer Naseer Abbasi and damaged his camera as it was taking shots of<br />

the huge quantity of flour stored in their go down.<br />

September 10: Raza Ali, a senior journalist in Islamabad, was tortured in his<br />

house with his arms and legs tied, be<strong>for</strong>e he was killed by some unidentified people.<br />

October 2: The South Waziristan Agency political administration barred a senior<br />

journalist, Irfan Burki, from carrying out his duties following his expose of corruption<br />

in government departments. He said he was denied access to the political compound in<br />

Tank and not allowed to cover any jirga.<br />

October 11: In Lahore, a group of PML-N workers manhandled journalists at the<br />

Aiwan-e-Iqbal during a conference and stopped them from covering the event.<br />

October 23: In Rawalpindi, a spokesman <strong>for</strong> a banned outfit said, while talking to<br />

150 State of Human Rights in 2009


Photographers and journalists protesting against lawyers<br />

an England-based broadcasting corporation, that the media could be called independent<br />

only when it projected the Taliban viewpoint along with the government version.<br />

November 6: In Faisalabad, about a dozen employees of the district jail severely<br />

beat up three media persons and held eight others hostage when they were covering a<br />

protest lodged by prisoners against the alleged high-handedness of jail officials.<br />

November 27: An attack was made on journalist Kamran Shafi’s house in Wah on<br />

the eve of Eid. Shafi, himself a retired major of the army, has been a vocal critic of<br />

defence services’ role in affairs of the state and had suggested in a recent column that<br />

the country’s premier intelligence agency, the ISI, should be headed by a civilian. The<br />

columnist said he received abusive e-mails on this point of view soon after he had<br />

expressed it. Then on Nov 27, a gunman fired six times at his house late at night. In his<br />

complaint to the police, Shafi said the attackers were linked to an unidentified ‘agency.’<br />

December 28: Geo New reporter Faheem Siddiqui was wounded and his eight<br />

year old son killed in the attack on the main Ashura procession in Karachi.<br />

Conditions <strong>for</strong> working journalists<br />

According to the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, Pakistan rivalled Iraq in<br />

terms of the number of journalists killed in 2009. Journalists in the northwest regions<br />

bordering Afghanistan and in Balochistan went through the most challenging situation<br />

as militant insurgencies were the strongest and security agencies the most sensitive in<br />

those regions. According to Intermedia, owing to violence against mediapersons, the<br />

number of working journalists in Bajaur fell from more than 20 to less than 10 over the<br />

past one year.<br />

Media persons working in NWFP and the adjacent tribal areas faced extremely<br />

Freedom of expression 151


harsh circumstances due to rising extremism and militancy in 2009. In June, Prime<br />

Minister laid the <strong>found</strong>ation of a trust with an amount of two million rupees <strong>for</strong> the<br />

heirs of the journalist victims of terrorism.<br />

Curbs on artistic expression<br />

On 30 th June 2009, the SSP Lahore police was ordered by a court to track down<br />

the people who wrote, compiled and released the ‘vulgar’ songs sung by the sisters<br />

Naseebo Lal and Nooran Lal. According to the Censor Board secretary, the board<br />

lacked the powers to clamp down on the preparation and sale of these songs as the<br />

matter fell under the purview of the Motion Pictures Ordinance.<br />

Missions from abroad<br />

A Malaysian media delegation led by Dato Abdul Mutalib, Chairman Media Prima<br />

Board, visited Islamabad in February 2009. The delegation and the hosts exchanged<br />

views on various media issues and called <strong>for</strong> growth of media outlets in both countries<br />

so that they could develop competition <strong>for</strong> the production of quality programmes.<br />

President Asif Zardari also advised the government to send a delegation to Malaysia to<br />

learn first-hand from the Malaysian experience and practices.<br />

A delegation of six Nepalese journalists, headed by President Nepal Journalist<br />

Association Manju Ratna Satya, visited the National Press Club, Islamabad in June.<br />

The delegation exchanged views with the Pakistani journalists about the challenges<br />

encountered by both countries.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Public figures can expect respect only if they respect others and not through<br />

harsh regimes such as the Prevention of Electronic Crime Ordinance 2009 issued to<br />

restrain SMS and e-mails criticising public figures and jesting against them. The<br />

Ordinance must be brought into parliament <strong>for</strong> a through debate and revised to take<br />

out clauses that restrain freedom of expression.<br />

2. Government must provide adequate security to media-persons working in<br />

violence-hit areas of Balochistan, FATA, PATA and NWFP.<br />

3. The media organisations need to conduct training programmes <strong>for</strong> journalists<br />

on how to work in conflict zones and hazardous places.<br />

4. Journalists need to be provided access to tribal areas so that they can report<br />

independently on militancy, operations against extremists, and the plight of the<br />

population.<br />

152 State of Human Rights in 2009


Freedom of assembly<br />

Every citizen shall have the right to assemble peacefully and without arms, subject<br />

to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of public order.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 16<br />

Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 20(1)Freedom of Assembly<br />

In 2009, the biggest threat to the citizens’ right to freedom of assembly did not<br />

come from the state, as had been a usual feature in the country, it came from the nonstate<br />

extremist elements who attacked congregations with suicide bombers and remotecontrolled<br />

bombs. Yet the Pakistani state did commit serious violations of the citizens’<br />

right to assembly in Balochistan province where it used brute <strong>for</strong>ce to stop the Baloch<br />

people from organizing peaceful protest rallies. Not only the protesters were arrested<br />

<strong>for</strong> brief durations, many activists reportedly went missing afterwards, raising the<br />

fears of their en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance.<br />

In case of certain high-profile protest rallies that the government perceived as<br />

political threats, it resorted to abuse of section 144 and imposed restrictions on the<br />

right to assembly. The section was invoked in Peshawar, Islamabad and across Punjab<br />

to restrict the lawyers’ long march <strong>for</strong> the restoration of the judiciary. The government<br />

abused the legal process by preventing people from exercising their democratic rights<br />

as there was no justification <strong>for</strong> imposition of section 144 and <strong>for</strong> the spate of arrests<br />

and harassment of lawyers, political workers and civil society activists.<br />

The lawyers’ Long March took the centre stage in March 2009 as the crackdown<br />

and violence against participants of the long march were intensified, especially in the<br />

Freedom of assembly 153


city of Lahore. Ultimately, the lawyers celebrated their decisive victory with the<br />

restoration of the Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhry.<br />

However there were occasions when the right to freedom of assembly could not<br />

be suppressed. For instance, the public flogging of a 17- year old girl in Swat by the<br />

Taliban in March 2009 drew severe condemnation from political circles, human rights<br />

organizations and members of the civil society. The horrific incident of a mob attack<br />

on the Christian community in Gojra, <strong>for</strong> alleged charges of blasphemy against a member<br />

of that community, enraged activists and they demanded repeal of the blasphemy law,<br />

which was prone to constant misuse. As severe electricity outages paralysed the lives<br />

of citizens in most parts of the country and the increase in fuel prices, shortages of<br />

wheat flour (atta) and sugar, added to the misery of the public, the people’s anger and<br />

frustration was demonstrated in rallies and protests all over the country which sometimes<br />

turned violent. The coverage by news channels also seem to have encouraged people<br />

to hold more and more demonstrations to peacefully register their protest on issues of<br />

concern to them, thus adding a new aspect to the country’s civil life.<br />

Lawyers movement and Long March<br />

In January 2009, lawyers in Lahore boycotted the courts, observed hunger strikes<br />

and held demonstrations <strong>for</strong> the restoration of the Chief Justice of Pakistan who had<br />

been sacked on November 3, 2007. A protest camp was set up at the Lahore High<br />

Court Bar compound by the ‘Save Judiciary Committee’ which also demanded the<br />

release of the nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadir Khan.<br />

Representatives of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) were denied access<br />

Heavy <strong>for</strong>ce was used to disperse the lawyers<br />

154 State of Human Rights in 2009


to the premises of the Supreme Court in Lahore by the court authorities during January<br />

2009, <strong>for</strong>cing them to hold a press conference by the roadside. SCBA President Ali<br />

Ahmad Kurd held a press conference on the road after being in<strong>for</strong>med that the journalists<br />

too were not allowed to enter the courts.<br />

At the same time, Mr. Nawaz Sharif announced PML-N’s decision to fully<br />

participate in the lawyers’ Long March if the deposed judges were not reinstated by<br />

March. Several other parties also made similar announcements. The government<br />

apparently panicked and a major crackdown on lawyers and activists was undertaken<br />

and hundreds were detained in a nationwide operation. Some of the lawyers’ leadership<br />

went underground to avoid arrest. Caravans of lawyers and political workers from all<br />

over the country set off <strong>for</strong> Islamabad despite strong-arm tactics used by authorities to<br />

disrupt their journey. The army and rangers were called out to quell and control the<br />

march. Eventually the lawyers’ argument prevailed and it was through an executive<br />

order that the judges were restored. However, their argument in favour of keeping the<br />

political parties out of the process had to be abandoned and the political parties were<br />

courted. The long march was not called off by the bar leaders but by the PML-N chief.<br />

In January 2009, the lawyers’ community also took out rallies against the Israeli<br />

strikes in Palestine killing thousands of innocent children, women and other civilians.<br />

The Jamaat-i-Islami women’s wing also staged a protest rally to condemn Israeli invasion<br />

of Gaza.<br />

Protests against Talibanisation<br />

The spate of bombings and killings in NWFP made it an undeclared war zone. The<br />

daily violence made it hazardous <strong>for</strong> citizens to congregate. In effect, the militant<br />

Taliban and other extremist elements, effectively curtailed the right to assembly of<br />

political activists and ordinary citizens in many parts of the country. Suicide attacks<br />

and bombings on<br />

congregations severely<br />

affected the people’s<br />

normal activities and<br />

assemblies. It became risky<br />

and hazardous to attend<br />

even the religious meetings<br />

and Friday prayers and the<br />

state was required to<br />

provide enhanced security.<br />

Still, several meetings were<br />

targeted like the dastardly<br />

attacks on the Ashura<br />

Civil society members condemn ‘Talibanisation’<br />

procession in Karachi in<br />

Freedom of assembly 155


The Khaskheli success story<br />

In early 2009, the residents of Essa Khaskheli Goth were expelled<br />

from their homesteads. They had been resident on that land <strong>for</strong><br />

approximately 60 years. The expulsion was undertaken by the landlord<br />

of the area, Mr. Waryam Faqeer, in order to grab the land in question.<br />

The villagers, however, made history: they refused to bow down to<br />

pressure, and refused to be expelled unfairly from their decades-old<br />

houses. Instead, they chose to protest in a peaceful manner. They<br />

held demonstrations and organised hunger strikes outside the Karachi<br />

Press Club. One of their senior leaders, Walidad Khaskheli, died at<br />

this hunger-strike camp. Walidad Khaskheli’s death stirred people, and<br />

the government was <strong>for</strong>ced to pay attention to the plight of the poor<br />

villagers.<br />

The Khaskheli struggle, along with the concerted ef<strong>for</strong>ts of civil<br />

society organizations such as Shirkatgah, PILER, HRCP and others<br />

(who joined the Khaskheli struggle from April 2009), <strong>for</strong>ced the Sindh<br />

government to intervene and give the land back to the Khaskhelis.<br />

The villagers received lease documents in the month of October 2009<br />

<strong>for</strong> the lands that they had tilled <strong>for</strong> generations. This success did not<br />

come easily, it was the result of a long-drawn-out battle of wits with the<br />

local landlord and the administration.<br />

The struggle initiated by the Khaskheli villagers was a victory not<br />

only <strong>for</strong> the Khaskhelis but <strong>for</strong> all oppressed communities of Sindh.<br />

The struggle of these haris (peasants) will be a source of inspiration<br />

<strong>for</strong> other such communities.<br />

December and at a volley ball match in Lakki Marwat district, on the first day of<br />

January 2010, which claimed a high death toll and spread terror.<br />

The Ashura killings were followed by mob violence leading to the torching of over<br />

2,000 shops in the wholesale market of Karachi, and several buses and police mobiles.<br />

The police and the Rangers were unable to contain the violence that resulted in great<br />

financial loss. The Ashura day violence led to protest rallies across the country and two<br />

days of total shutdown in Karachi.<br />

In January, civil society, students, lawyers and common people in Islamabad<br />

organized a protest against the closure of girls’ schools in Swat. They urged the<br />

authorities to take urgent action in Swat where over 100 girls’ schools had been torched<br />

and in FATA where another 150 schools had met the same fate. They demanded that<br />

156 State of Human Rights in 2009


the burning down of schools and educational institutions be treated as a heinous criminal<br />

offence and dealt with through a fast track mechanism.<br />

In April, the gory incident of flogging a 17-year old girl in Kala Killay area, in the<br />

Kabal Tehsil of Swat, <strong>for</strong> stepping out of the house with a man who was not her<br />

relative led to protests and rallies by NGOs, civil society and political workers in all<br />

major cities across Pakistan.<br />

On April 28, in Lahore, a large number of citizens gathered on the Mall to protest<br />

against Talibanisation. The protest was aimed at sending a clear message to all state<br />

institutions ‘Say No to Talibanisation’. The citizens declared their resolve to take a<br />

stand against the Taliban and demanded that the democratically elected government<br />

fulfilled its responsibility by respecting the will of the people.<br />

Violence against Christians<br />

In August, the horrible incident of a mob attack on the Christian community in the<br />

town of Gojra because of an alleged blasphemy by Talib Masih, a Christian resident of<br />

that town, sparked protests and condemnation in many cities. Seven Christians, including<br />

three women and children were burnt alive in the incident.<br />

In Lahore and Karachi, peace activists, teachers, lawyers, students, doctors and<br />

members of civil society condemned violence, extremism, and intolerance. People<br />

from all walks of life expressed solidarity with the religious minorities and sympathy<br />

with the Gojra victims and demanded immediate government action against those<br />

Several were burnt alive in the mob attack on the Christian community<br />

Freedom of assembly 157


esponsible <strong>for</strong> killing the innocent citizens.<br />

In Karachi, Sukkur, Gujranwala, Chakwal, and Daska, the Christian community<br />

held protest demonstrations against the Gojra violence. In Lahore, Christians and civil<br />

society members staged a protest to demonstrate their solidarity with the Gojra victims<br />

and freed pigeons, as a symbol of peace. The participants severely criticized the<br />

blasphemy law and demanded an end to all biases against the minorities.<br />

Section 144 was imposed in Gojra to normalize the situation and bring it under<br />

control.<br />

Balochistan in crisis<br />

Violence ruled in Balochistan and the killing of three Baloch leaders, Ghulam<br />

Muhammad Baloch, Lala Munir Baloch and Sher Mohammad Baloch sparked a massive<br />

wave of protests. Several protest demonstrations organized by Baloch nationalists in<br />

Quetta were <strong>for</strong>cibly dispersed by the police.<br />

A partial shutter-down and wheel-jam strike was observed in Quetta and other<br />

towns of Balochistan in January against the arrest, by the United Kingdom government,<br />

of two Baloch political activists.<br />

The same month scores of Baloch students, intellectuals and progressive activists<br />

held a demonstration in Islamabad against the alleged torture and detention of a school<br />

teacher, Zarina Marri. Ms. Marri was allegedly kidnapped from Kohlu in 2005 along<br />

with her one-year-son and had been missing. However, rights activists could not obtain<br />

verification of this complaint of disappearance.<br />

The murder of three Baloch nationalist leaders, Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, Lala<br />

Munir Ahmad Baloch<br />

and Sher Mohammad<br />

Baloch, sparked a<br />

massive wave of<br />

protests all over<br />

Balochistan in April.<br />

Mobs attacked<br />

government buildings<br />

and burnt banks, utility<br />

stores and offices.<br />

Strikes paralysed<br />

commercial activities<br />

in the provincial capital<br />

and educational<br />

Quetta: Edhi workers transferring body of a DSP from Punjab,<br />

a victim of target killing<br />

institutions too<br />

remained closed. At<br />

least sixteen people<br />

158 State of Human Rights in 2009


were killed and many others injured in different incidents of shooting.<br />

In September, women activists of Baloch Students Organization (BSO) led a protest<br />

rally against the Frontier Constabulary (FC) <strong>for</strong> arrests of activists and <strong>for</strong> entering the<br />

homes of political workers during a search operation. They protested that the FC had<br />

violated the sanctity of the Chadar and Char Dewari. The FC personnel baton charged<br />

and fired tear gas shells; five women sustained injuries. A reporter of a private TV<br />

channel was tortured <strong>for</strong> his coverage of the incident.<br />

Early in the same month, in Tump, district Turbat, the FC personnel entered the<br />

high school grounds where the Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) had organized a convention<br />

on the eve of rasm-e-soem of Mir Jan Miral, who had been killed when FC personnel<br />

opened fire on protesters. They baton-charged the crowd and opened fire, in which<br />

one person was killed and ten others, including five women, were injured.<br />

In October, the FC broke up a hunger-strike camp organized by BSO to protest<br />

against non-recovery of missing persons, and arrested 26 activists.<br />

On the International Day Against Violence, a strike call by the Baloch National<br />

Front (BNF) paralysed life across Balochistan. The demonstrators demanded that the<br />

UN and other international organizations played their role in stopping human rights<br />

violations in Balochistan.<br />

Religious parties<br />

The Sunni Tehrik<br />

(ST) activists took out<br />

a procession in<br />

Hyderabad in protest<br />

against the targeted<br />

killing of ulema of the<br />

Sunni school of<br />

thought in February.<br />

The protesters<br />

condemned the killing<br />

of Musa Khankhel, a<br />

reporter, in Matta,<br />

NWFP, and Maulana<br />

Iftikhar Habibi in<br />

Quetta. Activists of the<br />

Shia Ulema Council (SUC) also staged a demonstration at Qadamgah Moula Ali to<br />

condemn the killing of more than 30 people in Dera Ismail Khan in February.<br />

Political parties<br />

There were occasions when the freedom of assembly<br />

was not suppressed<br />

The verdict of Supreme Court regarding the disqualification of the Sharif Brothers<br />

Freedom of assembly 159


early in the year evoked a strong reaction from the PML-N workers. Although political<br />

leaders and public gave mixed reactions to the court’s decision, people from all walks<br />

of life came out on the roads to stage rallies and demonstrations all over the country.<br />

In March, the Islamabad District Magistrate issued arrest warrants against 19<br />

persons belonging to different political parties who were accused of holding rallies,<br />

making political speeches and chanting slogans against the government. These people<br />

were ordered to be detained <strong>for</strong> at least one month.<br />

According to<br />

Pakhtoonkhwa<br />

Mill Awami Party<br />

(PKMAP), over<br />

4,000 Pathans<br />

were arrested<br />

from across<br />

Lahore during<br />

April 2009 on fake<br />

charges of theft<br />

Scene from an MQM rally in Gilgit<br />

and terrorism<br />

against which no<br />

voice was raised<br />

by any political<br />

leader. Over 300<br />

PKMAP activists joined by the Awami National Party (ANP), Tehreek-e-Insaaf workers<br />

and lawyers took out a rally to condemn the crackdown against Pakhtuns in the city.<br />

Even though Baitullah Mehsud claimed responsibility <strong>for</strong> attacks on the Police Training<br />

School at Manawan, the Pathans were wrongfully accused of planning these terrorist<br />

attacks, the protesters said.<br />

Protests against load shedding<br />

In January, protests were staged against Wapda and NADRA in Peshawar. The<br />

protestors said continuous and unannounced load-shedding had multiplied the problems<br />

of residents and excessive billing had hit the people hard. In addition, NADRA officials,<br />

despite attestation of documents by nazims, were not issuing CNICs.<br />

In May, riots erupted in Karachi when KESC failed to address load shedding and<br />

prolonged outages. Furious at having been without electricity <strong>for</strong> more than 20 hours,<br />

residents of the Federal B <strong>Ar</strong>ea and its adjoining localities took to the streets, pelted<br />

stones at passing vehicles and set two trucks on fire.<br />

Other protests<br />

In February 2009, a large number of traders, citizens and political activists in Toba<br />

160 State of Human Rights in 2009


Tek Singh took out a rally and staged a sit-in to protest lawlessness.<br />

In Rawalpindi, Jamaat-i-Islaami (JI) workers staged a protest demonstration against<br />

the Pakistan International Airlines administration <strong>for</strong> <strong>for</strong>bidding its employees to keep<br />

beards.<br />

In March 2009, the families of missing persons staged a protest rally in front of<br />

the Islamabad Press Club. Their demonstrations in front of the parliament house continued<br />

throughout the year.<br />

The Home-based<br />

women workers staged<br />

a protest in May 2009,<br />

against violence and all<br />

kinds of discriminatory<br />

customs and laws<br />

against women. Many<br />

of these women worked<br />

in the sectors of<br />

stitching, embroidery,<br />

shoe making, leather<br />

work, dry fruit peeling,<br />

jewelry making,<br />

decorative and bangle<br />

making. Their<br />

representatives said the<br />

government must<br />

The year saw recurring and angry protests against the<br />

rising prices of basic amenities and the ‘load-shedding’<br />

of CNG<br />

provide social security<br />

benefits to home-based workers, such as education <strong>for</strong> their children, health, security<br />

and old age benefits.<br />

Karachi shut down on the anniversary of the May 12 carnage in 2007 and normal<br />

life and business in the city came to a grinding halt. Directives banning pillion riding,<br />

aerial firing and carrying of arms were issued. Rangers were deployed in sensitive<br />

areas in Karachi and the interior of Sindh.<br />

In Bahawalpur, students, teachers, and clerks took to the streets, blocked roads<br />

and set up token hunger strike camps to press <strong>for</strong> the acceptance of their demands.<br />

The students staged a protest against teachers who were allegedly responsible <strong>for</strong> their<br />

failure in the MA English examination. Separately, teachers staged a march and called<br />

<strong>for</strong> implementation of the salary package announced by the <strong>for</strong>mer chief minister. The<br />

clerks and low grade staff of government departments organised a token strike against<br />

Freedom of assembly 161


A demonstration against the Kerry-Lugar Bill<br />

rising inflation and low<br />

salaries.<br />

On May Day,<br />

various political parties<br />

and labour organizations<br />

observed International<br />

Labor Day by holding<br />

rallies and organizing<br />

events and by<br />

reaffirming their pledge<br />

to continue their<br />

struggle <strong>for</strong> the<br />

realization of the rights<br />

of the workers’<br />

community<br />

The members of a minority community staged a demonstration in Peshawar against<br />

the seizure of their graveyard and construction of buildings on its land.<br />

In October, demonstrations and campaigns were organized against the Kerry-<br />

Lugar Bill. The Jamaat-i-Islami held demonstrations in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and<br />

other cities. The Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) too held protest rallies. The Khaksar Tehreek<br />

staged a protest demonstration at Lahore Press Club.<br />

In November, farmers held country-wide protests to condemn anti-farmer policies<br />

such as load shedding and electricity price hikes and the inability of government to<br />

ensure procurement of agricultural produce at the support price.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. The government needs to take strict security measures to check the Taliban<br />

attacks on peaceful religious and political congregations. The perpetrators of the crime<br />

and masterminds behind the attacks on innocent citizens must be brought to justice.<br />

2. The government must encourage cultural activities in Swat valley to heal the<br />

wounds of the traumatized people that suffered due to terrorism and subsequent military<br />

operations against them. The civil society also needs to come <strong>for</strong>ward and organize<br />

public meetings and functions to restore people’s confidence and to foil the extremists’<br />

designs to paralyse the normal life in the country.<br />

3. In Balochistan, the state must respect the people’s right to hold peaceful<br />

public meetings and protest rallies. The intelligence agencies and paramilitary <strong>for</strong>ces,<br />

like the Frontier Corps, should not be allowed to transgress their legal limits and<br />

harass political activists.<br />

162 State of Human Rights in 2009


Freedom of association<br />

Every citizen shall have the right to <strong>for</strong>m associations or unions subject to any<br />

reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of sovereignty or integrity of<br />

Pakistan, public order or morality.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful ... association.<br />

No one may be compelled to belong to an association.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 17<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 20(1,2)<br />

Civil society organisations continued to face threat from the Taliban militant groups,<br />

most notably in NWFP, and Baloch separatist organisations in Balochistan. Soon after<br />

the NWFP government struck a deal with the Taliban in Swat valley, the latter announced<br />

that all non-governmental organisations working in Swat valley would have to cease<br />

operations until the implementation of Sharia law. Their spokesman warned all NGOs<br />

to leave Swat because in his view they were creating problems <strong>for</strong> peace. However,<br />

military operations led to some improvement in the situation in Swat valley where by<br />

the end of 2009 civil society organisations had begun to operate again though cautiously<br />

and under strict security measures.<br />

In many parts of Pakistan, freedom of association remained under threat not only<br />

from the state but also from non-state actors, religious militants, political parties and<br />

radical nationalists. In Karachi, more than 290 people, mostly belonging to political<br />

parties, were killed during the year under review and most probably on account of their<br />

political associations. When Mohajir Qaumi Movement (Haqiqi) tried to resume its<br />

Freedom of association 163


activities in Sindh’s cities, its workers were targetted and gunned down allegedly by<br />

the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), triggering tit-<strong>for</strong>-tat killings in the cities between<br />

the two rival parties. The resolve of political parties in Karachi not to allow other<br />

groups to carry out political activities and to mark certain areas as their exclusive<br />

territories is<br />

clearly a denial of<br />

the basic human<br />

right to freedom<br />

of association.<br />

Likewise, certain<br />

areas in Karachi<br />

are considered<br />

the stronghold of<br />

Pakistan People’s<br />

Party and are not<br />

open <strong>for</strong> other<br />

Karachi: Civil society members protest Talibanisation<br />

parties to<br />

normally work<br />

there. Similarly,<br />

in Balochistan, in Baloch-dominated areas groups other than certain Baloch nationalists<br />

are not welcome. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan was not able to hold its<br />

advocacy workshops in some parts of Balochistan because of opposition from radical<br />

elements who said they would not allow any activity other than an espousal of the<br />

rights of the Baloch people.<br />

Violence against schools and NGOs<br />

Schools in Swat were closed down from the 15 th of February as a result of<br />

increasing terrorist threats from militant organizations. Over a million children in the<br />

tribal regions were facing the risk of having their education interrupted as conflict with<br />

the Taliban had damaged the schools or they had been turned into civilian shelters <strong>for</strong><br />

displaced people. As these families started returning to the north-western districts of<br />

Swat and Buner, getting children back to classes posed a huge challenge to the state.<br />

An emerging threat to the rights of children was their increasing use <strong>for</strong> militancy<br />

as noted in the previous year as well. Officials in the Swat district expressed concern<br />

that boys were being kidnapped from homes and schools by militants to be trained <strong>for</strong><br />

suicide attacks.<br />

NGOs throughout Pakistan faced severe threats during 2009 in the wake of<br />

increasing terrorism and violence. Employees and organizations associated with NGOs<br />

in the country suffered huge losses which were often irreparable. NGO employees<br />

164 State of Human Rights in 2009


faced risks to their property as well as their lives.<br />

According to the Federal Minister <strong>for</strong> Social Welfare and Special Education, there<br />

were around 100,000 NGOs working in Pakistan. However, only 45,000 NGOs were<br />

registered under different laws in the Ministry’s national database in 2009.<br />

On October 5, five UN officials and a <strong>for</strong>eigner were killed and eight others injured<br />

when a suicide bomber dressed as a paramilitary soldier blew himself up after slipping<br />

through high security checkpoints at the main office of the World Food Programme,<br />

Islamabad. The United Nations temporarily closed all its offices in the country after the<br />

first terrorist attack on an office of the world body in the federal capital in several<br />

years. According to government officials, the attack took place a day after the new<br />

leader of the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Hakimullah, had threatened fresh<br />

assaults amid reports that a military operation was going to be launched in Waziristan.<br />

In November, the director of an NGO ‘Young Generation’ named Ibrahim Shah,<br />

was gunned down in an act of target killing in the Landhi 89 area of Karachi. Two<br />

unidentified gunmen came to his office and opened fire at him during the early hours of<br />

the day, creating panic and fear in the entire NGO community of the city.<br />

In November, Nisar Baloch, an activist and leader of Gutter Baghicha Bachao<br />

Tehreek and a member of the NGO Shehri, who had started a movement against land<br />

grabbing was murdered in Karachi. According to media reports, the land mafia believed<br />

to be responsible <strong>for</strong> the target killing enjoyed the support of a powerful ethnic party.<br />

Taliban and terrorists posed a massive threat to the operations of NGOs in the<br />

Swat region during the first quarter of 2009. According to a Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan<br />

(TTP) spokesman,<br />

the NGOs dictated<br />

how mosques,<br />

houses and lavatories<br />

were to be built in the<br />

area, which was not<br />

approved by the<br />

Taliban. Furthermore,<br />

he was of the opinion<br />

that NGOs were<br />

another name <strong>for</strong><br />

‘vulgarity’ and<br />

‘obscenity’ as they<br />

hired women to work<br />

side by side with<br />

men. The Taliban<br />

intimidated the staff,<br />

Militants posed a threat to NGOs in Swat<br />

Freedom of association 165


especially females, of NGOs and threatened their lives.<br />

NGO offices in Battagram were closed down altogether and all related activities<br />

carried out by the District Reconstruction Unit in the area were put to an end in April<br />

2009, as a result of the extreme threats issued by militants.<br />

The armed Taliban were reported to have set their bases at village Sultanwas and<br />

Jamia Masjid Pir Baba in 2009 in order to gain control over the entire Buner district.<br />

They initiated a massive crack-down against NGOs in the Buner area during the beginning<br />

of 2009, taking away 8 vehicles belonging to the NGOs, 1600 cans of edible oil provided<br />

to NGOs by the World Food Programme, medicines provided by the International<br />

Medical Corps, a large amount of nutritional items supplied by USAID from the houses<br />

of lady health workers, computers, printers, generators and other appliances from the<br />

NGO offices during the first four months of the year. <strong>Ar</strong>med Taliban are also reported<br />

to have entered the ActionAid sponsored vocational centre in Korea village and taken<br />

away sewing machines used <strong>for</strong> providing training to local girls.<br />

In April, a bomb was exploded in the office of a local NGO in Hathian area of<br />

Mardan, killing a female passer-by. Some unknown miscreants were reported to have<br />

planted a bomb near the offices of an NGO and a cable operator – both of whom were<br />

potential targets. According to the locals of Hathian, the cable operator had been<br />

threatened several times through letters which directed them to shut down their business<br />

immediately.<br />

On January 31, Mr Fahimullah Khan, executive director of a non-governmental<br />

organisation in Dera Ismail Khan, was freed after being held <strong>for</strong> three months.<br />

In February Islamabad police foiled a bid by extremists to kidnap Mr Sarwar<br />

Khan, head of an NGO, while he was going home from the office. His son contacted<br />

the police which immediately barricaded all exit routes from the city and recovered<br />

Sarwar Khan from a car and arrested the three alleged culprits.<br />

Workers and trade unions<br />

Even though labour laws have been amended in books, the plight of workers<br />

remains unchanged. Trade unions activists have often faced grave consequences. Setting<br />

up trade unions or being involved in any kind of union activity in factories have led to<br />

punishments ranging from false chargers, arrests, kidnappings, physical torture to<br />

even death. As an example, on May 16, police in Faisalabad registered cases of robbery<br />

against more than 1,300 labourers on the request of a factory owner as a result of the<br />

employees’ involvement in setting up a trade union. Apart from that, the factory<br />

management also sacked 15 members of the union. Similarly in a leading textile mill,<br />

workers’ attempt to <strong>for</strong>m a trade union resulted in loss of jobs by the whole leadership<br />

of the union.<br />

Situation <strong>for</strong> trade unions especially in the private sector has worsened over the<br />

166 State of Human Rights in 2009


past year. Trade unions were not allowed in some industries such as those in the<br />

Export Processing Zone. According to one estimate more than 0.2 million workers<br />

were sacked during the year. Leading trade union organizations campaigned throughout<br />

the year against the provisions of the Industrial Relations Act 2008 which curtailed the<br />

right to unionise and the right to collective bargaining and were in conflict with the ILO<br />

Conventions 87 and 89. They urged withdrawal of these provisions when the Act<br />

expired in 2010<br />

According to the Labour Party Pakistan (LPP) and National Trade Union Federation<br />

Pakistan (NTUFP), at least 34 trade union leaders were arrested during May 2009 all<br />

over Punjab. Also, during this period the police registered cases against 1,300 workers<br />

who were engaged in trade union activity.<br />

According to a <strong>for</strong>mer Lahore District Council member (labour), Muhammad<br />

Yaqoob, more than 50,000 women were working in 2009 in the Lahore Township<br />

Industrial area alone. They were denied their rights merely due to the lack of a women’s<br />

trade union. They did not get wages equal to men’s and were denied social security and<br />

other benefits under the labour laws.<br />

Government banned associations<br />

According to official sources the Punjab government put five top Jamaatud Dawa<br />

(JD) leaders under house<br />

arrest and sealed 61 of their<br />

offices, 19 dispensaries and<br />

10 schools run by the<br />

organization.<br />

In January, the<br />

government also arrested<br />

124 activists of the banned<br />

organization, Jamaatud<br />

Dawa, including its chief<br />

Hafiz Muhammad Saeed<br />

(later on freed on High Court<br />

orders.<br />

However, the<br />

government was unable to<br />

prevent the members of the<br />

organisations outlawed<br />

from working. There were<br />

persistent reports that some<br />

of the proscribed<br />

Activists of Jamaat-ud-Dawa including Hafiz Saeed<br />

were detained following the Mumbai attacks<br />

Freedom of association 167


oranisations were working under new titles while quite a few of their leaders continued<br />

working without such changes.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Militancy in the NWFP, FATA and Malakand Division poses major threats to<br />

the freedom of association in these parts of the country. Military operations in these<br />

areas started in the summer of 2009 created some space <strong>for</strong> political parties and civil<br />

society organisations but much more needs to be done to guarantee the people their<br />

basic rights and freedoms.<br />

2. In Karachi and Balochistan, political parties entrenched in certain areas must<br />

allow other political parties to operate there freely and must not consider these areas as<br />

their fiefdoms. The state must also play its role in providing adequate security to all the<br />

political parties to freely operate in all parts of the country.<br />

3. State must also provide foolproof security to civil society organisations to<br />

enable them to work any where in the country, especially in Malakand, NWFP and the<br />

tribal areas.<br />

4. Civil society organisations should build networks, hold consultations on security<br />

issues in conflict-ridden areas and should consider working in clusters under joint<br />

security arrangements.<br />

5. Pakistan must fully respect the ILO conventions especially those related to the<br />

rights to uninoise and collective bargaining, minimum age <strong>for</strong> workers, and social<br />

security.<br />

6. The state needs to seriously address the problems caused by its assaults on civil<br />

society organisation working <strong>for</strong> lawful causes and its reluctance to firmly deal with<br />

organisations indulging in violence and other <strong>for</strong>ms of denial of the citizens’ rights.<br />

168 State of Human Rights in 2009


Democratic development<br />

III<br />

Political participation 169


170 State of Human Rights in 2009


Political participation<br />

... the state shall exercise its powers and authority through the chosen<br />

representatives of the people ...<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

Preamble<br />

... the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice,<br />

as enunciated by Islam, shall be fully observed ...<br />

Preamble<br />

... fundamental rights [shall be guaranteed] subject to law and public morality ...<br />

Preamble<br />

The state shall encourage local government institutions composed of elected<br />

representatives of the areas concerned and within such institutions special<br />

representation will be given to peasants, workers and women.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 32<br />

... it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort,<br />

to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected<br />

by the rule of law ...<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

Preamble<br />

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed<br />

with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of<br />

brotherhood.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 1<br />

During the year 2009 Pakistan’s new democratic experiment remained under severe<br />

strain. The reasons were many and included endless wrangling between political parties,<br />

unwillingness on the part of the ruling party to repeal controversial constitutional<br />

Political participation 171


amendments introduced by the Pervez Musharraf regime, an imminent clash between<br />

institutions, the unresolved Balochistan crisis, Parliament’s inability to assert its authority<br />

in the face of <strong>for</strong>midable economic and security challenges, a perceived threat from<br />

the military<br />

establishment, bad<br />

governance and<br />

growing popular<br />

dis<strong>content</strong> fuelled<br />

by rising prices<br />

and utility charges.<br />

Moreover, the<br />

unprecedented rise<br />

in terrorism across<br />

the country that<br />

The parliament per<strong>for</strong>med dismally in 2009<br />

claimed nearly<br />

3,000 lives in the<br />

year under review<br />

also put a severe<br />

strain on the<br />

democratic system. As the year ended, a pall of uncertainty loomed over the future of<br />

the democratic set-up. The differences between the main political parties over the<br />

future local body set-up could also have a destabilising effect at the national level.<br />

Parliamentary per<strong>for</strong>mance<br />

The parliament per<strong>for</strong>med dismally during the year. Important issues of the day,<br />

especially those concerning the welfare of the people, were not taken up. All it did was<br />

to meet periodically, sometimes without the quorum, to hear the Prime Minister and<br />

other ministers hold <strong>for</strong>th on government’s policies without putting them under the<br />

magnifying glass of legislative scrutiny. During the year the National Assembly discussed<br />

and approved 15 bills, including the finance bill which was passed on June 20.<br />

On April 10, the National Assembly approved the <strong>for</strong>mation of a body to discuss<br />

the implementation of the Charter of Democracy. After its unanimous approval by the<br />

Upper House, NA Speaker Fehmida Mirza on June 23 announced a 27-member special<br />

parliamentary committee to review the 17th Amendment and propose re<strong>for</strong>ms in the<br />

Constitution. Another Special Parliamentary Committee on National Security also met<br />

several times in 2009 to give parliamentary input to the ministries of Foreign Affairs,<br />

Interior and Defence regarding the security of the country in the context of regional<br />

geo-political situation, with particular reference to the war on terror.<br />

Three joint sessions of parliament were held during the year. The first joint sitting<br />

172 State of Human Rights in 2009


was held on March 28, which was addressed by President Asif Ali Zardari. He asked<br />

the PPP government to make arrangements to repeal amendments introduced in the<br />

constitution by dictators. The second joint session of parliament was held on October<br />

26, which was addressed by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The<br />

Aghaz-e- Haqooq-e-Balochistan package was presented in a joint session of parliament<br />

on November 24.<br />

During the year under review the National Assembly adopted 23 resolutions<br />

expressing its opinion on diverse issues. In April the National Assembly passed a<br />

resolution condemning the publication of sacrilegious sketches of the Holy Prophet<br />

(pbuh). In August two important resolutions were passed, one on the trial of Dr. Afia<br />

Siddiqui in the US and the other on the attack by US coalition <strong>for</strong>ces on Angoor Adda.<br />

An important resolution adopted by the National Assembly related to the war on<br />

terror and expressed concern over the rising wave of terrorism in the country. Among<br />

other things it advocated dialogue with tribal elders and launching of development<br />

schemes in the areas where militants were active. Through another resolution the<br />

National Assembly upheld minority rights and expressed solidarity with victims of<br />

Gojra riots. Two other resolutions expressed concern over unchecked price hike and<br />

called <strong>for</strong> starting a dialogue with the people of Balochistan.<br />

Another important event in the country’s parliamentary history took place on April<br />

13 when the NA approved the NWFP’s Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009. The Muttahida<br />

Qaumi Movement (MQM) opposed the regulation and staged a walkout from the<br />

assembly. Later, President Zardari signed it.<br />

As the security situation dominated parliamentary debates in the year, the NA<br />

approved the first military operation in Swat on May 12. On June 13, State Minister <strong>for</strong><br />

Finance Hina Rabbani Khar presented the 2009-10 Budget, which was unanimously<br />

passed on June 20. The government was compelled by the opposition parties as well as<br />

the MQM to delete the carbon tax proposal from the finance bill. On October 16, the<br />

National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was tabled in the NA and the Senate. The<br />

PML-N and the PML-Q announced that they would oppose the law. Consequently,<br />

after criticism by the opposition and PPP’s coalition partner, the MQM, the government<br />

decided not to get the NRO endorsed by parliament.<br />

Failure of coalition politics<br />

The partnership <strong>for</strong>ged between the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan<br />

Muslim League-N following the February 2008 elections as a way to sustain the newly<br />

restored democratic order had come unstuck within a few months of the agreement.<br />

The tensions that caused the break-up continued to simmer in 2009 and ultimately<br />

degenerated into a slanging match between the Governor and the Chief Minister in the<br />

Punjab. The PPP complained of being cheated out of its due share in the Punjab<br />

Political participation 173


government, and began hobnobbing with PML-Q to <strong>for</strong>m a new alliance and threatened<br />

to part ways with PML-N. On its part PML-N accused PPP of not keeping its promises<br />

to implement the Charter of Democracy (CoD) and restore the judges.<br />

Matters came to a head when on February 25 the Supreme Court banned the<br />

Sharif brothers from holding public office. The loss of the chief minister’s office by<br />

Shahbaz Sharif was immediately followed by the imposition of Governor’s rule in the<br />

Punjab under <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 234 of the constitution. The PML-N responded by launching<br />

street agitation to put pressure on the PPP government. The stormy three weeks following<br />

the imposition of the Governor’s rule ultimately culminated in the PML-N joining the<br />

much hyped Long March to Islamabad <strong>for</strong> the restoration of the judges sacked by ex-<br />

President Musharraf. While the march led by lawyers and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif<br />

was winding its way towards Islamabad <strong>for</strong> a sit-in be<strong>for</strong>e the Parliament House, high<br />

level consultations between the civilian and military leaders, with active encouragement<br />

from the US, resulted in a late night announcement by the Prime Minister that the<br />

judges were going to be restored, leading to the cancellation of the Long March.<br />

This was followed by the lifting of the Governor’s rule in the Punjab after the<br />

federal government’s petition in the Supreme Court to review the ineligibility of the<br />

Sharif brothers was accepted. On April 5 a five-member bench of the Supreme Court<br />

restored Shahbaz Sharif as the chief minister of Punjab, suspending an earlier SC<br />

decision disqualifying the Sharif brothers from holding public office and contesting<br />

elections.<br />

However relations<br />

between the two parties<br />

remained cold at best with the<br />

PML-N accusing the PPP of<br />

going back on its promise to<br />

repeal the Seventeenth<br />

amendment. Towards the end<br />

of the year the gulf between<br />

them further widened as a<br />

result of the Supreme Court’s<br />

decision on the controversial<br />

amnesty law, the National<br />

Reconciliation Ordinance<br />

(NRO), which revived the<br />

corruption and criminal<br />

Zardari and Nawaz Sharif: the alliance that was charges earlier dropped<br />

against several thousand<br />

people. The politicians that had benefited included many PPP leaders, including President<br />

Asif Ali Zardari. The PPP dubbed the PML-N leaders’ demand <strong>for</strong> resignation by its<br />

174 State of Human Rights in 2009


ministers as an attempt to destabilise the government. As the year ended, the two sides<br />

remained suspicious of each other’s intentions. President Zardari publicly said that the<br />

PML-N’s decision to leave the coalition government at the centre weakened the federal<br />

government and that some unseen <strong>for</strong>ces were out to expel him from the Presidency.<br />

Split in PML-Q<br />

After the defeat of PML-Q in the February 2008 elections, the party cobbled<br />

together by <strong>for</strong>mer President Pervez Musharraf to shore up his dictatorial rule began to<br />

unravel. Those who were unhappy with the party leadership dominated by Chaudhary<br />

Shujaat Hussain and Ch. Pervez Elahi began to openly voice their resentment and held<br />

secret meetings to <strong>for</strong>m a <strong>for</strong>ward bloc. By the beginning of 2009 the <strong>for</strong>ward bloc<br />

had taken shape with Hamid Nasir Chattha as its leader.<br />

Senate elections<br />

An important step in the evolution of the new democratic order was the successful<br />

holding of elections to the Senate. The PPP, already holding the reins of power through<br />

its coalition’s majority in the National Assembly, raised its tally of Senate seats to 27<br />

and thus became the single largest party in the Upper House. A significant aspect of<br />

PPP’s victory was that it won seats in all the four provinces, rein<strong>for</strong>cing its popular<br />

support in all federating units. In all PPP won 8 Senate seats from Sindh, 4 from<br />

Punjab, 5 from NWFP, 3 from Balochistan and 2 from the federal capital. However the<br />

government’s decision not to allow the media to cover the Senate polls cast a shadow<br />

over the whole proceedings.<br />

By-polls in Punjab<br />

Giving its verdict on a petition by the Punjab government against the holding of byelections<br />

in the province in view of the poor law and order situation, the Lahore High<br />

Court on October 7 postponed the polls in four constituencies –NA-55, NA-123, PP-<br />

82 and PP-284 - and ordered the Election Commission to announce new dates <strong>for</strong> the<br />

same in consultation with the political parties. Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, President of the<br />

Awami Muslim League filed a petition in the Lahore High Court taking the plea that the<br />

government could not interfere with the election process which was the domain of the<br />

Election Commission of Pakistan. On November 25 a division bench of the Lahore<br />

High Court rejected the petition and directed the Election Commission to reschedule<br />

the by-polls in consultation with the provincial government. The matter later came up<br />

<strong>for</strong> hearing in the Supreme Court which on December 31 set aside the LHC verdict on<br />

delaying the by-polls in the Punjab and directed the Election Commission to hold elections<br />

in NA-55 Rawalpindi. In a subsequent order the Supreme Court directed the Election<br />

Commission to hold by-polls within two months <strong>for</strong> three vacant seats in Punjab –NA-<br />

Political participation 175


123, Lahore, PP-82, Jhang and PP-284, Bahawalnagar.<br />

Gilgit-Baltistan elections 2009<br />

In August, the federal government approved a re<strong>for</strong>m package <strong>for</strong> the Northern<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>eas, aimed at giving internal autonomy to the region, but did not grant it the status of<br />

a province. The region’s name was changed to Gilgit-Baltistan. On September 7, President<br />

Asif Ali Zardari<br />

signed the Gilgit-<br />

B a l t i s t a n<br />

(Empowerment and<br />

Self-Governance)<br />

Order, 2009, aimed<br />

Gilgit: polling agents waiting <strong>for</strong> voters in a polling station.<br />

at introducing<br />

a dmi ni s t r a t i ve,<br />

political, financial<br />

and judicial re<strong>for</strong>ms<br />

in Gilgit-Baltistan.<br />

Elections <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Gilgit-Baltistan<br />

L e g i s l a t i v e<br />

Assembly (GBLA)<br />

were held on November 12, 2009. The 2009 order replaced the Northern <strong>Ar</strong>eas Legal<br />

Framework Order (LFO) 1994.<br />

The federal government won credit <strong>for</strong> ensuring a relatively peaceful conclusion<br />

of the Gilgit-Baltistan elections barring a few incidents of violence which resulted in<br />

the death of two persons and injuries to at least 40 others. An HRCP mission that<br />

observed the elections reported an enthusiastic turnout of voters. However, the mission<br />

regretted that the entire electoral process was marred by flaws caused by haste in<br />

holding the polls and inadequate preparations. Besides, the observer mission received<br />

numerous complaints that the federal government representatives – including the prime<br />

minister, members of his cabinet and the acting governor of Gilgit-Baltistan – tried to<br />

woo voters with financial incentives at government cost.<br />

The Balochistan question<br />

Balochistan continued to pose a serious challenge and the federal government<br />

remained largely clueless about how to bring the disgruntled nationalist leaders into the<br />

national mainstream.<br />

As the year wore on, the Baloch nationalists also began attacking civilian and<br />

176 State of Human Rights in 2009


military targets, including trains, railway tracks, buses, trucks and other vehicles carrying<br />

supplies to remote areas as well as camps of security <strong>for</strong>ces. Security personnel were<br />

also targeted. Target killing of persons of Punjabi origin continued unabated. In March<br />

UNHCR official John Solecki was abducted by Baloch nationalists who threatened to<br />

kill him within 48 hours if the government did not free more than 1,100 Baloch prisoners<br />

allegedly held by security <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

While the Baloch nationalists continued their armed struggle under the banners of<br />

Balochistan Liberation Front, Balochistan Liberation <strong>Ar</strong>my and similar militant outfits,<br />

the Khan of Kalat announced in August the <strong>for</strong>mation of a council <strong>for</strong> independent<br />

Balochistan in London and sought the help of the international community <strong>for</strong> their<br />

cause.<br />

Soon after coming to power President Zardari had apologised to the people of<br />

Balochistan <strong>for</strong> the excesses committed against them in the past and promised to<br />

restore their just political and economic rights. But as months rolled by, the government<br />

did little to deliver on its promise. There was no change in the situation on the ground.<br />

The army did not loosen its control over the province and the low intensity insurgency<br />

which had started in 2002 and taken a violent turn after the brutal killing of Nawab<br />

Akbar Bugti in<br />

2006 continued<br />

to rage as<br />

be<strong>for</strong>e. The<br />

N a w a b ’ s<br />

g r a n d s o n<br />

B r a h m d a g h<br />

Bugti launched<br />

an armed<br />

struggle under<br />

the banner of<br />

the Balochistan<br />

R e p u b l i c a n<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>my against<br />

what was<br />

Use of <strong>for</strong>ce to crush protests in Balochistan continued<br />

described as Islamabad’s ruthless suppression of the Baloch people. The harsh and<br />

arrogant attitude of the Frontier Corps personnel towards the Baloch people also increased<br />

public resentment against the security <strong>for</strong>ces who were seen as symbols of state<br />

repression.<br />

The parliamentary committee tasked with putting together a re<strong>for</strong>m package took<br />

an inordinately long time to finalise its recommendations, and the package finally<br />

presented was immediately rejected by the nationalist <strong>for</strong>ces as being “too late and too<br />

Political participation 177


little”. The 39-point Aghaz-e-Haqooq- Balochistan Package contains a number of<br />

concessions like facilitating the return of political exiles, release of political prisoners,<br />

inquiry into the murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti and an end to construction of cantonments.<br />

But it made no mention of the basic demand <strong>for</strong> ending military operations in Balochistan<br />

and giving the people of the province control over their resources. All it proposed was<br />

withdrawal of armed <strong>for</strong>ces only from Sui and Kohlu and allocation of 10 percent of<br />

the profits <strong>for</strong> the development of areas where natural resources were being exploited.<br />

The basic issue in Balochistan is one of restitution of the fundamental political and<br />

economic rights of the people of the province that have been usurped by successive<br />

governments in Islamabad and giving them maximum autonomy. Another major issue<br />

pertaining to Balochistan is the alleged presence of Taliban leaders in Quetta and other<br />

parts of the province. Towards the closing months of the year reports began to circulate<br />

in the international media that the US was threatening to extend drone attacks to<br />

Balochistan to target the Taliban leaders who were suspected of hiding in Quetta and<br />

other areas of the province.<br />

Constitutional amendments<br />

From the start of the coalition partnership that came into being in the wake of the<br />

Feb 2008 elections, PPP continued to make the right noises about evolving a constitutional<br />

package in accordance with the Charter of Democracy and repeal the controversial<br />

amendments enacted by the past dictatorial regimes; however, it took little practical<br />

action to redeem its pledge. Annoyed with endless foot-dragging by the PPP, the PML-<br />

N had ultimately decided to terminate the partnership and decided to sit in the opposition<br />

at the centre. In his several meetings with PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif President<br />

Zardari kept reiterating his pledge to repeal the 17 th Amendment and <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 58(2)(b) of<br />

the basic law and lift the bar on third-time premiership but the promised constitutional<br />

package did not materialise till the end of the year. Political analysts fear a head-on<br />

clash between the two parties with un<strong>for</strong>eseen consequences <strong>for</strong> the system if PPP did<br />

not expedite constitutional re<strong>for</strong>ms during 2010 as well.<br />

Governance issues<br />

The stability of the new democratic dispensation remained under considerable and<br />

constant threat because of poor and incompetent governance as manifested in the<br />

government’s inability to provide relief to the people hit hard by rising prices and<br />

unprecedented shortages of basic food items and other articles of daily use. Wheat<br />

flour (atta) disappeared from the market leading to long queues be<strong>for</strong>e stores and food<br />

riots in which many people lost their lives. The government also failed to rein in the<br />

sugar mafia which in connivance with the authorities concerned and leading members<br />

178 State of Human Rights in 2009


of both the ruling<br />

and opposition<br />

parties created an<br />

artificial shortage to<br />

multiply their<br />

profits. This not<br />

only discredited the<br />

elected government<br />

in the public eye<br />

and threw up<br />

questions about its<br />

i n t e g r i t y ,<br />

competence and<br />

ability to govern.<br />

Increased militancy in Bannu and adjacent areas brought civilian<br />

life to a standstill<br />

Buckling under<br />

the pressure of the International Monetary Fund the government kept raising electricity,<br />

gas and fuel prices, putting an unbearable burden on the common man. Long and<br />

unannounced power outages, besides disrupting normal life, also badly affected industrial<br />

production. Withdrawal of subsidies on agriculture raised the cost of production adding<br />

to the woes of the farming community. The rental power projects were dogged by<br />

widespread allegations of corruption and other stories of misdeeds in the upper echelons<br />

and all this greatly damaged the credibility and reputation of the elected government.<br />

SC judgement on NRO<br />

The Supreme Court judgment on the National Reconciliation Ordinance came as a<br />

big setback <strong>for</strong> the PPP government as it undid the immunity secured by President Asif<br />

Zardari and many of the federal and provincial ministers from prosecution on criminal<br />

and corruption charges lying against them in courts. The government’s initial reaction<br />

was one of shock and dismay, with some of the PPP leaders describing the verdict as<br />

an attack on the system. The government felt cornered as there was a crescendo of<br />

demands from various quarters <strong>for</strong> NRO-tainted ministers to resign. However, on<br />

second thoughts, the government decided that its ministers would face the court cases<br />

while retaining their posts.<br />

As of now the cases are under investigation and the ministers, if not cleared by the<br />

courts, will be convicted. There are speculations that this will have a destabilising<br />

effect on the present system. Also wide open is the case of Presient Zardari’s Swiss<br />

accounts on which the Supreme Court’s verdict is clear. Since President Zardari enjoys<br />

amnesty under article 148 of the constitution, the government has made no move so<br />

far on the Swiss accounts case. The Supreme Court’s next steps, which will have<br />

Political participation 179


serious implications <strong>for</strong> the stability of the democratic system, will be watched with<br />

interest.<br />

National Finance Commission Award<br />

The National Finance Commission award adopted with the unanimous agreement<br />

of all the four provinces has rightly been described as the biggest achievement of the<br />

PPP coalition government. A <strong>content</strong>ious issue between the four federating units that<br />

defied solution <strong>for</strong> the past 19 years was amicably solved in a spirit of give and take<br />

fostered by a democratic environment. For the first time the single population-based<br />

criterion <strong>for</strong> the distribution of resources among the provinces was revised with the<br />

inclusion of other criteria like poverty, backwardness, revenue generation and collection,<br />

and inverse population ratio, all of which favoured the smaller provinces.<br />

Election in PML-Q<br />

In the midst of the deepening divisions in the party’s ranks the Central General<br />

Council of Pakistan Muslim League -Q on July 20 re-elected Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain<br />

and Mushahid Hussain Sayed as the party’s president and secretary general respectively,<br />

while members of the like-minded group boycotted the proceedings, thus fracturing<br />

the <strong>for</strong>mer ruling party into two factions. The dissidents led by Hamid Nasir Chattha,<br />

Salim Saifullah, Humayoun Akhtar Khan, Gohar Ayub Khan, Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri,<br />

S.M. Zafar and others also challenged the party polls be<strong>for</strong>e the Election Commission<br />

of Pakistan. A month later the Central General Council of the Like-Minded Group of<br />

PML-Q announced its own interim office-bearers. The meeting appointed Hamid Nasir<br />

Chattha, Salim Saifullah and Humayoun Akhtar Khan as chairman, president and<br />

secretary-general of the faction respectively.<br />

The local governments<br />

Although the Local Government system introduced by the Pervez Musharraf regime<br />

never per<strong>for</strong>med as expected by its framers and the general public, it faced a new<br />

challenge after the coming into power of the new governments which tended to look<br />

upon it as a relic of dictatorship. While in Sindh, PPP being in partnership with MQM<br />

tended to adopt a benign attitude towards the local government system, in Punjab the<br />

PML-N government did not conceal its dislike of the local government representatives<br />

who were elected during the tenure of PML-Q. Uncertainty shrouded the future of the<br />

LG system as the district governments neared the end of their term in August. Prime<br />

Minister Gilani had already announced the dissolution of local governments and also<br />

postponed LG elections till improvement in the law and order situation. Simultaneously<br />

he announced that non-political administrators would replace the elected nazims. But<br />

180 State of Human Rights in 2009


later on the decision was reversed and nazims were allowed to continue till 31 December<br />

2009. Although the present government is not favourably disposed towards the system,<br />

there is a strong lobby in the country which considers it the <strong>found</strong>ation-stone of the<br />

democratic order the country is trying to build.<br />

As the year 2009 rang out, the laws relating to local bodies fell out of the sixth<br />

schedule of the constitution, making the system a provincial subject. The provinces<br />

were busy drafting their own laws and run the local government systems according to<br />

their own specific conditions, needs and wishes. Except in Sindh, district nazims<br />

(mayors) have ceased working in the other three provinces and are to be replaced by<br />

administrators from the bureaucracy. No announcement has so far been made about<br />

the holding of the next LB elections. As the 2009 ended, a big question mark hung over<br />

the future of the LG system as the provinces were now free to go their own way and<br />

tinker with it in keeping with the partisan interests of the party in power.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Parliament needs to seriously take up the legislative business and conduct<br />

debates on national issues confronting the country. The issues such as lack of quorum<br />

and absence of federal ministers from parliamentary sessions need to be firmly tackled.<br />

2. The future of the fledgling democracy largely depends on a harmonious<br />

relationship between the major political parties. These parties need to narrow down<br />

their differences and develop an understanding to ensure the continuity of the<br />

parliamentary democratic system in the country. They should not allow their differences<br />

to develop into confrontation as happened several times in the past as it may provide<br />

an opportunity to extra-constitutional <strong>for</strong>ces to intervene and interrupt the democratic<br />

process again.<br />

3. The parliament should repeal the Seventeenth Constitutional Amendment to<br />

remove the aberrations introduced by Gen Pervez Musharraf. (HRCP has given its<br />

recommendations to the Constitutional Re<strong>for</strong>m Committee in this regard.)<br />

4. In Balochistan, the government needs to fulfil its promises made to the Baloch<br />

people through Aghaz-e-Huqooq-e-Balochistan Package. There is an urgency to create<br />

a climate of confidence and trust so that wider consultation with all stake-holders<br />

becomes possible. As a first step, demilitarisation of Balochistan is essential. All those<br />

held under illegal custody must be freed and compensated. Political prisoners should<br />

be released and perpetrators of human rights violations brought to justice. In the long<br />

run, all political <strong>for</strong>ces of the province should be brought in the mainstream. The<br />

people of Balochistan need to be assured that they will have full authority to decide<br />

Political participation 181


their affairs including the management and control of their resources.<br />

5. The government should identify shortcomings in the present local government<br />

system and invite suggestions <strong>for</strong> improvement instead of winding up the entire system<br />

and reverting to the old system or experimenting with a new model. Basic principles of<br />

decentralisation of power and democratic representation must not be lost sight of while<br />

considering any changes. Moreover, the local body elections must be conducted as<br />

early as possible and in a transparent manner and must not be overseen by the<br />

bureaucracy.<br />

182 State of Human Rights in 2009


Rights of the disadvantaged<br />

III<br />

Women 183


184 State of Human Rights in 2009


Women<br />

All citizens are equal be<strong>for</strong>e law and are entitled to equal protection of law.<br />

There shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex alone.<br />

No citizen otherwise qualified <strong>for</strong> appointment in the service of Pakistan shall be<br />

discriminated against in respect of any such appointment on the ground only of ...<br />

sex ...<br />

Steps shall be taken to ensure full participation of women in all spheres of national<br />

life.<br />

The state shall protect the marriage, the family, the mother ...<br />

The state shall ... [ensure] that ... women are not employed in vocations unsuited<br />

to their sex....<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticles 25, 27, 35, 37<br />

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights ...<br />

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set <strong>for</strong>th in this Declaration,<br />

without distinction of any kind ...<br />

All are equal be<strong>for</strong>e the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal<br />

protection of the law ...<br />

Men and women of full age ... are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during<br />

marriage and at its dissolution.<br />

Marriage should be entered into with the free and full consent of the intending<br />

spouses.<br />

Everyone has the right to equal access to public service in his country.<br />

Women 185


Mother and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance.<br />

In 2009 women in the country continued to face multiple challenges resulting<br />

from tyrannical social norms, anachronistic traditions and failure of the government to<br />

introduce basic institutional re<strong>for</strong>ms. More than 900 women fell victim to rape while<br />

more than 600 were killed in the name of honour. On the other hand, during the year<br />

under review, the Taliban destroyed at least 200 girls’ schools in Swat and other places<br />

in NWFP.<br />

During the year under review, the government failed to take any policy initiative<br />

<strong>for</strong> women’s greater economic and political participation in the society, but thanks to<br />

the ef<strong>for</strong>ts of women law-makers a couple of women-related bills were adopted in the<br />

lower house. In the new year (2010), these bills went through both houses of parliament<br />

and became laws.<br />

Legislation<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 1, 2, 7, 16, 21(2), 25(2)<br />

In 2009, four legislative moves, relating to women’s rights, were made<br />

The government failed in its bid to en<strong>for</strong>ce a new law to deal with domestic<br />

violence. The Domestic Violence Bill was passed by the National Assembly but it could<br />

not pass through the senate within the stipulated 90 days. A cleric, a member of the<br />

Islamic Ideology Council and also the Senate, declared that a law banning violence<br />

against women would push the divorce rates higher. That gave the government cold<br />

feet and it stepped back, allowing the bill to lapse.<br />

The government succeeded in pushing the Criminal Law Amendment Bill<br />

through the National Assembly. The measure aims at amending the Pakistan Penal<br />

Code and the Criminal Procedure Code so as to define the offence of sexual harassment<br />

more adequately than has been possible so far and proposes enhanced punishment <strong>for</strong><br />

offenders. At the end of the year the bill was awaiting adoption by the Senate. (The bill<br />

was passed by the Senate and it also received the President’s assent in the new year).<br />

The bill <strong>for</strong> Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009, signed by the President on 14 April,<br />

2009, to implement Qazi courts system in Malakand division, did not take into account<br />

the rights and freedoms of women at risk in case an obscurantist, and essentially antiwomen<br />

rights, version of religion was implemented there.<br />

In October, the government introduced the ‘Protection Against Harassment at<br />

the Workplace Bill 2009’ in the National Assembly aimed at eliminating violence and<br />

harassment at workplaces. This was in addition to the proposed amendments in the<br />

PPC and Cr.PC pertaining to harrassment and aimed at setting up a mechanism to<br />

address harassment cases at the workplace. The Bill proposed a code of conduct <strong>for</strong><br />

186 State of Human Rights in 2009


all employees, including management and the owners of organizations, to ensure a<br />

work environment free of harassment and intimidation. The new law sought to bind<br />

every organization to<br />

set up a three-member<br />

regulatory body (at<br />

least one of whom<br />

would be a woman)<br />

which would be<br />

authorized to conduct<br />

inquiries while looking<br />

into complaints of<br />

harassment. An office<br />

of Ombudsman<br />

would also be created<br />

in the second tier in<br />

this regard. According<br />

to estimates, sexual<br />

harassment takes<br />

place in 90 per cent of Women protest in Karachi against a girl’s flogging in Swat<br />

the factories,<br />

particularly the garment, pharmaceutical, packaging and knit-wear industries which<br />

employ large numbers of women and children. The same goes <strong>for</strong> women working in<br />

brick kilns or as domestic servants. The bill was adopted by the National Assembly and<br />

the Senate in 2010.<br />

Women and politics<br />

A Senate Committee in Islamabad expressed concern over the restrictions imposed<br />

on women’s participation in the Feb 18, 2008 elections in certain areas of the NWFP,<br />

FATA, Punjab and Sindh and criticized local leaders <strong>for</strong> having agreed to the violation<br />

of election rules and women’s rights. It also criticized the local political leaders <strong>for</strong><br />

being a party to the undemocratic move to prohibit women from exercising their right<br />

to vote. It directed the Ministry of Law and Justice to suggest measures to encourage<br />

women’s participation in elections.<br />

In 2009, the abolition of the local government system of 2001 came as a setback<br />

to women’s participation in the political process. The system, <strong>for</strong> the first time in the<br />

history of the country, had given women 33 per cent representation at the local level<br />

and provided them an opportunity to participate in decision-making. At many places,<br />

women councillors had played an active role in addressing women’s complaints and<br />

providing relief to women victims.<br />

In the 2008 elections, the civil society organisations had raised concern at significant<br />

Women 187


difference between the number of men and women registered as voters. Out of a total<br />

of 80.4 million voters, over 45 million were men, and over 35 million were women.<br />

According to non-official estimates, nearly 14 million eligible women were not registered<br />

as voters. While the local body elections are likely to be held in 2010, the Election<br />

Commission made no ef<strong>for</strong>t to remove this discrepancy.<br />

Women were very hopeful of positive developments after the induction of the<br />

democratic government, particularly with regard to the enunciation of a national<br />

employment policy <strong>for</strong> women and women’s participation in the economy. The new<br />

government had also promised legislation to enable women to have legal ownership of<br />

assets and resources and institutional initiatives to prevent crimes against women in the<br />

name of tribal traditions. However, the government failed to deliver on its promises.<br />

The religio-political groups remained vehemently opposed to bringing women into<br />

the mainstream. In February the women’s wing of Jamaat-e-Islami strongly criticized<br />

the decision by the Senate Standing Committee on Women’s Welfare to allocate 50<br />

percent job quota <strong>for</strong> women, terming it highly dangerous and destructive <strong>for</strong> the<br />

family system and values.<br />

Victims of militancy<br />

Women were the first ones to be affected by the rise of extremism in Pakistan and<br />

their rights were largely ignored at the policy level. The authorities sought to buy peace<br />

in Swat by compromising the rights and freedoms women had won over many years.<br />

The accord contained no word on what the status of women would be under the new<br />

system of Sharia.<br />

In April rights and civil society activists strongly condemned the public flogging of<br />

a girl in Swat, calling it an act of barbarism. A religious group, Tehrik Minhajul Quran,<br />

also called the flogging of the girl an act of injustice and terrorism. But most of religiopolitical<br />

groups were in a state of denial terming the video clipping of the flogging a<br />

conspiracy against Islam and an attempt to scuttle the Swat peace accord.<br />

Women welfare<br />

Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) was <strong>for</strong>mally launched in February in<br />

Balochistan with the promise that the incumbent government would empower women<br />

financially and reduce poverty in the country. The programme was aimed at emancipating<br />

women from economic constraints and enabling them to stand on their own feet as<br />

they were better qualified to provide education to their children. Under the BISP, each<br />

<strong>for</strong>m holder would receive Rs. 2,000 after every two months and the government will<br />

initiate technical and computer education training <strong>for</strong> children of women in need. The<br />

government would also provide soft loans to women in order to enable them to strengthen<br />

188 State of Human Rights in 2009


home economies. .<br />

The gender gap<br />

The Gender Gap Index (GCI) is used to measure the level of inequality that exists<br />

between women and men through gaps in different indicators. The four pillars of the<br />

index are: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, political<br />

empowerment and health and survival.<br />

A GGI study revealed that Sindh had a value of 0.58 in the economic participation<br />

and opportunity index, followed by NWFP (0.312) and Balochistan (0.2514). With an<br />

index value of 0.1718 Punjab, surprisingly, has the lowest value in economic participation<br />

and education. NWFP leads all the provinces in the educational attainment index with a<br />

value of .249, followed by Punjab with a value of 0.163 and Balochistan representing a<br />

value of 0.148. Punjab has the minimum gender gap in the health and survival index<br />

with a value of 0.236, followed by NWFP (0.2088) The overall value of GCI <strong>for</strong><br />

Pakistan is 0.551 which is ranked 126th among 128 countries, indicating women’s<br />

overall low societal status in the country.<br />

Violence against women<br />

According to the database maintained by HRCP, violence against women registered<br />

a sharp increase during 2009 despite low registration of gender-related crimes because<br />

of societal pressure and a biased and obstructive police <strong>for</strong>ce dominated by men. A<br />

total of 1,404 women were murdered. Out of these, 647 women were murdered in the<br />

name of ‘honour’ (including the cases of karo kari) while 757 were murdered <strong>for</strong> other<br />

reasons. A total of 928 rape cases were reported. Some 563 women committed suicide<br />

while 253 attempted suicide. One hundred thirty-five (135) women were victims of<br />

burning. The domestic violence<br />

Crimes against women 2009<br />

(including torture, beating,<br />

shaving, amputation, murder<br />

attempts) cases shot up from<br />

137 in 2008 to 205. However,<br />

the database maintained by Aurat<br />

Foundation reported 608 cases<br />

of domestic violence during<br />

2009. Needless to say, young<br />

girls were particularly victims of<br />

gender-based crimes as they<br />

were often treated like tradable<br />

commodity (vani) in resolution<br />

Murder cases 1,404<br />

Honour killings<br />

(included in the murder cases)<br />

647<br />

Rape 928<br />

Suicide 563<br />

Burnt 135<br />

Domestic violence 205<br />

Women 189


of tribal fends.<br />

As can be seen from the examples of the crimes against women quoted in these<br />

pages, a mojority of the offences were perpetrated by members of the victims’ family.<br />

Domestic violence<br />

In a major move to check domestic violence against women and children, the<br />

National Assembly, in August passed a private bill to prevent the abuse through quick<br />

criminal trials and a chain of protection committees, but the bill was allowed to lapse as<br />

it was not passed by the Senate. The Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection)<br />

Bill will provide <strong>for</strong> monetary and other relief to aggrieved persons. According to the<br />

bill, domestic violence includes, but is not limited to, ‘all intentional acts of genderbased<br />

or other physical or psychological abuse committed by an accused against women,<br />

children or other vulnerable persons with whom the accused person is or has been in<br />

a domestic relationship’. The first breach of a protection order will be punishable with<br />

imprisonment of up to one year but not less than six months and a minimum fine of Rs<br />

100,000 which will be paid to the aggrieved person.<br />

The Domestic Violence (Prevention & Protection) Bill in its current <strong>for</strong>m was<br />

termed discriminatory by the Council of Islamic Ideology as it was believed to ‘fan<br />

unending family feuds and push up divorce rates’. It was said that the bill assumed<br />

only women and children could be victims of domestic violence, ignoring the possibility<br />

that old, weak and indisposed men would suffer too. The council was also wary of<br />

giving greater role to the police in family affairs, and warned that it would encourage<br />

corruption and bribery while the police would trample the sanctity of home.<br />

Some questions about how the authorities plan to implement the Domestic Violence<br />

Bill however remain to be answered. Like the problems in the filing of a report because<br />

in most cases women are too scared and have no means to do so. Again, how the<br />

protection committee consisting of ‘two police officers and two women councilors’<br />

will work, given the immense lack of trust in the police department, is unclear.<br />

The civil society organisations termed the concerns of the CII grossly misplaced<br />

and said the bill addressed all vulnerable people who could be victims of domestic<br />

violence. The civil society organisations also proposed following changes in the bill:<br />

Remove Section 25 that proposes penalty <strong>for</strong> filing a false complaint, as it is<br />

already covered in the present law.<br />

Change Section 27(4) with rules of business so that they follow the regular<br />

process and are drafted by the ministry of women development rather than the<br />

parliament.<br />

<br />

Review Section 10(b) regarding custody order, as the custody of an adult<br />

190 State of Human Rights in 2009


cannot be granted to anyone against his/her consent.<br />

Honour killings<br />

The year 2008 saw two cruel incidents of violence against women: the burial of<br />

five women alive in Nasirabad (August, 2008) and throwing of Tasleem Solangi, an<br />

eight-month pregnant woman, in front of hungry dogs in Khairpur district of Sindh<br />

(October, 2008). In January, Sanaullah Abbasi, DIG Hyderabad, claimed he had <strong>found</strong><br />

documents signed by the local nazim of the area giving details of how the poor girl was<br />

treated like a ‘slave’ be<strong>for</strong>e being fed to the dogs. President Asif Zardari appointed<br />

Sanaullah Abbasi as investigation officer after rejecting the findings of MNA Nafeesa<br />

Shah. He met the father of Tasleem Solangi who confirmed that his daughter was<br />

subjected to the worst<br />

kind of torture be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

being killed.<br />

A fresh autopsy of<br />

Tasleem Solangi’s<br />

body in July <strong>found</strong> five<br />

slugs of a cartridge in<br />

her body but there were<br />

no marks of dog bite.<br />

Three separate<br />

inquiries were held on<br />

the orders of President<br />

Asif Ali Zardari, IG<br />

Police Sindh and the<br />

Home Department. But<br />

the Supreme Court<br />

rejected all three More than 600 were killed in the name of honour<br />

reports and ordered the<br />

IG Police to conduct a fresh inquiry and submit a report. Police arrested 16 accused<br />

<strong>for</strong> their direct or indirect involvement in Tasleem’s murder.<br />

In April the Supreme Court issued notices to the Balochistan provincial police<br />

officer (PPO) and advocate-general (AG) to appear be<strong>for</strong>e the court in an honour<br />

killing case involving the alleged burying alive of five women. The outgoing SC chief<br />

justice, Abdul Hameed Dogar, had taken suo motu notice of the case and sought a<br />

report from the Nasirabad district police officer. Later a three-member bench of the<br />

apex court headed by the Chief Justice rejected the police report on the burial of five<br />

women alive presented by the Advocate-General, Balochistan. The AG told the court<br />

that two policewomen had <strong>found</strong> the bodies of only two women from a grave, adding<br />

that no one was buried alive. He said 11 persons had been arrested in connection with<br />

Women 191


the killings and the absconders were sentenced to 5 years in jail <strong>for</strong> burying women<br />

alive. The court expressed dissatisfaction over the police report and rejected it. More<br />

than a year had passed since the incident but the perpetrators of the crime were not<br />

brought to justice.<br />

Another tragic incident of honour killing was reported to the HRCP on April 3,<br />

2009 when a twenty-one year old girl was strangled to death by her father and brother<br />

in Altit, Hunza. A third-year student at the New Beacon College, Shahina had developed<br />

acquaintance with a man from a different tribe and that led to her murder. The Deputy<br />

Superintendent of Police, who was also a relative of the parents of the murdered girl,<br />

ordered the local authorities to hush up the case and had the dead girl buried without<br />

any further inquiry.<br />

According to a report in May, the SHO of Sukkur women’s police station, sold off<br />

a girl named Babli to her parents and relatives who allegedly killed her <strong>for</strong> eloping and<br />

marrying a man outside the clan of her own free will. Babli was killed on May 9<br />

allegedly at the house of Head Constable Akbar Almani in his absence. The police<br />

claimed he was her third husband through a fake marriage certificate.<br />

The statement from the constable appeared to be an ef<strong>for</strong>t by the high police<br />

officials of the four districts to prove that she was killed <strong>for</strong> honour rather than through<br />

police involvement in the case.<br />

According to a newspaper report from Sahiwal, a youth crossed all limits of brutality<br />

when he chopped off the head, ears and nose of his younger sister, Mafia Bibi, in the<br />

name of honour. Allegedly, Mafia Bibi, 17, had eloped with her lover Mustafa. It was<br />

decided by the family that the two would be married off but in the meantime her<br />

brother indulged in the inhuman act.<br />

(See a list of other cases of murder, honour killings and violence against women<br />

during January-October, 2009 at the end of the chapter.)<br />

Burnings & acid attacks<br />

The country has no specific law to punish the perpetrators of acid attacks, one of<br />

the most alarming and horrific <strong>for</strong>ms of violence against women. AGHS Legal Aid Cell<br />

expressed its deep sense of shock over the rising number of burn victims in the country.<br />

Monitoring and follow-up visits by AGHS activists from January to March 2009 in<br />

Lahore revealed that as many as 68 women had suffered severe burn injuries - eight<br />

from acid throwing and sixty from acts of burning. This reflected the government’s<br />

failure to stop violence and its inability to bring culprits to book. Between April and<br />

June 2009, 122 women were burnt in Lahore either by being set on fire or by having<br />

acid thrown on them. In the first 10 months of 2009 (January-October), 313 women<br />

had fallen victim to burning and acid attacks across Pakistan.<br />

On February 12, Maria Shah, a doctor working in a private hospital in Shikarpur,<br />

192 State of Human Rights in 2009


was seriously burnt and injured in January when a youngster threw acid on her face<br />

and body while she was examining female patients. According to the doctors on duty,<br />

60 percent of the body of Dr Maria was burnt while her face was badly affected. Baqar<br />

Shah, father of the victim, said that the culprit wanted to marry her and used to harass<br />

her when she went outdoors. A month later, she succumbed to her injuries at the ICU<br />

of the Burns Centre in Karachi.<br />

On March 9, a young man, Ghulam Abbas, killed his wife and her minor brother<br />

and sister in Kot Ladha, Gujranwala district. The accused set himself and his wife<br />

ablaze after slaying the children as a result of which she died and he suffered serious<br />

burns. The Kot Ladha police registered a case of triple murder.<br />

In early March, 35-year old Saima, mother of three, who was burned allegedly by<br />

one of her <strong>for</strong>mer husbands, died of burn injuries at a government hospital in Karachi.<br />

The alleged attacker fled.<br />

To control the rising number of acid burn cases in both rural and urban areas, a bill<br />

recommending stringent punishment to perpetrators of acid throwing was to be<br />

presented in the parliament. Drafted by Justice Fakhur un Nisa, the bill recommended<br />

amendments to sections 335 and 336 of the Pakistan Penal Code <strong>for</strong> enhancing the<br />

punishment <strong>for</strong> burning with an intent to take revenge or otherwise disfigure someone<br />

by using weapons, fire or acid, to life imprisonment and Rs. 500,000, in fine.<br />

In February Haji Muhammad burnt his daughter, Sadia, to death <strong>for</strong> tying the knot<br />

with a man of her choice in village Nangal Sahdan in Muridke. On the report of the<br />

husband of the deceased, the Saddar police registered a case against her father.<br />

On April 20, the seven-year old son, Danish, of a divorcee, Shahida Parveen, was<br />

Women 193


urnt to death in Sahiwal district while she herself was critically injured when her lover<br />

poured kerosene oil on her and torched both mother and son.<br />

On April 27, two men doused a five-year old girl with kerosene oil and set her<br />

on fire in Naushero after a verbal quarrel between their wives and the girl’s family over<br />

a petty matter involving children.<br />

On May 11, a man threw acid on a woman in Sukkur after she rejected his<br />

sexual advance. The victim, mother of nine, was admitted to the hospital after suffering<br />

from severe burns in the lower part of her body.<br />

On May 28, the Lahore High Court handed down a 24 years prison term with<br />

a fine of Rs. 29,000 each to three convicts in an acid attack case. An anti-terrorism<br />

court had awarded seven-year rigorous imprisonment to the three accused.<br />

On May 28, an influential landlord of Jhang, along with his sons, threw acid<br />

on a girl, permanently damaging her eyes after her father had refused to marry her to<br />

one of his sons. Police registered a case and arrested two of the men named in the FIR<br />

but later on released them to please a local MPA. The incident was illustrative of how<br />

poor police per<strong>for</strong>mance and the influence of the feudal elite combine to perpetuate a<br />

social set-up in which cases of extreme brutality go unpunished.<br />

On June 16, a woman was burnt to death by her husband and his first wife in<br />

Okara <strong>for</strong> not being able to bear children. The husband with his other accomplices<br />

locked the victim in a washroom, sprinkled kerosene oil on her and set her on fire.<br />

The Zarina Marri riddle<br />

The rumours about the disappearance of Zarina Marri, a school teacher in Kohlu<br />

Distt, came as a shock to the people of Balochistan as well as to the whole civil society.<br />

In the second week of January Munir Mengal, Managing Director of TV channel<br />

‘Baloch Voice’, disclosed that, as a detainee, he saw a number of Baloch women,<br />

including Zarina Marri, in army torture cells. These women were among the hundreds<br />

of Baloch political leaders, workers, journalists and students who were picked up by<br />

the law en<strong>for</strong>cing agencies in the course of army operations in Kohlu and Dera Bugti in<br />

2005. To trace Zarina Marri the HRCP contacted the Education Department and other<br />

authorities but did not succeed in getting particulars about her such as her parentage<br />

and home address, which cast doubts about the authenticity of the in<strong>for</strong>mation.<br />

Mukhtaran’s battle continued<br />

Mukhtaran Mai, a victim of barbaric gang rape in June 2002, continued to fight<br />

with the agony and trauma of her jirga-ordained rape in the remote village of Meerawala,<br />

Muzaffargarh District. She accused a federal minister of pressurising her to drop<br />

194 State of Human Rights in 2009


charges against the 13 accused from his clan.<br />

Victims of Punchayat and tribal marriage customs<br />

In January, two minor girls were <strong>for</strong>cibly married to two minor boys in the village<br />

of Mamo Kanjan (Punjab). The girls, 13-year old Mumtaz and four-year old Shahnaz,<br />

were married to 18-year old Mansha and seven-year old Nadeem at a largely attended<br />

wedding reception.<br />

In April, a man in Jacobabad who was under a heavy debt burden gave his eightyear<br />

old daughter in marriage to a 50-year old moneylender to clear his debt. The girl<br />

was <strong>for</strong>cibly taken away<br />

by her husband after the<br />

Nikah solemnized by a<br />

moulvi. However,<br />

nobody came <strong>for</strong>ward<br />

to file a complaint in<br />

this regard.<br />

In May, the 25-year<br />

old Kulsoom Rehman<br />

Baloch of Jhang,<br />

narrated how her onemonth<br />

old marriage to<br />

the man of her choice<br />

landed six of her in-laws<br />

in police custody where<br />

Young girls were victims of tribal feuds<br />

they were severely<br />

tortured. Kulsoom’s brother along with his cousin, an MPA from Jhang and parliamentary<br />

secretary, allegedly used their political influence to lodge an FIR against her husband,<br />

Fazal Abbass under sections 365-B and 379 of the Pakistan Penal Code <strong>for</strong> abducting<br />

Kulsoom and committing robbery. The police had reportedly raided her house where<br />

several of her female in- laws were beaten up and tortured. Under instructions from<br />

the Chief Minister the Inspector-General of Police ordered the registration of a case<br />

against the SHO of Police Station Jhang city <strong>for</strong> registering a false case against Kulsoom’s<br />

brothers-in-law. Later, on the intervention of the Lahore High Court the police cleared<br />

Fazal Abbas and his family in the abduction case registered on the complaint of Rehman,<br />

brother of Kulsoom.<br />

(See a chronology of reported cases of women falling victim of tribal justice at the<br />

end of the chapter)<br />

Gang rape and murder cases<br />

The Punjab government launched a probe into the alleged gang-rape and murder of<br />

Women 195


a young girl at <strong>Ar</strong>ifwala Tehsil Headquarter Hospital (THQ) and directed the medical<br />

superintendent to appear be<strong>for</strong>e the Punjab medico-legal surgeon with the full case<br />

record. According to the victim’s family, 13-year old Kiran Amjad was kidnapped by<br />

Malik Usman, who allegedly gang-raped her along with two other unidentified persons.<br />

She was also allegedly poisoned at the hospital by a close accomplice of the accused.<br />

The family claimed that the local police left several loopholes in the FIR because the<br />

accused were from an influential family of <strong>Ar</strong>ifwala and close aides of the local MNA.<br />

They said the police and the accused were trying to change the gang rape and murder<br />

case into an abortion case. The family also filed two writ petitions in the Lahore High<br />

Court seeking directions <strong>for</strong> police to arrest the culprits named in the FIR.<br />

The Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court disposed of a suo motu proceeding<br />

after the DPO Pakpattan in<strong>for</strong>med the court that all accused involved in the rape and<br />

murder of Kiran had been arrested. The Punjab Medico-legal Surgeon confirmed that<br />

Kiran Amjad had been sexually assaulted and injuries to her body resulted in her death.<br />

He recommended strict action against the doctors who had fudged the postmortem<br />

and initial medical examination reports of the victim. .<br />

In June, in Lahore, a young girl, Ayesha, was allegedly abducted and raped by<br />

seven of her class fellows, all students. According to the victim’s mother, seven men<br />

raped her and even video-taped the assault. The culprits later threw the victim outside<br />

a guest-house and fled. The police said they were still looking <strong>for</strong> the accused.<br />

In September, an anti-terrorism court sentenced two policemen to death in a case<br />

pertaining to the kidnap, rape and murder of a three-year old girl. The court <strong>found</strong><br />

traffic police constables Bashir Ahmed and Noor Muhammed guilty of kidnapping<br />

Sana on July 3. The judge also sentenced both the convicts to ten years in prison under<br />

section 376 (punishment <strong>for</strong> rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code.<br />

The total number of women who fell victim to various crimes reached the high<br />

figure of 8,548. The accused included fathers, step-siblings, in-laws and in most cases<br />

police officials and influential political and bureaucratic figures. Justice seemed elusive<br />

in a majority of the cases, highlighting the inefficiencies of the law en<strong>for</strong>cement and<br />

justice systems. These again are only reported figures that were compiled from 25<br />

different daily news publications (Urdu and English) and HRCP’s fact finding reports.<br />

Un<strong>for</strong>tunately most incidents of brutality and violations against women don’t make it<br />

to the headlines <strong>for</strong> fear of social taboos, threat to life or apathy in the face of lack of<br />

justice.<br />

A chronology of honour killings (January – October 2009)<br />

January 2, Gujranwala: Sajid, with the help of a friend, Mudasir, killed his 45<br />

year old wife, Shahnaz and their 20 year old daughter Saba, after discovering that his<br />

196 State of Human Rights in 2009


daughter had relations with a man. He was arrested.<br />

January 8, Quetta: In Tehsil Tambu, Sarbaz Ali opened fire on his wife Abida and<br />

fled the scene of the crime soon thereafter. The motive of the crime was stated to be<br />

‘honour’. The police registered a case.<br />

January 6, Pakpattan: A man killed his wife Zarina, mother of four children,<br />

with an axe after finding out that she had relations with a man called Israr. Israr was<br />

also axed to death. The husband turned himself in to the police.<br />

January 19, Sheikhupura: Khalid suspected his cousin Shazia had relations with<br />

a man. In a fit of anger, he shot Shazia dead. A case was registered.<br />

January 29, Alipur (district Muzafargarh): Munshi Bakht Ali and Parveen Bibi<br />

locked themselves in a room. The family members <strong>found</strong> out and punished them by<br />

chopping their noses and lips.<br />

February 6, Harappa: Shakeela, a student of second year, ran away with her<br />

classmate, Mehboob. Her uncle and cousins shot both of them dead in the name of<br />

honour.<br />

February 7, Faisalabad: A man, Hidayat, axed his daughter, Razia Bibi, and her<br />

suspected paramour, Liaquat, to death upon seeing them together.<br />

February 9, Okara: Muhammad Hussain shot his married niece dead in the name<br />

of honour as he ‘suspected’ her of loose morals.<br />

February 10, Sukkur: Marvi, 17, was gunned down by her brother, Shabaan<br />

Shar, on the pretext of karo-kari in the kutcha area near Ubauro. Although the body<br />

was taken to the local hospital <strong>for</strong> a post-mortem examination no case was registered.<br />

February 11, Lahore: Maham, alias Saima, was strangulated by her husband,<br />

Faryad, over a minor domestic dispute. He suspected Saima of having illicit relations<br />

with a stranger. Police arrested the accused and registered a case against him on a<br />

complaint by Saima’s brother, Shahid.<br />

February 12, Khanewal: A Panchayat in Khanewal sentenced a girl and a boy to<br />

death because they had decided to get married. The jirga/panchayat accused them of<br />

karo-kari. The Minister <strong>for</strong> Human Rights ordered the District Police Officer to protect<br />

the couple but he failed to do so.<br />

February 14, Kohat: Local police suspected that Taliban militants shot dead two<br />

women and dumped their bodies in burqas by the roadside in Kohat. Nobody claimed<br />

responsibility, but the two women were seen by the Taliban to have a ‘bad reputation’.<br />

February 20, Lahore: Hanifan, 60, and her 10 year old grandson, Mohammad<br />

Tahir, were <strong>found</strong> strangled in a room. The Investigation Officer suspected the brutal<br />

murders to be the outcome of enmity stemming from the fact that Hanifan was believed<br />

Women 197


to be running a brothel.<br />

February 20, Kasur: Fauzia Bibi, was strangled by her elder brother, Zulfiqar, <strong>for</strong><br />

eloping with her alleged lover, Muhammad Ashraf.<br />

February 21, Lahore: Zahra, 15, by her father’s own admission, was strangled<br />

by him <strong>for</strong> asking the family to get her married to her cousin and ex-fiancé. The<br />

engagement had been broken off owing to family problems.<br />

February 22, Gujranwala: Mariam Riaz was murdered by her brother, Haq Nawaz,<br />

because he doubted her character. He knifed her to death and ran away.<br />

February 23, Karachi: In Korangi Industrial <strong>Ar</strong>ea, a man killed his sister, Shehla<br />

(35), mother of 5 children, because he suspected her of being a kari.<br />

February 24, Kala Shah Kaka: Haji Muhammad Sadiq sprayed kerosene oil on<br />

his daughter, Sadia, and burnt her to death because she married someone without his<br />

consent.<br />

February 27, Gujranwala: Kiran Shehzadi, daughter of Muhammad Riaz, got<br />

married of her own choice. Her family was infuriated. She was shot dead by her<br />

brother.<br />

March 1, Lahore: Muhammad Akram shot dead his sister because he suspected<br />

she was having illicit relations with a man from their village.<br />

March 5, Sukkur: Inayatan, 20, and Zameer Kandhro, 18, were shot dead. The<br />

police termed the double murder a case of karo-kari.<br />

March 9, Sahiwal: An unnamed man axed his sister to death with the help of two<br />

friends on suspicion of illicit relations between her and another man. Her body was cut<br />

up into several pieces.<br />

March 12, Sukkur: Shabbir Mahar suspected his sister, Zamiran Mahar (22), of<br />

having illicit relations with Raza. He killed both of them.<br />

March 14, Chenab Nagar: A man allegedly killed his widowed sister because he<br />

doubted her character.<br />

March 18, Nawabshah: Abid Ali murdered his wife and the man suspected to be<br />

her paramour.<br />

March 19, Muzaffargarh: Muhammad Ashraf killed his wife Zainab Mai, 36,<br />

suspecting that she had an affair with someone of the locality. Iqbal, Zainab’s brother,<br />

filed an FIR against Ashraf and his brother, Aslam.<br />

March 20, Lahore: A man murdered his daughter and her suspected paramour.<br />

March 21, Lahore: A man killed his sister when he suspected her of having illicit<br />

relations with someone.<br />

March 22, Faisalabad: Imran killed his wife because he doubted her character<br />

198 State of Human Rights in 2009


and handed himself over to the police.<br />

March 23, Okara: Nasreen Bibi was allegedly murdered by her husband,<br />

Muhammad Mansha and others. He suspected her character. According to reports, he<br />

tied her up with a rope and gave her electric shocks.<br />

March 23, Sahiwal: A man killed his sister because he doubted her character.<br />

March 24, Hafizabad: Shahid murdered his sister because she married someone<br />

of her own choice.<br />

March 26, Sukkur: On the suspicion that their sister, Kulsoom Shah, had illicit<br />

relations with a man, her brothers, Asgher Shah and Anwar Shah, strangled her in her<br />

sleep.<br />

March 26, Lahore: A man shot dead his wife in the bazaar because he suspected<br />

her character.<br />

March 30, Lahore: A man murdered his mother because he doubted her character.<br />

March 31, Sukkur: Jaro Sheikh suspected his wife, Khanzadi, was having illicit<br />

relations with Ali Nawaz Sheikh. He shot dead her and fled the scene.<br />

March 31, Sheikhupura: Tahira Bibi was shot at by her brother because she ran<br />

away from home.<br />

April 4, Nasirabad: Four women were allegedly buried alive in the name of honour<br />

in Nasirabad.<br />

April 9, Lahore: A girl was killed by her uncle in the name of honour in Shahdara.<br />

April 11, Shahdara (near Lahore): A man killed his sister, Shabana and his<br />

cousin Rahib Ali, suspecting them of having illicit relations.<br />

April 14, Chichawatni: A woman named Akhter Bibi, wife of Allah Rakha, was<br />

killed by her husband on the suspicion of illicit relations with Ali. The accused killed her<br />

by giving her poison.<br />

April 14, Faisalabad: Nasreen and a man, Sharif, were killed by Sajjid on suspicion<br />

of illicit relations.<br />

April 18, Quetta: A man named Khabir Khan killed his wife in the name of honour.<br />

April 18, Shakargarh: Two women were killed in the name of honour, when<br />

they were sleeping at their house. According to reports, the accused, Chakar Namvani,<br />

shot dead his daughter and daughter-in-law named Shali and Manzooran, respectively.<br />

April 18, Sargodha: A man killed his sister-in-law, Shameen, daughter of Rasheed,<br />

on the pretext of suspected character.<br />

April 18, Lahore: A man named Nazir killed his sister, Sumera, in the name of<br />

honour. When the victim’s mother tried to rescue her, he also injured her and fled.<br />

April 19, Chiniot: A fifty years old woman, Mahmooda Bibi, was killed by her<br />

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nephew, Safdar, in the name of honour.<br />

April 19, Hangu: A thirty-five year old woman, Malazi, wife of Wahed Gul, was<br />

killed in the name of honour. The man she was accused of having illicit relations was<br />

also killed.<br />

April 23, Lahore: A woman named Nabi was axed to death by her uncle in the<br />

name of honour.<br />

April 24, Sheikhupura: Nabila was killed by her husband, Irfan Ali, when he<br />

reportedly saw her in an objectionable position with his brother.<br />

April 26, Sahiwal: Sana Bibi was killed by her husband when he saw her with<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>shad.<br />

April 25, Malikwal: Two women, Nazeeran Bibi and her daughter Misbah, were<br />

killed in the name of honour by Nazeeran’s son, Ghulam Qamar. They were axed to<br />

death while they were asleep.<br />

April 26, Quetta: Abdul Khalid, resident of Ali Nawaz village of Tumbo tehsil,<br />

killed his aunt in the name of honour.<br />

April 26, Okara: A twenty-five year old woman, Amun, was killed by her brother<br />

in the name of honour. As per reports, the accused slit her throat and later surrendered<br />

at the police station. The victim was five months pregnant.<br />

April 27, Sahiwal: A woman was shot dead, along with a man, on suspicion of<br />

illicit relations.<br />

May 11, Toba Tek Singh: On the suspicion of having an affair with another man,<br />

Sakeena, 25, was killed by her husband.<br />

May 21, Lahore: A married woman, Khurshed Bibi, was killed allegedly by her<br />

brother in the name of honour.<br />

May 22, Kasur: Yousaf killed his sister in the name of honour. According to<br />

reports, he suspected her character and shot her dead.<br />

May 28, Ferozewala: A man named Laiqat killed his niece in the name of honour<br />

and escaped. According to reports Sher Bano had run away from her house but was<br />

<strong>for</strong>ced to return after two days.<br />

May 29, Sheikhupura: A girl “S” was killed by her brother, when he saw her in<br />

an objectionable position with a man of the same village.<br />

June 6, Lakhi Ghulam Shah: Talay Shar shot dead his wife, Zulekhan, and his<br />

relative, Peeral Shar, on the pretext of karo kari.<br />

June 3, Ferozewala: Nawaz shot at and killed his sister, Shehnaz Bibi, mother of<br />

two, because he suspected her of having illicit relations.<br />

June 3, Sheikhupura: A man shot dead his sister on suspicion that she had<br />

200 State of Human Rights in 2009


developed illicit relations with a man from the same village.<br />

June 5, Ferozewala: Shumaila and Sonia had relations with a youth named Shahid.<br />

They eloped with him. However, they were tracked down by their uncle, Javed Khokhar,<br />

who killed all three of them and surrendered himself to the police.<br />

June 6, Chiniot: Samina Bibi was murdered by her brother, Muhammad Azam,<br />

who suspected her of having a bad character.<br />

June 8, Faisalabad: A woman was stabbed to death by her brother, Younis, because<br />

he was angry at her <strong>for</strong> leaving her husband.<br />

June 8, Kashmore: Four women were killed in various parts of the region on<br />

allegations of being ‘kari’. Mir Golu and Wali Muhammad killed their wives and hid<br />

their bodies. Similarly, Abu Mir Wali killed his sister-in-law and fled. Inam Jafri also<br />

murdered his wife <strong>for</strong> honour.<br />

June 9, Faisalabad: Asiya was axed to death by her brother, Rashid, because he<br />

suspected her of having a bad character.<br />

June 11, Mamukanjan: Noor Ahmed Fareed shot at and killed his 16-year old<br />

niece, Ayesha, because he suspected her of having illicit relations with a youth.<br />

June 15, Jaranwala: Shahid Shahzadi, a private school teacher, was murdered<br />

through the administration of an electric shock by her father, Abdul Mukhtar, and some<br />

of her cousins. The father was suspicious of his daughter’s character.<br />

June 15, Mandi Bahaudin: Farhat Naseem was strangled to death by her mother,<br />

Razia Bibi, and her brothers, Sufian and Imran, The accused disapproved of the victim’s<br />

decision to marry of her own choice.<br />

June 17, Sukkur: Abul Rasheed Junejo, his 3-year old son Rashid and his wife<br />

were shot and killed in the name of honour by a group of men led by Imam Bux Brohi.<br />

June 19, Mirpurkhas: Ghulam Rasool Panhwar attacked his brother’s wife,<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>bazadi,35, with an axe and later killed his cousin Akram Panhwar,23, because he<br />

suspected them of having illicit relations.<br />

June 19, Lahore: Iqbal, 22, strangled his sister, Adeeba, with a piece of cloth,<br />

because he suspected her of having an affair with a boy from their neighborhood.<br />

June 22, Lahore: Imran killed his sister, Samina, and her friend Shazia, wife of<br />

Iqbal, because he suspected the latter of inducing the <strong>for</strong>mer into illicit activities.<br />

June 25, <strong>Ar</strong>ifwala: Rehana Bibi, 20, daughter of Bashir Ahmed Jaiyuan, was shot<br />

at and brutally killed by her husband Omar Khan. He believed Rehana had developed<br />

illicit relations with another man while he was working in Dubai.<br />

July 3, Okara: A newly-wed couple, Khalid and Shamim, were shot dead after<br />

they got married without the consent of their families. Ramzan, Shamim’s cousin and<br />

Women 201


her finance shot at both of them.<br />

July 3, Sargodha: Gulnaz was shot dead by her brother, Zafar, after she married<br />

without her family’s consent. Gulnaz was at the civil court where her brother was also<br />

present. Gulnaz’s lawyer, Mohammad Wali, also received a bullet in his shoulder.<br />

July 3, Sahiwal: A 35-year old woman, Sughran Bibi, was shot dead by her<br />

husband’s nephew, Mitho, as he suspected her of having an affair with one of the<br />

neighbours.<br />

July 11, Okara: Saima, 15, eloped with Shafique of the same locality. She was<br />

brought back to the local council where she was handed over to her father, Sadiq,<br />

rather than her mother with whom she lived. According to witneses, early in the morning<br />

Sadiq, Shani and Ashraf Joya dragged Saima out of the car and fired gunshots at her,<br />

thereby killing her.<br />

July 13, Lahore: Shumaila eloped with her aunt’s husband and was shot dead by<br />

her cousin, Imran, after she returned to her house on assurances that no harm would<br />

be done.<br />

July 16, Quetta: Ali Gul and Rozina, who had got married on their own nine<br />

months earlier, were shot dead allegedly by their relatives.<br />

July 21, Lahore: Shafique Ahmad and Saba got married against the wishes of<br />

Saba’s family. Two months after the marriage, Saba’s family invited the couple <strong>for</strong><br />

reconciliation to their place. Suspecting ulterior motives, Shafique’s uncle accompanied<br />

the couple to dinner, where the family after a pleasant dinner convinced the uncle to<br />

leave early. After a while, the uncle called the couple but the calls went unanswered and<br />

when he went back to Saba’s house, he <strong>found</strong> the bodies of the couple drenched in<br />

blood.<br />

July 22, Sambaryal: Noreen Bibi and Ajmal Masih were shot dead by her brother,<br />

Tariq Masih, after he saw them together.<br />

July 23, Quetta: Muhammad Deedar Ali and Ramzan Ali killed their sister in the<br />

name of honour.<br />

July 25, Karor Pakka: Shabana and Rizwana were axed to death by their brother,<br />

Ghulam Abbas, in the name of honour. The sisters were at their mother’s place after<br />

quarrels with their husbands.<br />

July 29, Taxila: Kausar Bibi was shot dead by her husband, Muhammad Sarfaraz,<br />

after she allegedly eloped with Kareem Khan. The accused called the couple <strong>for</strong><br />

reconciliation and shot both of them dead.<br />

July 30, Shikarpur: A man killed his wife, Seyani Pechuno, and her alleged lover,<br />

Abdullah Sheikh, in the name of honour in Baqar Jakh Rani village near Kashmore.<br />

July 30, Sukkur: Khuda Dino Mazhar and his wife Sabiha, mother Sohni and<br />

202 State of Human Rights in 2009


sons, Rab Dino,3, and Lutfullah, 2, were killed on the spot whereas his other son<br />

Muhammad Malook, 7, and Shazia, 7, were severely injured when Jan Muhammad<br />

Kori and his accomplices barged into the house and opened indiscriminate fire, to<br />

avenge the love marriage between Khuda Dino and Sabiha 16 years earlier.<br />

August 2, Lahore: A woman was killed by her husband on the basis of her<br />

suspicious character. She was mother of two.<br />

August 5, Faisalabad: A man killed his married sister with a sharp-edged axe as<br />

he suspected her character.<br />

August 8, Lahore: A man and his accomplice cut the nose and ears of his brother’s<br />

wife on account of her suspicious character.<br />

August 11, Larkana: A woman Safooran Mai, mother of three, was killed by her<br />

husband in a case of karo kari.<br />

August 17, Lahore: A man killed his sister in the name of honour.<br />

August 19, Daska: A man killed his sister in the name of honour. Tanzeela had run<br />

away with her boy friend; when she returned home after some days, her brother killed<br />

her.<br />

August 23, Karachi: A woman was killed in the name of honour by her husband<br />

and a relative.<br />

August 24, Chiniot: Ramzan Ahmed killed his wife and mother-in-law as he<br />

suspected their characters.<br />

August 24, Vehari: A woman was tortured by her husband. He chopped off her<br />

hands and feet as he had suspicions about her character.<br />

August 24, Quetta: A man shot dead his sister and alleged paramour in Jaffarabad<br />

district.<br />

August 26, Gujranwala: A man killed his daughter with a sharp-edged weapon as<br />

he believed she had relations with someone.<br />

September 1, Mandi Bahauddin: A man killed his sister, Naseem, in the name of<br />

honour.<br />

September 3, Karachi: The 45 years old wife of Sardar Khan and a mother of<br />

four was killed in a karo kari case in Baloch Para.<br />

September 15, Hujra Shah Muqim: A 40 years old woman, Hanifa Bibi, was<br />

killed in the name of honour.<br />

September 26, Peshawar: A man killed his sister in the judicial complex in the<br />

name of honour.<br />

September 26, Mansehra: A woman and man were killed in the name of honour.<br />

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M. Rasheed, along with his accomplice, opened fire on his fiancé as he had suspicions<br />

about her character.<br />

October 3, Naseerabad: Shah Mir shot his daughter and alleged lover Malo Khan<br />

dead on the outskirts of Naseerabad.<br />

October 3, Rawalpindi: A man allegedly shot dead his sister, Asima Bibi, <strong>for</strong><br />

‘honour’ when she was on her way home in the People’s Colony in R.A Bazaar area .<br />

October 15, Lahore: Maryam and her cousin Bilal, who lived in the same house,<br />

went to get medicines but did not return. The family kept searching <strong>for</strong> the two, Police<br />

later in<strong>for</strong>med Aslam about the death of his daughter and his nephew. Aslam filed a<br />

murder case against unknown persons. The SHO said the murder might have been<br />

committed <strong>for</strong> honour.<br />

October 15, Karachi: Mohammad Ishaq and Naseem Begum, who belonged to<br />

Dir district of NWFP, got married and moved to Karachi because of the opposition<br />

they had faced from their families, specially Nasim Begum’s family. Naseem Begum’s<br />

brother, Munibullah along with two other men, entered her house and killed her husband<br />

in the name of honour. Naseem Begum reported the case to the police,<br />

October 19, Gujranwala: A man saw his wife Saima and his sister-in-law in an<br />

objectionable position and killed them with a sharp-edged weapon.<br />

October 21, Faisalabad: A girl was killed in the name of honour by her brother.<br />

October 26, Nankana Sahib: A woman named Ayesha was killed in the name of<br />

honour.<br />

October 29, Ferozewala (Sheikhupura district): An 18-year old girl Sidra was<br />

killed with a sharp-edged weapon by her brother who suspected her character.<br />

In 2009, the following cases were reported in the press about women who fell<br />

victims to Panchayat decisions:<br />

January 29, Mailsi: A panchayat decreed that Asra, accused of adultery, should<br />

be locked in a room, and her hair cut off. Talib Hussain, Bilal, Bilawar, Muhammad<br />

Akram, Khwaja Mahmood, and Asra’s brother Muhammad Ali Shehzad, carried out the<br />

decision. Asra’s daughter also endured the punishment along with her mother.<br />

February 7, Islamabad: Haleema, (5) and Ayesha, (8) were married off to <strong>Ar</strong>shad,<br />

(23) and Humayun, (15), in vani cases. Their uncle had contracted a court marriage<br />

with a girl of the boys’ family.<br />

February 11, Islamabad: A jirga ordered two minor girls, aged 5 and 8, to be<br />

married to two males, aged 23 and 15, respectively. The jirga refused responsibility<br />

and claimed that the fathers of all concerned agreed to the marriages. The police<br />

registered an FIR against the father and the clerk.<br />

February 12, Yazman: A nine year old girl, Malooka Mai, was <strong>for</strong>ced to marry the<br />

204 State of Human Rights in 2009


16-year old Muzamil because her brother had run away with Shama Mai, who was the<br />

mother of four children.<br />

February 21, Peshawar: Wali Khan and his wife fixed the marriage of their younger<br />

daughter, Sonia (8) with Saleem Khan (20) <strong>for</strong> Rs.20,000. The community stopped<br />

this marriage.<br />

February 23, Larkana: A man gave away his 13-year old daughter to Talib Brohi<br />

<strong>for</strong> Rs.70,000. The mother of the girl appealed to the district judge and got her daughter<br />

back.<br />

February 28, Toba Tek Singh: Nadia, 18, eloped with Rizwan, a man from her<br />

village. A panchayat brokered a deal under which the girl returned to the family and<br />

agreed to a divorce. The girl and her lover again ran away. Three of Rizwan’s relatives<br />

were killed.<br />

March 1, Lahore: Police saved a 14-year old girl, Hussain Bibi, from being married<br />

off in compensation (vani) <strong>for</strong> her brother, Waqas Ahmed’s, elopement with Shahnaz<br />

Bibi, as decided by the panchayat (jury). The district police officer got a tip-off about<br />

the vani case and ordered the SHO, to take action, which resulted in the arrest of the<br />

parents of the victims, a panchayat head and the nikah khwan. Cases were registered<br />

against them under the law.<br />

March 5, Haroonabad: Basharat, the owner of a call centre, lured young girls and<br />

made objectionable films to blackmail them. When this became known, the people of<br />

the locality called a panchayat. The panchayat decided that Basharat should marry a<br />

woman named Tehareem, daughter of Ashiq Ali. It also decided that Basharat’s sister,<br />

Misbah, a student of matric would be given in marriage to Tehareem’s mentally retarded<br />

brother Asif, in accordance with custom of vani. Misbah registered a case against the<br />

panchayat members after her marriage.<br />

March 18, Naushero Feroz: A jirga decided to give the wife of a kidnapper in<br />

marriage to the aggrieved family if he failed to return the woman he had kidnapped.<br />

Wazir Khoso had allegedly kidnapped Rani, wife of Imdad Ali Lashari. The jirga sent a<br />

message to the accused that if he did not return the kidnapped woman in four days his<br />

wife, Rasheedan, would be married to a man of the Lashari family.<br />

March 21, Mianwali: Darkhoo, (14) was married to Talah Khan, (60) in accordance<br />

with a 12-year old jirga decision, based on the alleged murder of the younger brother of<br />

the groom by the grandfather of the bride. Police registered a case under Section 310-<br />

A of the PPC and arrested the Nikah Khwan.<br />

March 21, Okara: A 15-year old girl was given away in vani to a 55-year old man.<br />

Police arrested three people, including the groom. The girl was sent to Darul-Aman<br />

(women’s shelter).<br />

March 21, Charsadda: Sayyar was arrested by the police while he was attempting<br />

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to give his daughter as “swara” to a man. He was following a compromise decision<br />

reached by a jirga. Sayyar’s son had eloped with the daughter of his uncle. Police was<br />

reported to be conducting raids to arrest the members of the jirga.<br />

March 27, Sadiqabad: Parveen Akhtar, (8) was married to Khairu, (22) and her<br />

sister Nasreen Akhtar, (5) was married to Waldar, (12) according to a decision of the<br />

panchayat. This was a consequence of their uncle, Bahadar Ali, marrying a woman,<br />

Gulnaz, against the wishes of her family. Parveen was sent with her husband; she<br />

fainted due to shock and was sent home. The victims’ mother, Haleema Bibi, appealed<br />

to the judicial magistrate <strong>for</strong> help. He ordered the Thana Saddar police to present all<br />

persons who had attended the panchayat in his court.<br />

March 28, Khushab: A man tried to marry his daughter to an old man as repayment<br />

<strong>for</strong> a loan. The girl refused and gave her statement in a court. The court sent her to a<br />

shelter home.<br />

April 15, Shikarpur: A jirga was held to settle a dispute involving karo-kari<br />

allegations in Sanwal, Kamalani village in the Rustam area. Rais Talat alias Tallo, Khan<br />

Kamalani Jatoi and Shah Dino Kamalani Jatoi conducted the jirga proceedings. It declared<br />

Bago Kamalani Jatoi guilty of having extra-marital relations with the wife of Adilo<br />

Kamalani. According to the jiriga verdict, two minor girls, Najma, (12) daughter of<br />

Hussain Bux Kamalani, the brother-in-law of Bago, and the 5-year old sister of Bago,<br />

were given in marriage to complainant Adiloo and his brother, respectively. The nikah<br />

of Najma was solemnized. Later, on the directives of Shikarpur DPO the SHO of<br />

Rustam filed an FIR against 21 participants of the jirga.<br />

April 19, Sargodha: An 11-year old girl was given as vani by a panchayat as part<br />

of a reconciliation settlement over a rape case. The father of the girl, Rashid, refused to<br />

accept the decision.<br />

April 21, Dera Ghazi Khan: According to a panchayat’s decision, Zainab, wife<br />

of Ismail, was declared a kari as she had a cell phone.<br />

April 25, Mansehra: A man, Azeem, and a woman, Aliya Bibi, were killed on the<br />

decision of a jirga in the district of Kala Dhaka. Tehsildar Jamshed Khan stated that, “I<br />

regret the killing but what can I do? There is no authority except the jirga system in the<br />

area”. The bodies were handed over to the deceased’s families who buried them.<br />

May 29, Mianwali: Saleem Iqbal, son of Ahmed Khan, of Bhutta Shahnawaz<br />

village, fell in love with Ishrat Bibi, daughter of Sher Khan, of the same area. The<br />

couple ran away and contracted court marriage in Lahore .The girl’s parents convened<br />

a panchayat which decided to give seven-year old Asia, daughter of Saleem’s uncle<br />

Mehr Khan, to Ishrat’s brother Nasir Iqbal, (16) as well as 20 kanals of land to her<br />

family. A nikah khwan solemnized verbal nikah. The panchayat decided to give the girl<br />

to her in-laws after she attained puberty. The panchayat also decided to ban the entry<br />

206 State of Human Rights in 2009


of Saleem Iqbal in the village <strong>for</strong> five years.<br />

June 1, Multan: Asiya, a girl of class 5, was sacrificed at the altar of vani as<br />

compensation <strong>for</strong> an act committed by her cousin, Muhammad Saleem. The girl’s<br />

grandmother, Mehr Bibi, said that her family was <strong>for</strong>ced by notables of the area,<br />

especially Namal Union Council head, to give Asiya’s hand in marriage to the brother of<br />

the girl, Ishrat, who wedded Asia’s cousin after eloping. Asiya’s marriage was solemnized<br />

in line with vani tradition.<br />

June 4, Dera Ghazi Khan: Wahay Khan declared that his sister, Ayesha, and<br />

Farooq Khan had relations. He called a panchayat which exiled Farooq Khan and declared<br />

that if he disobeyed the order he would be shot dead by Wahay Khan. However, Farooq<br />

Khan did not obey the order and was shot dead by Wahay Khan who fled after killing<br />

him. He remained at large <strong>for</strong> one year and then in order to save his life called a<br />

panchayat which declared that his sister, Ayesha, was to be given in marriage to the<br />

deceased’s son, Qasim. The panchayat further decided that two more of Wahay’s<br />

daughters (not yet born) would also be married in the deceased’s family or else he<br />

would have to pay Rs. 50 lakh as compensation. The verdict was accepted by the<br />

culprit.<br />

June 10, Larkana: Rozina Chandio was given as compensation to the Gaincha<br />

tribe, after her father Ahmed Khan Chandio, kidnapped Sahib Khatoon Gaincha, the<br />

wife of Barkat Gaincha.<br />

June 21, Sukkur: By taking timely action, Ghotki police saved the lives of three<br />

women who had been branded ‘kari’ According to the first incident, 2 sisters, Imam<br />

Khatoon, (20) and Shamshad Khatoon, (15) residents of the village Galato were married<br />

to two brothers, Ali Gul Galato and Zamanat Ali Galato . Their father-in-law, Toto<br />

Galato, tried to kill them by shooting them on the charge of karo kari, but they managed<br />

to escape and took refuge in the neighbourhood.<br />

June 26, Khanpur: A Jirga declared a woman Kari. She was killed allegedly by<br />

her husband.<br />

August 24, Dera Ghazi Khan: In a case of vani, two girls were given to the rival<br />

party to resolve a dispute. This was done on the basis of a decision by a panchayat.<br />

October 3, Karachi: A couple was declared as “karo kari” by a local council<br />

(jirga) after they had married without consent of their elders. The couple, Sara Jatoi<br />

and Ismail Soomro, had submitted that they had married of their own free will despite<br />

the opposition of their parents. A tribal council in Sukkur declared them ‘karo kari.’<br />

They maintained that the Jatoi tribal chief, Abid Hussain Jatoi, along with other jirga<br />

members had issued directives that they were to be killed wherever they were sighted.<br />

The newly wed couple had shifted to Islamabad from Karachi to secure their lives<br />

Women 207


against threats.<br />

October 26, Muzaffargarh: In Muzaffargarh’s Tehsil Jatoi, Jawaid allegedly raped<br />

Fauzia, the daughter of Ramzan. The panchayat as punishment, and in keeping with<br />

the ‘vani’ tradition, ordered Jawaid’s 15 days old daughter to be married to Fauzia’s<br />

nephew who was two months old. On the orders of the panchayat, the Nikah was<br />

duly per<strong>for</strong>med. A case has been registered.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. The government should make ef<strong>for</strong>ts to get the bill on domestic violence enacted<br />

as soon as possible.<br />

2. Measures also need to be taken to publicise the law against harassment at<br />

work place so that working women all over the country, especially in the rural areas,<br />

become aware of their legal rights and means of redress in harassment cases.<br />

3. Laws alone will not end violence against women. The government should<br />

make existing mechanisms <strong>for</strong> redress more effective and set up new mechanism that<br />

can ensure that female victims of violence receive justice.<br />

4. All provincial governments must present a bi-annual report to the provincial<br />

legislatures regarding violence against women and the action taken by the administration<br />

in this regard. Allegations of abuse of women by law en<strong>for</strong>cement officials should be<br />

thoroughly investigated by senior officers and the perpetrators brought to justice.<br />

5. All provincial Chief Ministers and Inspectors General of Police should make<br />

a clear declaration that official policy does not permit detention of the female members<br />

of the family of anyone suspected of a crime. Any case of a police officer violating the<br />

law must be thoroughly investigated, the culprit tried and punished, besides any<br />

administrative action against him as required under the law.<br />

208 State of Human Rights in 2009


Children<br />

No child below the age of 14 years shall be engaged in any factory or mine or any<br />

other hazardous employment.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 11 (3)<br />

The state shall protect the marriage, the family, the mother and the child.<br />

The state shall make provisions <strong>for</strong> ... ensuring that children ... are not employed<br />

in vocations unsuited to their age ...<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 37(e)<br />

... Childhood is entitled to special care and assistance.<br />

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child<br />

Preamble<br />

In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private<br />

social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies,<br />

the best interest of the child shall be a primary consideration.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 3(1)<br />

Children, at large, are a disadvantaged section of the Pakistani society as they<br />

suffer <strong>for</strong> lack of attention from both the society and the state. In 2009, the rising food<br />

prices and high unemployment rate pushed more children into the vicious cycle of<br />

poverty. The following statistics give a glimpse of the plight of children in Pakistan.<br />

The infant mortality rate is 73 per 1,000 births; around 20,000 children die of diarrhoea<br />

every year; nearly 20 per cent of the children suffer from asthma; around 35 per cent<br />

to 40 per cent of the children are out of school; 89 per cent of the students - in<br />

Children 209


government schools, private institutions, religious seminaries and non-<strong>for</strong>mal settings<br />

- face physical torture; 52 per cent of the children studying in seminaries experience<br />

sexual harassment; almost 58 per cent of the girls in rural areas are married be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />

age of 20; 11 to 12 million children are engaged in child labour.<br />

According to a<br />

report published by<br />

the International<br />

Labour Organization<br />

(ILO) the prevailing<br />

financial crisis could<br />

push an increasing<br />

number of children,<br />

mainly girls, into<br />

labour <strong>for</strong>ce as<br />

poverty would leave<br />

no option <strong>for</strong><br />

indigent families but<br />

to withdraw their<br />

children from<br />

Poverty-stricken parents sell their child <strong>for</strong> flour school. Child labour<br />

is common in<br />

private homes, brick kilns, carpet manufacturing, workshops, restaurants and farms.<br />

Child health<br />

Infant mortality<br />

At the end of 2009, the country appeared unlikely to reach its Millennium<br />

Development Goals targets <strong>for</strong> child health and maternal health by the deadline of<br />

2015. MDG Four requires that Pakistan must reduce its under-five child mortality rate<br />

by two thirds between 1990 and 2015; from 130 deaths per 1,000 children in 1990 to<br />

85 per 1,000 in 2015. According to the Pakistan Demographic Health Survey (PDHS)<br />

in 2006-2007, this rate was 94 per 1,000 in 2006-7.<br />

This goal seems attainable, especially in cities, but things are dismal in rural areas<br />

and in strife-ridden provinces of North West Frontier Province and Balochistan. MDG<br />

Four also specifies that the country’s infant mortality rate (IMR) should be reduced<br />

from 100 per 1,000 children in 1990 to 40 per 1,000 in 2015. In 2006-7, the rate was<br />

78 per 1,000, according to the PDHS.<br />

Balochistan is the most backward province in Pakistan and with regard to health<br />

care, the situation there is appalling. While the national Infant Mortality Rate average is<br />

77 per 1,000, according to a PPA survey conducted in 2005 in Balochistan, out of a<br />

210 State of Human Rights in 2009


1,000 live births, 102 did not survive. Ten percent of children in Balochistan did not<br />

receive a single immunization. It was common complaint that vaccinators had not been<br />

paid and there was no money <strong>for</strong> purchasing fuel. In many cases vehicles given to lady<br />

health visitor supervisors had been taken away by politicians, or in a tribal area the<br />

service provider was not allowed to work because of ongoing warfare.<br />

The government launched a National Maternal New Born and Child Health (MNCH)<br />

Programme at a cost of Rs 20 billion which aimed at training more than 1,800 midwives<br />

in order to strengthen<br />

the health care delivery<br />

system.<br />

Malnutrition is the<br />

biggest contributor to<br />

child mortality in<br />

Pakistan. According to<br />

figures collected from<br />

the World Bank report<br />

published in 2009,<br />

Pakistan suffered from<br />

a very high rate of child<br />

malnutrition with 39 per<br />

cent of children<br />

moderately or severely<br />

malnourished while<br />

Thousands suffer because of malnutrition<br />

nearly 30 per cent of the children under 5 were malnourished. Malnutrition leads to<br />

stunted growth potential, delays enrolment in school and limits school achievements.<br />

The rural-urban differential in child nutrition and health care continued to be high.<br />

As mentioned by the World Bank, mortality between age 1 and 5 years of children of<br />

the rural educated group was lower than that of the urban uneducated indicating the<br />

strong influence that education of mothers could have on preventing child loss.<br />

Diseases<br />

Infections among children were reported to have increased during 2009. Nearly<br />

60 per cent child deaths could be attributed to water borne-illnesses. More than 20 per<br />

cent of children below 15 in the country suffered from asthma. Skin and respiratory<br />

diseases were on the rise mainly owing to the rising air pollution in Pakistan.<br />

As stated by JORDAN, an NGO, around 200,000 children died of diarrhoea every<br />

year with nearly 560 children dying daily mainly because of untreated water, unhygienic<br />

food and lack of cleanliness in homes and indifference to other cleaning habits like<br />

washing hands be<strong>for</strong>e and after meals.<br />

According to UNICEF, nearly 20,000 out of the 63,000 schools in Punjab did not<br />

Children 211


have the facility of drinking water <strong>for</strong> children, while the drinking water available in<br />

most of the schools that provided the facility was unsafe and unhygienic. <strong>Ar</strong>ound<br />

16,313 schools had obsolete hand pumps installed in their vicinities. Children suffered<br />

from dehydration and various hazardous diseases like diarrhoea, typhoid, fever, cholera<br />

and hepatitis-A owing to lack of safe drinking water in schools.<br />

In an ef<strong>for</strong>t to protect the children from all <strong>for</strong>ms of discrimination, injustices and<br />

maltreatment while providing them with a healthy environment, the Children’s Complaints<br />

Office (CCO) was inaugurated in collaboration with UNICEF in the offices of the<br />

Federal and Provincial Ombudsmen during the year under review.<br />

Immunization and vaccination<br />

The government employed around 85,000 lady health workers, covering almost<br />

60 per cent population of the country, who had been working in the field to promote<br />

health care practices. As claimed by the health authorities, they managed to immunize<br />

four million children against measles over the past five yeaRs<br />

Several Northern districts went through the polio-drive in 2009. However it was<br />

feared that around one million children in the tribal areas missed the vaccination as the<br />

drive could not be launched in areas <strong>for</strong> lack of security concerns and bad weather<br />

conditions. Proper vaccination <strong>for</strong> the internally displaced persons was another problem<br />

faced by health manageRs [Also see chapter on health]<br />

Child education<br />

Studies conducted by the World Bank in 2008 estimated that Pakistan’s child<br />

population of less than 18 years of age was 70 million – out of which almost 20.30<br />

million did not go to school, while around 20.60 million children were less than 5 years<br />

of age.<br />

According to the Thardeep Rural Development Programme 2007 Survey Report<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Protection and Empowerment of Working Children in Sindh, released in<br />

September 2009, about half of the settlements in Pakistan did not have a functional<br />

school – 36 per cent of surveyed settlements did not have any schools while 22 per<br />

cent of the schools surveyed were non-functional due to lack of teaching staff. Almost<br />

46 per cent children surveyed were <strong>found</strong> to be doing nothing while only 22 per cent<br />

were enrolled in school, 36 per cent had dropped out and 42 per cent had never been<br />

enrolled.<br />

Provision of universal primary education remained to be one of the biggest<br />

challenges faced by Pakistan. Un<strong>for</strong>tunately, successive governments failed in their<br />

attempts to raise the literacy levels owing to low budget allocations <strong>for</strong> education. For<br />

that reason af<strong>for</strong>dable and well-equipped public schools could not be set up in sufficient<br />

212 State of Human Rights in 2009


number. [Also see chapter on education.]<br />

In a country like Pakistan, with more than one-third of the population living below<br />

the poverty line, private schools alone cannot meet the education requirements of the<br />

masses. The survey suggested that one out of 40 government schools had no boundary<br />

wall, one-fifth were without electricity and drinking water facility and one-fourth did<br />

not have any class room furniture, while one-seventh did not have lavatories.<br />

According to Society <strong>for</strong> the Protection <strong>for</strong> the Rights of the Child (Sparc), about<br />

40 per cent of Pakistan’s school-going age population did not have access to education.<br />

The education system in Sindh was significantly deteriorating; according to the advisor<br />

to the Sindh Chief Minister nearly 50 per cent of the total child population, aged between<br />

5 and 15 years was still not going to school.<br />

One million<br />

children in the<br />

tribal regions<br />

were facing the<br />

risk of having<br />

their education<br />

interrupted where<br />

conflict with the<br />

Taliban had<br />

damaged schools<br />

or turned them<br />

into civilian<br />

shelters <strong>for</strong><br />

displaced people. Educating the future of Pakistan under a tattered roof<br />

Now that the<br />

families were returning to the north-western districts of Swat and Buner, getting children<br />

back to classes posed a huge challenge to the state.<br />

The World Economic Forum’s latest Global Competitiveness Report ranks Pakistan<br />

117 out of 134 countries in terms of the quality of primary education. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 20 per<br />

cent of the population lacked basic educational facilities. There was a dire need <strong>for</strong><br />

trained teaching staff, an internally competitive standard of curriculum, revision and<br />

modification of text, activity based learning and shift of focus from rote learning to<br />

understanding and analysis.<br />

Pakistan ranked 132 in the literacy chart having a total of 2,600,095 schools out of<br />

which 144,724 schools were in the public sector – total enrolment in these schools<br />

was 30.33 million children. As stated by the UNESCO report in 2008, 45 per cent<br />

children left primary schooling without passing the 5 th grade exam, because of lack of<br />

Children 213


facilities either at school or at their homes. According to a recent report published by<br />

PLAN Pakistan, about 89 per cent of the students in school faced physical torture and<br />

punishments like food restriction, confinement in dark rooms, being hung by a ceiling<br />

fan, beating with baton, severe beating be<strong>for</strong>e class and hanging children upside down.<br />

Government actions<br />

The Child Support Programme was approved by the World Bank in collaboration<br />

with the Pakistan Bait-ul-Maal and was launched in eight districts with the aim of<br />

providing financial assistance to children of deserving families. In an ef<strong>for</strong>t to provide<br />

free education to workers’ children, the government introduced welfare orientated<br />

schemes <strong>for</strong> the labour community in 2009 which included supply of necessities like<br />

text books, uni<strong>for</strong>m, stationery, transport facility, etc. According to the Punjab, Minister<br />

<strong>for</strong> Population Welfare almost 27,000 children of industrial workers were covered<br />

under this programme, studying in 36 workers’ welfare schools across the country.<br />

Child labour<br />

In Pakistan, all labour laws and the Constitution fixes the minimum age of a child<br />

involved in labour to be 14 years – this contradicts the Convention on the Rights of the<br />

Child which prescribes the age of a child to be at least 18 years <strong>for</strong> any involvement in<br />

labour.<br />

More than 3.5<br />

million children in<br />

the country were<br />

involved in labour.<br />

There were around<br />

1.9 million child<br />

labourers in Punjab<br />

alone, despite the<br />

fact that Punjab was<br />

more developed<br />

than other provinces<br />

– there were<br />

650,000 in NWFP,<br />

462,000 in Sindh<br />

There are 1.9 million child labourers in Pakistan and 450,000 child<br />

labourers in<br />

Balochistan. There had been an alarming increase in child labour in the NWFP since<br />

the 2005 earthquake which left 41,700 children orphaned and thousands of them<br />

homeless. A majority of the child workers are boys, <strong>for</strong>ming 73 per cent of the total,<br />

while the remaining 27 per cent of the child workers are girls. Involvement of children<br />

214 State of Human Rights in 2009


in work in rural areas was eight times higher than in urban areas.<br />

The ruthless and illicit activity of involving children in labour in homes, factories<br />

and institutions is very common in the country. <strong>Ar</strong>eas where children are working in<br />

hazardous conditions include surgical instruments manufacturing, glass bangles<br />

production, tanneries, coal mines, seafood cleaning, gas/petrol stations, domestic work,<br />

carpet weaving and bonded labour. Working in these areas puts the health of children at<br />

serious risks.<br />

According to the Thardeep Rural Development Programme 2007 Survey Report<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Protection and Empowerment of Working Children as many as 36 per cent<br />

children – 40 per cent girls and 60 per cent boys were involved in child labour. High<br />

rates of child labour persisted mainly due to the fact that almost 60 per cent of the<br />

households surveyed were below the poverty line while 62 per cent of the households<br />

were <strong>found</strong> to be indebted – 66 per cent of the working children cited contribution to<br />

household income as<br />

the main reason <strong>for</strong><br />

their work. On<br />

average, children<br />

worked 6 hours a day,<br />

6 days a week and 11<br />

months a year,<br />

earning only Rs 1,145<br />

per month. Almost<br />

one-third of the<br />

children were unpaid<br />

workers who worked<br />

with their parents or<br />

elder siblings in the<br />

field or tended<br />

livestock.<br />

Poverty pushed children of school-going age onto the street<br />

If media reports<br />

were to be believed, child labour had been almost eliminated from the Sialkot football<br />

and surgical industry. However the challenge was to provide these children with the<br />

right environment <strong>for</strong> education - more than 70,000 children were rehabilitated with<br />

the help of the International Labour Organization (ILO).<br />

The Punjab government took an initiative to eradicate child labour in the brick kiln<br />

industry at a cost of Rs 123 million. The aim was to provide education to about 11,000<br />

kiln workers along with small loans to the families to repay their debt.<br />

Sexual abuse, exploitation and violence<br />

Surveys showed that nearly half of the children studying in madaris experience<br />

Children 215


sexual harassment, 28 per cent go through unpleasant touching while 20 per cent<br />

suffer from <strong>for</strong>ced sex. According to figures released in a seminar held by PLAN<br />

Pakistan and Save the Children UK, around 6 children were sexually assaulted everyday<br />

and more than 80 per cent of the sexual abuse cases went unreported.<br />

Yearly statistical reports published by the NGO, Sahil, claimed 968 children including<br />

285 boys and 683 girls were sexually abused in the first six months of 2009. Cases<br />

reported in 2008 summed up to 1,838 including 1,298 (70 per cent) girls and 540 (30<br />

per cent) boys. Out of the 1,838 cases reported, as many as 453 were from Sindh, 81<br />

from the federal capital, 35 from NWFP, 10 from Balochistan and 5 from AJK. Girls<br />

between 16 to 18 years of age tend to be the most vulnerable as the number of victims<br />

in 2008 was 169 girls compared to 35 boys.<br />

Cases of child abuse were more common in rural areas mainly due to the fact that<br />

around 70 per cent of the country’s population lives in rural areas. However, the statistics<br />

from the report by Sahil showed that incidence of abuse in rural cases was higher in<br />

Punjab, Sindh and AJK, while in NWFP and Balochistan such cases were reported<br />

mainly from urban areas. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 68 per cent of the cases were reported in Punjab<br />

while in NWFP and Balochistan fewer cases were reported due to the tribal traditions<br />

and local level compromises.<br />

Marrying of underage girls to settle tribal disputes<br />

The menaces of tribalism and illiteracy gave rise to a breakdown of the rule of law<br />

in many parts of the country.<br />

In Sukkur, on March 28, a jirga ordered that a teenaged girl and a minor be given<br />

in marriage to punish their brother <strong>for</strong> eloping with a girl and marrying her against her<br />

parent’s wishes. In Islamabad, on February 6, Haleema, 5, and Ayesha, 8, were married<br />

off to <strong>Ar</strong>shad, 23 and Humayun, 15, in Vani cases; their uncle had contracted a court<br />

marriage with a girl of the boy’s family and the girls were offered in marriage to settle<br />

the dispute. On November 9, in Lal Khan Jatoi village, a jirga ordered a seven year old<br />

girl to marry a 15 years old boy to settle a dispute over karo-kari between two warring<br />

groups.<br />

A lack of will on the part of the administration to implment rule of law fuels many<br />

tribal conflicts and the administration, particularly the police, become a tool in the<br />

hands of the landed aristocracy.<br />

Use of children by militants<br />

According to intelligence officials, more than 5,000 child suicide bombers between<br />

the ages of 10 and 17 have been have been trained by Taliban so far. Money is used to<br />

enroll the recruits and a suicide bomber could be hired at 5 to 25 lakh rupees. The<br />

military showed reporters video footage of a classroom where a masked teacher taught<br />

children how to carry out a suicide attack. The children, sitting in rows, were wearing<br />

white headbands inscribed with Quranic verses. On April 6, a child suicide bomber<br />

216 State of Human Rights in 2009


lew himself up at a Shia mosque in Chakwal district killing 26 people and injuring<br />

more than 50.<br />

Some of the boys who escaped from Taliban camps in Swat have claimed that as<br />

many as 400 children were still kept at the camps. A young boy in Swat recalled how<br />

the Taliban had kidnapped him and his classmate while the two were playing in the<br />

street. In August, the army recovered 20 such boys in Swat; many more were believed<br />

to be in Taliban hands. Three of the boys, at a news briefing, appeared to be younger<br />

than ten and were visibly traumatized and occasionally broke down in teaRs The<br />

others were mostly in their mid- teens. The Taliban wanted to turn these boys into<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mants, fighters or suicide bombeRs<br />

Juvenile justice<br />

There were about 9,000 to 10,000 juvenile offenders in Pakistan while as many as<br />

2,500 children were languishing in different jails of the country in 2009 – a majority of<br />

them <strong>for</strong> petty crimes. There were around 723 juvenile offenders at the Karachi and<br />

Hyderabad jails in 2009 – seven of them were convicts while the rest were under trial.<br />

Juvenile offenders were not only maltreated but were also <strong>for</strong>ced to undertake various<br />

kinds of strenuous labour. The justice system often condemned them to unnecessary<br />

trial over prolonged periods of time, and in jails they were faced with sexual abuse and<br />

physical torture. According to research collected through media reports, around 70 per<br />

cent of all children who came under the juvenile justice system were abused. Due to<br />

inadequate capacity of jails and lack of detention cells children were <strong>for</strong>ced to share<br />

detention cells with older offendeRs Lack of resources and their inefficient management<br />

made the juveniles suffer.<br />

Street children<br />

Due to sheer negligence on the part of the state, the number of street children in<br />

the country rose to<br />

1.5 million,<br />

according to the<br />

statistics presented<br />

in the Senate<br />

sanding committee<br />

– 30,000 of these<br />

homeless children<br />

were in Karachi.<br />

The increase in the<br />

number of street<br />

children was due to<br />

a high population<br />

Street children enjoy a little moment of light heartedness<br />

growth rate,<br />

Children 217


urbanization, poverty and non-implementation of child security laws. Moreover, child<br />

labour, poor quality of education, corporal punishment and abusive environments at<br />

home add to their misery and encourage them to run away from homes.<br />

According to the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), substance abuse amongst<br />

street children reached alarming levels – children were <strong>found</strong> hooked to glue, paint and<br />

petrol sniffing and this became a serious problem in the bigger cities. There were<br />

around 14,000 street children in Karachi who were addicted to glue sniffing, thus<br />

risking damage to their brain, kidneys, liver, heart and myocardium.<br />

Corporal punishment<br />

It was estimated that the incidence of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan<br />

stood at 86 per cent. Findings of an NGO, PLAN Pakistan, from three districts (Chakwal,<br />

Vehari and Islamabad) showed that 93 per cent students in government schools, 86 per<br />

cent in private institutions, 83 per cent in religious seminaries and 73 per cent in non<strong>for</strong>mal<br />

settings faced severe punishments. Children not only suffer physical torture,<br />

like cane beating, targeted organ torture and stick beating, but are also subjected to<br />

emotional violence such as discriminating behaviour, indifference towards gender, ethnic<br />

discrimination and usage of obscene and humiliating language.<br />

Kidnapping, murder and trafficking<br />

Incidence of torture upon children followed by kidnapping has been prevalent in<br />

the country often involving demands <strong>for</strong> handsome amount of ransom from the child’s<br />

family. As an example, Junaid, 8 years old, was kidnapped from Haripur while he was<br />

on his way to a nearby seminary on 26 January 2009. The kidnappers later made phone<br />

calls to the boy’s family demanding ransom of Rs 3 million, which was impossible <strong>for</strong><br />

his family to fulfil. However, after several negotiations the kidnappers met the family at<br />

a designated place where the police was able to catch the offenders, one of whom was<br />

Junaid’s first cousin.<br />

A trend of violence against and abduction of minority girls also attracted public<br />

attention in 2009. In Sindh, many Hindu girls were reportedly abducted, converted to<br />

Islam <strong>for</strong>cibly and married off to Muslim men. Other religious minorities were also<br />

facing similar threats. An emerging threat to the rights of children was the increasing<br />

use of children <strong>for</strong> militancy as experienced in the previous year as well. Officials in<br />

the Swat district expressed concern that boys were being kidnapped by militants to be<br />

trained <strong>for</strong> suicide attacks.<br />

If newspaper reports were to be believed, the trafficking of children <strong>for</strong> camel<br />

races in Dubai had been eliminated especially after the ban imposed by the UAE<br />

government. This was also facilitated by the acquisition of land by the Punjab government<br />

218 State of Human Rights in 2009


measuring 3.5 acres in Rahim Yar Khan to build a child protection institute at a cost of<br />

Rs 40 million. As much as 450 camel jockeys had been brought back to Rahim Yar<br />

Khan since the year 2005.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Steps are required to educate parents and teachers to recognize and prevent<br />

child sexual abuse and help the affected children<br />

2. The Child Protection Bill should be approved<br />

3. Domestic child labour must be included in the worst <strong>for</strong>ms of labour<br />

4. The Pakistani Penal Code (PPC) needs to be amended to disallow corporal<br />

punishment of children and effectively implement the Protection of Children<br />

(Amendment) Bill 2009 and the National Commission on the Rights of Children Bill<br />

2009.<br />

5. There is an urgent need <strong>for</strong> proper implementation of the Juvenile Justice<br />

System Ordinance (JJSO). The ordinance disallows use of handcuffs while arresting a<br />

child, considers detention as an option of the last resort, and supports the principle<br />

that trial of children under 18 should be held in exclusive juvenile courts.<br />

Children 219


Labour<br />

The state shall ensure the elimination of all <strong>for</strong>ms of exploitation and the gradual<br />

fulfilment of the fundamental principle, from each according to his ability, to each<br />

according to his work.<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 3<br />

Slavery is non-existent and <strong>for</strong>bidden and no law shall permit or facilitate its<br />

introduction into Pakistan in any <strong>for</strong>m. All <strong>for</strong>ms of <strong>for</strong>ced labour and traffic in human<br />

beings are prohibited. No child below the age of 14 years shall be engaged in any<br />

factory or mine or any other hazardous employment.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 11 (1-3)<br />

Every citizen shall have the right to <strong>for</strong>m associations or unions, subject to any<br />

reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of sovereignty or integrity of<br />

Pakistan, public order or morality.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 17(1)<br />

...<br />

The state shall make provision <strong>for</strong> securing just and humane conditions of work<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 37(c)<br />

The state shall secure the well-being of the people, irrespective of sex, caste,<br />

creed and race, by raising their standard of living, by preventing the concentration of<br />

wealth and means of production and distribution in the hands of a few to the detriment<br />

of general interest and by ensuring equitable adjustment of rights between employers<br />

and employees, and landlords and tenants; provide <strong>for</strong> all citizens, within the available<br />

resources of the country, facilities <strong>for</strong> work and adequate livelihood with reasonable<br />

rest and leisure; provide <strong>for</strong> all persons, employed in the service of Pakistan or<br />

otherwise, social security by compulsory social insurance or other means; provide<br />

220 State of Human Rights in 2009


asic necessities of life, such as food, clothing, housing, education and medical<br />

relief, <strong>for</strong> all such citizens, irrespective of sex, caste, creed or race, as are permanently<br />

or temporarily unable to earn their livelihood on account of infirmity, sickness or<br />

unemployment; reduce disparity in the income and earnings of individuals ...<br />

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 38(a) to (e)<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

Everyone, as a member of society, has a right to social security ....<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 4<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 22<br />

Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable<br />

conditions of work and to protection against unemployment. Everyone, without any<br />

discrimination, has the right to equal pay <strong>for</strong> equal work. Everyone who works has the<br />

right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring <strong>for</strong> himself and his family an<br />

existence worthy of human dignity and supplemented, if necessary, by other means<br />

of social protection. Everyone has the right to <strong>for</strong>m and to join trade unions <strong>for</strong> the<br />

protection of his interests.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 23 (1-4)<br />

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of<br />

working hours and periodic holiday with pay.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 24<br />

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate <strong>for</strong> the health and wellbeing<br />

of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care<br />

and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment,<br />

sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances<br />

beyond his control.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 25(1)<br />

State parties recognise the right of the child to be protected from economic<br />

exploitation and from per<strong>for</strong>ming any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere<br />

with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental,<br />

spiritual, moral or social development.<br />

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 32(1)<br />

In 2009, socio-economic conditions of the labour community were precarious in<br />

Pakistan and the twin pressures of inflation and unemployment made the situation<br />

worse. The inflation rate hovered around 20 per cent during the year under review.<br />

Labour 221


The diminished purchasing power severely impaired the capacity of poor households<br />

to seek healthcare and children’s education. Similarly, the country’s overall GDP also<br />

showed a low growth at two per cent during the fiscal year 2008-09 thus adversely<br />

affecting the level of employment.<br />

Poverty<br />

The average GDP growth of 5.2 per cent during the last decade did not translate<br />

into a more equitable distribution of wealth in the society. Recent estimates showed<br />

that nearly a quarter of the country’s population remained poor, with 62 million people<br />

living below the poverty line in the year 2009 as estimated by the official Task Force on<br />

Food Security.<br />

A typically large poverty-stricken family waits around<br />

the stove <strong>for</strong> a meal<br />

According to a<br />

finance ministry survey<br />

released in October,<br />

almost 75 per cent of the<br />

poor in Pakistan were<br />

clustered around the<br />

poverty line. A slight<br />

increase in income could<br />

drive a large number of<br />

people above it, while<br />

one crop failure or<br />

economic shock could<br />

send millions below the<br />

red line.<br />

The World Bank<br />

estimated that the poverty<br />

head count rate could<br />

increase to more than 25<br />

per cent by 2009-10.<br />

These findings can be explained by the poverty analysis by Asian Development Bank<br />

that showed that extreme pockets of poverty existed in rural Sindh and southern Punjab<br />

while entire Balochistan was poor by all indicators of poverty and development.<br />

Labour <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

The last Labour Force Survey (LFS) was conducted by the Federal Bureau of<br />

Statistics (FBS) in 2006-07. The most recent figures came from the Pakistan Economic<br />

Survey 2008-09 that estimated the labour <strong>for</strong>ce at 51.78 million – 40.82 million male<br />

and 10.96 million female workers. As per official estimates, while the female participation<br />

222 State of Human Rights in 2009


Labourers wait <strong>for</strong> work on a Sunday<br />

in the labour <strong>for</strong>ce increased in 2009, the female participation rate was lower than the<br />

male participation rate as compared to the previous year. Out of the total labour <strong>for</strong>ce,<br />

49.09 million were employed while 2.69 million remained jobless. Thus, the<br />

unemployment rate stood at 5.20 per cent in 2007-08. This no longer appeared to be<br />

the case during 2009.<br />

The employed labour <strong>for</strong>ce was mainly concentrated in the agriculture sector<br />

which accounted <strong>for</strong> 44.65 per cent of the total work<strong>for</strong>ce, while the share of the<br />

manufacturing sector stood at 12.99 per cent. The employed labour <strong>for</strong>ce in agriculture<br />

sector increased by 1.04 per cent in 2008-09 over the previous year. However<br />

manufacturing and social and personal services registered a decline during 2009 mainly<br />

owing to the slowdown of economic activity caused by recession.<br />

The in<strong>for</strong>mal sector accounted <strong>for</strong> about 73 per cent of the main jobs outside<br />

agriculture - more in rural (75 per cent) than in the urban areas (71 per cent). On the<br />

contrary, <strong>for</strong>mal sector activities were more concentrated in urban areas (30 per cent)<br />

than in rural areas (25 per cent). In<strong>for</strong>mal employment showed an increase in recent<br />

years, more <strong>for</strong> female job seekers than <strong>for</strong> men, especially in the rural areas.<br />

Labour laws and policies<br />

Even though labour laws were amended in the books, the actual situation remained<br />

unchanged. Despite the presence of an independent judiciary, the labourers of Pakistan<br />

remained deprived of justice in 2009. According to the National Trade Union Federation,<br />

the two labour courts in Lahore had been without any judges <strong>for</strong> the last few years.<br />

Labour 223


Nearly 1,000 cases were pending in these courts till the first half of 2009. Furthermore,<br />

the ban on labour inspection was not lifted even by the new democratic government<br />

elected in 2008. No progress was also made on the issue of a separate labour court <strong>for</strong><br />

the capital city of Islamabad.<br />

Trade unions<br />

Restrictions on trade union activities, a permanent feature of the industrial scene,<br />

increased under the Industrial Relations Act approved in 2008 by the current National<br />

Assembly. The Act was not in accordance with the International Labour Organization<br />

(ILO) conventions and was rejected by all trade unions.<br />

According to the Punjab Labour Minister, during the year 2009 only 200,000 of<br />

the total number of 600,000 industrial workers registered with the Labour Department<br />

were issued social security cards. There are about 0.5 million workers in the power<br />

loom sector but only 20,000 had social security cards.<br />

Setting up of trade unions or involvement in any kind of union activity in factories<br />

could result in false charges, arrests, kidnappings, physical torture and even death. On<br />

May 16, police in Faisalabad registered cases of robbery against more than 1,300<br />

labourers who had joined hands to <strong>for</strong>m a trade union. The management of the factory<br />

also sacked 15 members of the union. According to a trade union source in 2009,<br />

20,000 labourers were sacked from factories as a punishment <strong>for</strong> attempting to <strong>for</strong>m<br />

trade unions.<br />

Trade unions in some industries, including the Export Processing Zone, were<br />

totally banned. In May 2009, 34 trade union leaders were arrested in Punjab. During<br />

this period the police also registered cases against 1,300 workers who were involved in<br />

trade union<br />

activities.<br />

Rikshaw trade union workers protest the rise in CNG prices<br />

The fixation<br />

of the minimum<br />

wage of Rs.<br />

6,000 by the<br />

government was<br />

followed by<br />

many factories<br />

downsizing their<br />

work<strong>for</strong>ce and<br />

increasing duty<br />

hours. Since<br />

there were no<br />

trade unions in<br />

224 State of Human Rights in 2009


most industries in Faisalabad, the affected labourers had no plat<strong>for</strong>m to voice their<br />

protest from. Furthermore, about 100 workers were sacked in Karachi <strong>for</strong> joining<br />

trade unions during February-June 2009.<br />

Following the present government’s decision to lift the ban on trade unions, more<br />

than 300 trade unions were registered in Sindh as compared to only 16 in Faisalabad.<br />

Trade unions in Sindh also successfully blocked the privatization of Qadirpur gas field.<br />

Workers unions had vehemently opposed the government’s decision to privatize<br />

the Pakistan Railways. There had been a steady decline in the number of permanent<br />

employees and an increase in the number of contract workers, clearly indicating the<br />

government’s privatization strategy.<br />

The proposed leasing out of the Jamshoro and Kotri power stations (Genco-I) in<br />

March 2009 triggered a wave of protests and strikes by the employees of the Jamshoro<br />

power house. According to the union leaders, these units were earning substantial<br />

profits and there was no reason to privatize them.<br />

The Punjab government in April 2009 announced the privatization of Solid Waste<br />

Management (SWM) which, according to PML-Q MNA and minority leader Akram<br />

Masih Gill, could deprive 10,000 people of their jobs – 90 per cent of them Christians<br />

who are already a victim of discriminatory treatment as minorities.<br />

Minimum wage<br />

The federal and provincial governments fixed the minimum wage at Rs. 4,000 per<br />

month in July 2006, Rs.4,600 in July 2007 and Rs. 6,000 in July 2008. However, over<br />

70 per cent of mill owners did not implement the government notifications and were<br />

paying only Rs. 3,000-5,000 per month to many workers in blatant violation of law.<br />

The industrial organizations had been openly violating the Factory Act 1934.<br />

According to Pakistan Workers Federation, despite government notifications factory<br />

owners were not observing the quota in jobs <strong>for</strong> the disabled persons and employees’<br />

children.<br />

In early 2009, a textile spinning mill in Pir Mahal, Punjab, did not pay salaries to<br />

hundreds of its employees <strong>for</strong> three consecutive months which led to protests against<br />

the mill management. The protesting employees, instead of being given their fundamental<br />

labour rights, were baton-charged by the police, and some of them were seriously<br />

injured.<br />

Workers of some apparel and hosiery factories in Lahore staged a demonstration<br />

outside the Lahore Press Club in March protesting against the termination of their<br />

services and payment of two months’ salary and five months’ overtime. The workers<br />

were sacked when they demanded the payment <strong>for</strong> overtime.<br />

Most industrial organizations not only denied holidays to their workers even on<br />

Labour 225


public holidays but there was also no provision <strong>for</strong> earned or casual leave in the contracts<br />

that the employees were made to sign. Many industrial organizations did not issue<br />

appointment letters to workers who were also not registered under EOBI and were<br />

thus deprived of medical and other benefits.<br />

Contract employees<br />

According to a labour federation, around 90 per cent of workers in the private<br />

sector in Karachi did not have appointment letters and as a result they could not <strong>for</strong>m<br />

a trade union.<br />

As many as 660 porters, working at the Lahore Railway Station, were hired by<br />

contractors who extort Rs. 400 every month from each porter, while they themselves<br />

paid only Rs. 50 per porter to the railway authorities. As per the contract signed by the<br />

porters, half the money received from each passenger went to the contractor. Apart<br />

from that, they had to carry the luggage of railway authorities every day without being<br />

paid <strong>for</strong> it.<br />

Downsizing<br />

A large number of industries in Pakistan were closed down in 2009 <strong>for</strong> various<br />

reasons, especially in the NWFP and Balochistan. Media reports said 25 per cent of<br />

industrial units in Karachi were declared sick in 2009.<br />

The world economic recession which started in 2008 caused thousands of people<br />

to lose their jobs. According to the Textile Ministry, about 94 big-sized units closed<br />

down in 2008 due to high mark-up rates, energy crisis and poor law and order. In all<br />

245 hosiery and knitwear units had closed down between 2005 and 2009. According<br />

to All-Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), the sector directly employed 3<br />

million people. Owing to load-shedding of electricity and gas, more than 350,000<br />

workers of the textile mills lost jobs in the Punjab province alone.<br />

A large number of people who lost their means of livelihood because of the ban on<br />

cycle rickshaws and two-stroke auto-rickshaws in Lahore during the 1990s and later<br />

were still without a source of income.<br />

Unemployment<br />

According to the Economic Survey of Pakistan, the overall unemployment rate<br />

remained at 5 per cent in 2008-09. Out of a total labour <strong>for</strong>ce of 51.78 million in 2008-<br />

09, 2.69 million were unemployed. However, the unemployment estimates quoted by<br />

civil society organisations far exceed those of official statistics. According to the Berozgar<br />

Noujawan Tehrik there were 38.4 million jobless youth in 2009, of whom 14.5 million<br />

were educated.<br />

In 2009, millions of industrial workers lost their jobs due to the closure of industrial<br />

226 State of Human Rights in 2009


units caused by the<br />

shortage of gas and<br />

electricity. A<br />

substantial cut in the<br />

development budget<br />

adversely affected<br />

the pace of employment<br />

generation<br />

during the year under<br />

review. In addition,<br />

terrorist activities and<br />

subsequent military<br />

operations in<br />

Malakand Division<br />

Queue outside a police recruitment camp<br />

and South Waziristan<br />

seriously disrupted economic activities over a vast area. Millions of people left their<br />

homes and during all this period remained mostly unemployed.<br />

The year 2009 witnessed numerous strikes by workers against rising inflation,<br />

unemployment, violation of labour rights, increasing power shortages and closure of<br />

second shifts in mills. Hundreds of traders and power-loom workers took out rallies<br />

against unscheduled load-shedding in Kamalia, Gojra, Malakwal, Mailsi, Faisalabad,<br />

and Pakpattan.<br />

Labour migration<br />

Despite multiplying visa restrictions the outflow of workers from Pakistan had<br />

been phenomenal in the last four decades. During 1971-2008 a total of 4.5 million<br />

workers went abroad, mostly to the Middle East. During the current decade, the number<br />

of workers going abroad averaged around 223,000 a year going up to 430,000 in 2008.<br />

The Labour Ministry reported that during March 2008-January 2009, 403,198<br />

Pakistanis were sent abroad by the government <strong>for</strong> employment, including 2,453 doctors<br />

and 1,146 other medical professionals.<br />

Workplace hazards<br />

Thousands of workers put their life and limb at risk while working in various<br />

hazardous industries. According to a report, during the last five years, more than 24<br />

employees of stone crushing units died and over 400 suffered from chronic lung and<br />

respiratory diseases in Gabbar Wah village in Taunsa Sharif tehsil. Most of the workers<br />

were unaware of the risk they faced because of continuous exposure to dust and sand<br />

particles in these units. On March 12, three dozen labourers fainted and fell unconscious<br />

Labour 227


when the building of a textile mills in Faisalabad caught fire and emergency services<br />

were not available.<br />

Apart from the Factories Act 1934, there were six other laws that prescribed<br />

working conditions <strong>for</strong> the safety of employees. However, most of them remained<br />

unimplemented as a lot of businesses operated in<strong>for</strong>mally while others were not even<br />

registered with the Labour Department. For the health and safety of workers, it was<br />

necessary that they were provided with proper equipment like fire extinguishers, masks<br />

and gloves, that could protect them against the risks at work posed by chemicals,<br />

smoke, fire, etc.<br />

According to the Secretary-General of Pakistan WAPDA Hydro-Electric Central<br />

Labour Union, on an average more than 100 WAPDA employees died every year during<br />

maintenance of power supply lines while many more suffered serious injuries owing to<br />

lack of proper safety gear at the workplace.<br />

Women and children at work<br />

Most women in Pakistan worked in the in<strong>for</strong>mal sector often as home-based<br />

workers. Domestic workers, usually illiterate and unskilled, were not covered by the<br />

labour laws and because of that they were <strong>for</strong>ced to work <strong>for</strong> long hours <strong>for</strong> extremely<br />

low wages. Home based women workers did not receive any protection or coverage<br />

from law as they did not fall under definition of workers in the Factories Act 1934,<br />

Payment of Wages Act 1936, Industrial Relations Ordinance or the Maternity Benefits<br />

Ordinance 1958.<br />

The labour policy 2002 recognized home-based working women <strong>for</strong> the first time,<br />

taking into account the fact that domestic working women were not covered by any<br />

labour welfare organization. This was despite the fact that home-based women workers<br />

annually contributed<br />

an estimated $4<br />

billion worth of<br />

<strong>for</strong>eign exchange to<br />

the national<br />

economy.<br />

Looking <strong>for</strong> livelihood in the city’s leftovers<br />

According to a<br />

Lahore District<br />

Council member<br />

(labour), more than<br />

50,000 women<br />

were working in the<br />

Lahore Township<br />

Industrial <strong>Ar</strong>ea in<br />

228 State of Human Rights in 2009


2009. Women workers were denied their basic rights due to the lack of a women’s<br />

trade union. They were denied equal wages with men and were deprived of social<br />

security and other benefits.<br />

Due to the absence of official data and reliable figures on home-based workers,<br />

reliance had to placed mainly on newspaper reports according to which the number of<br />

women in the in<strong>for</strong>mal labour <strong>for</strong>ce stood at 12.79 million in 2009. Of these, around<br />

8.52 million women, constituting 75 per cent of the total in<strong>for</strong>mal sector workers,<br />

were home-based. While about 50,000 women worked in the garment sector in the<br />

Korangi Industrial Zone in Karachi, over 20,000 women were employed in Multan’s<br />

cottage industry which produced hand-embroidered cloth <strong>for</strong> clothing and household<br />

linen.<br />

Children<br />

Children working in homes, factories, restaurants and other places were a common<br />

sight. Sectors where children worked in hazardous conditions included surgical<br />

instruments manufacturing, glass bangles production, tanneries, coal mines, deep-sea<br />

picking, gas/petrol stations, domestic work, carpet weaving and brick kilns.<br />

The main reasons why children were made to work were: (a) Low wages ranging<br />

from Rs. 50 to 100 a day; (b) considerable capacity to bear ill-treatment and abuses by<br />

supervisors; and (c) Extreme poverty that did not leave the family with any other<br />

choice but to put children to work.<br />

A report by the Thardeep Rural Development Programme published in 2009, said<br />

as many as 36 per cent children in the area were working. High rates of child labour<br />

persisted because almost<br />

60 per cent of the<br />

households surveyed<br />

were below the poverty<br />

line while 62 per cent of<br />

the households were<br />

<strong>found</strong> to be in debt. 66 per<br />

cent of the working<br />

children cited<br />

contribution to household<br />

income as the main reason<br />

<strong>for</strong> working. On an<br />

average, children worked<br />

6 hours a day, 6 days a<br />

A child working at a car workshop<br />

week and 11 months a<br />

Labour 229


year, earning only Rs. 1,145 per month. Almost one-third of the children were unpaid<br />

workers who worked with their parents or elder siblings in the field.<br />

Bonded labour<br />

As could be seen from the cases listed in this chapter, bonded labour was common<br />

at farms in the districts of Mirpurkhas, Sanghar and Umerkot in Sindh and southern<br />

Punjab and at brick kilns and power looms in central districts of Punjab. It was estimated<br />

that around 1.7 million people were working as bonded labour in the agriculture sector<br />

of the country.<br />

These cases also reveal that even when the victims were freed from the illegal<br />

confinement of landlords or brick-kiln owners on the orders of courts, the perpetrators<br />

of the crime were never brought to justice. Not a single person accused of keeping<br />

people illegally detained <strong>for</strong> months or years was ever punished by a court of law. The<br />

Mirpurkhas police, however, claimed in November 2009 that it could not proceed<br />

against the people indicted in bonded labour cases because the people recovered did<br />

not file complaints against the landlords.<br />

In April, the issue of bonded labour at powerlooms in Faisalabad, relatively less<br />

known, came to the surface with the recovery of two labourers from the illegal custody<br />

of a factory owner.<br />

In 2009, there were 13,000 brick kilns in the country where one million labourers,<br />

including women and children, were estimated to be employed. A very large number of<br />

them were bonded labourers through an illegal advance payment system. Influential<br />

politicians and their relatives owned most of these brick kilns. It was common knowledge<br />

that the kiln owners, in collaboration with corrupt police officials, often got criminal<br />

cases registered against the labourers to keep them under their control.<br />

A number of the brick kiln labourers were deprived of Computerised National<br />

Identity Cards because they did not have birth certificates and permanent addresses.<br />

Owing to this, these labourers could not get registered as voters and benefit from<br />

social security schemes and other welfare programmes <strong>for</strong> low-income people launched<br />

by the government.<br />

A majority of bonded labourers in Pakistan belong to religious or low- caste minorities<br />

– Hindus in Sindh and Christians in Punjab - who are both physically and emotionally<br />

abused by the employers. Human trafficking is also a part of the bonded labour system<br />

which allowed buying and selling of labourers between employers. Under this system,<br />

the new employer agrees to take on the labourer’s debt by paying the previous employer<br />

the amount of debt owed by the worker.<br />

To press their demand <strong>for</strong> land re<strong>for</strong>ms and amendments in the Sindh Tenancy Act<br />

230 State of Human Rights in 2009


1950, on 15 th February 2009, thousands of peasants and activists, both men and women,<br />

congregated at the mausoleum of Haider Bux Jatoi. Of these around 200 people including<br />

150 landless peasants set out <strong>for</strong> a long march to Karachi on foot, via various stops in<br />

rural Sindh. The peasants’ long march which ended on 26 February at the Sindh<br />

Assembly building highlighted the plight of slave farmers.<br />

Below are the bonded labour cases in which courts intervened to provide relief<br />

during 2009.<br />

January 1: On the<br />

directives of district and sessions<br />

judge, Umerkot, police raided a<br />

farm after one Bharumal filed an<br />

application seeking release of the<br />

20 people detained illegally by the<br />

landlord. The detained people<br />

were produced in the court that<br />

set them free.<br />

January 2: An NGO, the<br />

Bonded Labour Freedom<br />

Movement, Pakistan staged a<br />

demonstration outside Lahore<br />

Press Club against police <strong>for</strong> not<br />

recovering allegedly detained<br />

seven labourers, including Nasir<br />

Masih and Pervez Masih, from<br />

the custody of two landlords in<br />

Muridke and Sheikhupura.<br />

Moreover, one labourer,<br />

Workers outside a kiln<br />

Muzaffar Masih, was recovered<br />

from the custody of a landlord of Lahorian Village and Shamsher Masih was recovered<br />

from the custody of two landlords at Kaloki Village but the police did not take action<br />

against the accused.<br />

January 2: On a directive from the district and sessions court, Mirpurkhas, police<br />

raided a brick kiln and recovered 13 bonded labourers, including women, from the<br />

captivity of the owner of the kiln, located on Sindhri Road near Mirpur Minor. They<br />

were produced in the court that set them free.<br />

January 7: The Sanghar, police recovered 21 labourers, including women and<br />

children, from the illegal custody of a brick kiln owner at Shahdadpur Shahji Chakar<br />

Labour 231


Road in Shahdadpur. The recovered people said they were <strong>for</strong>ced to work at kiln in day<br />

time and were detained, tied in chains, at night.<br />

January 11: Police recovered 34 haris, including 7 women and 21 children, from<br />

the alleged illegal private prison of a landlord in the Jhol Police Station area of Sanghar<br />

district. The recovered farm labourers said the landlord would <strong>for</strong>ce them to work <strong>for</strong><br />

15 hours at his farm, torture women and not allow them to go outside the farm limits.<br />

January 15: The Chief Justice of LHC took suo motu notice of a press report<br />

about an incident in Gujrat district in which both feet of a labourer, Abid Hussain, were<br />

cut off.<br />

January 15: On the directives of the district and sessions judge, Umerkot, police<br />

raided a farm and recovered nine bonded labourers. The court set them free. The<br />

recovered people said they had been working at the farm <strong>for</strong> two years, but on demanding<br />

their share in the crop, the landlord detained them in his prison and blocked their<br />

movement.<br />

January 18: On the direction of district and sessions judge, Lahore, a court bailiff,<br />

assisted by local police, raided a brick kiln and recovered nine people, including women<br />

and children, detained illegally by the kiln owner at Raiwind Road, Lahore. The court<br />

set the recovered people free.<br />

January 21: On the directive of the district and sessions judge, Umerkot, police<br />

recovered 17 people, including four women and five children, detained illegally at a<br />

farm in Faqir Muhammad <strong>Ar</strong>ain Village. The landlord had deputed armed men to block<br />

their movement. One Dahio Bheel had filed the petition in the court against the workers’<br />

illegal detention.<br />

January 22: Police recovered 93 people, including women and children, belonging<br />

to 18 families, after raid on a brick kiln near Jhuddo, Tando Bago Taluka in Badin<br />

district. The victims said they had been working at the brick kiln <strong>for</strong> eight years but the<br />

kiln owner gradually reduced their wages and when they demanded a raise in wages,<br />

the owner blocked their free movement and <strong>for</strong>ced them to work on subsistence food.<br />

Two of the detainees had fled and filed the petitions in the sessions’ court, which had<br />

directed the police to raid the kiln.<br />

January 27: The District and Sessions Judge, Mirpurkhas, freed 10 peasants<br />

after they were produced in court by the police that had recovered them from a farm,<br />

near 10-Mile Stop in the jurisdiction of Dilbar Maher police station. The recovered men<br />

said they were <strong>for</strong>ced to work at the farm at gun-point.<br />

January 31: Lahore High Court set free 18 people, including six children, after<br />

they were recovered by bailiff from the illegal detention in the house of a brick kiln’s<br />

owner in Mauza Burki, Lahore. The recovered people said they had been detained <strong>for</strong><br />

232 State of Human Rights in 2009


more than 10 months. The kiln owner requested the court to order repayment of<br />

Rs90,000 that he claimed to have given the labourers as advance payment, but the<br />

court turned down his plea.<br />

February 3: The district and sessions judge, Umerkot freed 20 labourers, including<br />

three women and 15 children, who had been recovered by the police from illegal<br />

detention at a farm where they had been working <strong>for</strong> eight years.<br />

February 9: The Lahore Sessions Judge freed six members of a family recovered<br />

by the bailiff in Nurpur area, Lahore Cantonment. Their employer said he had given the<br />

family Rs55,000 in advance to work as house servants.<br />

February 20: LHC freed 19 people, including six children, recovered by a bailiff<br />

from the captivity of a brick kiln owner in Manga Mandi area near Lahore. The court<br />

also turned down the kiln owner request that the freed men be ordered to repay him the<br />

Rs95,000 he said he had paid them in advance.<br />

February 25: Acting on a complaint filed with the Regional Police Officer, the<br />

Umerkot police recovered and set free 23 farm labourers, including five women and 15<br />

children. The family of the freed people worked on the farm <strong>for</strong> 23 years and were<br />

subjected to torture by the landlord whenever they asked <strong>for</strong> their share in the crop.<br />

February 27: The LHC set free 18 people, including women and children, recovered<br />

by the police from the custody of a brick kiln owner in Agoki area in Sialkot district.<br />

Amanat Masih had moved the court <strong>for</strong> their recovery saying his relatives had been in<br />

illegal detention <strong>for</strong> more than seven months. The court also rejected a plea by the kiln<br />

owner to order the released people to return Rs120,000 he claimed to have paid them<br />

in advance.<br />

March 4: The Kasur District and Sessions Judge freed 11 people, including women<br />

and children, recovered by the Pattoki Police from the custody of a brick kiln owner.<br />

The freed people complained they were subjected to torture and insult by the kin<br />

owner.<br />

March 15: On the directive of the First Additional Sessions Judge, Badin, the<br />

Pangrio police recovered and released 47 people, including women and children, from<br />

the custody of two local landlords.<br />

March 16: Mirpurkhas District and Sessions Judge freed 11 people belonging to a<br />

family, including three children, recovered from the farm of a police official in Faqir<br />

Thebo Village in Phuladiyoon area.<br />

March 17: Dera Ismail Khan District and Sessions Judge got seven labourers<br />

recovered from illegal custody and released them.<br />

March 17: A judicial magistrate, in Umerkot assisted by police, recovered six<br />

Labour 233


people, one woman and five children, detained at a farm. The released men were<br />

produced in the district and sessions court which ordered the accused landlord to<br />

appear in the court. The released woman, Tara, said she had worked at the farm <strong>for</strong> 14<br />

years but on demanding the share in the crop she was maltreated and kept under<br />

detention. One woman, Surto Oad, had escaped the captivity and moved the court.<br />

March 19: An LHC bailiff recovered 28 people from illegal confinement <strong>for</strong> more<br />

than 14 months at a brick kiln in Manga Mandi. The kiln owner said he had paid them<br />

Rs 550,000 in advance.<br />

March 21: The Sukkur police recovered 12 people, including five women, from a<br />

landlord’s farm in Mubarak Pur area near Punno Aqil and produced them in sessions<br />

court. The court freed them.<br />

April 3: On the directive of the Sanghar District and Sessions Judge, the police<br />

recovered 14 labourers, including four women and six children, from a landlord’s<br />

private jail in Jam Nawaz Ali village in Khipro area.<br />

April 7: An Additional District and Sessions Judge at Hyderabad set free 55 brick<br />

kiln workers, including four women and 20 children, after their recovery by the police<br />

from four brick kilns in Tando Muhammad Khan.<br />

April 16: HRCP, Sindh Chapter, with the assistance of Human Rights Wing, Ministry<br />

of Law, Justice and Human Rights, Karachi and Gadap Police recovered 12 labourers<br />

from the illegal confinement of a landlord at Gadap Town. They had been in illegal<br />

captivity <strong>for</strong> more than one and a half years.<br />

April 19: The Tando Muhammad Khan police recovered 35 labourers, including<br />

18 children and 14 women, from illegal confinement at a brick kiln in Lakhatt Union<br />

Council.<br />

April 30: An LHC bailiff recovered 34 people, including 12 children, from illegal<br />

confinement of a brick kiln owner. They had been detained <strong>for</strong> more than 16 months.<br />

The court set the people free turning down a request by the kiln owner <strong>for</strong> the recovery<br />

of his loan from the labourers.<br />

April 30: The Faisalabad police recovered two labourers from the private prison<br />

of a power-looms owner.<br />

May 2: The District and Sessions Judge, Lahore, got nine women and children<br />

freed from the illegal confinement of a man in Nadrabad area of Lahore Cantonment<br />

where they had been working as domestic servants.<br />

May 5: Two minor sisters belonging to Bara Tehsil in Khyber Agency managed to<br />

escape from the custody of a landlord in Hayatabad, Peshawar. They were working as<br />

bonded labourers at the landlord’s house who had detained them on the pretext that he<br />

234 State of Human Rights in 2009


had paid their family Rs 12,000 in advance.<br />

May 6: On the direction of Mirpurkhas Additional Sessions Judge-II, a magistrate<br />

and police recovered 25 people from illegal confinement at a farm in Village Deh Samrotri<br />

near Naokot.<br />

June 8: The LHC set free 18 people, including five minors, recovered from the<br />

illegal custody of a brick kiln owner near Burki.<br />

June 15: On the directive of Umerkot District and Sessions Judge, the police and<br />

a judicial magistrate raided a farm in Majid <strong>Ar</strong>ain Village and recovered 26 people,<br />

including 11 women and 10 children, detained there. The labourers told the judge that<br />

the landlord had deployed armed men at the farm to restrain their movement and had<br />

not provided them with proper food and healthcare facilities.<br />

July 22: A bailiff, from the court of Lahore District and Sessions Judge recovered<br />

two women from illegal confinement at a brick kiln in Lahore.<br />

August 5: On the orders of the Nawabshah District and Sessions Judge, police<br />

recovered 56 people from illegal confinement at a brick kiln.<br />

August 11: The LHC freed 26 people, including women and children, recovered<br />

from illegal confinement at a brick kiln in Sialkot.<br />

August 17: The Umerkot District and Sessions Judge freed 58 people, including<br />

14 women and 23 children, who had been recovered from illegal confinement at a<br />

farm.<br />

August 26: On the orders of the Mirpurkhas Additional Distrcit and Sessions<br />

Judge, police recovered and freed 16 people from illegal detention at a farm in Jhugian<br />

Village of Kot Ghulam Muhammad Taluka.<br />

September 3: On the order of Mirpurkhas Additional Sessions Judge-II, police<br />

recovered and freed 139 people deatained illegally at the farm of a landlord in Hemaan<br />

Village in Kot Ghulam Muhammad Taluka. The landlord said the workers owed him Rs<br />

two million.<br />

September 18: An Additional District and Sessions Judge at Peshawar freed 20<br />

people recovered from illegal confinement at a brick kiln, located in Urmer area.<br />

October 11: The Sheikhupura police recovered six people from illegal detention at<br />

the house of a close relative of a police inspector. They said they had been employed as<br />

labourers but later on <strong>for</strong>ced to stay there against their will.<br />

October 13: The LHC freed 11 people recovered from illegal detention at a brick<br />

kiln in district Sialkot. The court turned down the owner’s plea to order the recovery<br />

of his money advanced to the workers and directed him to file civil suit.<br />

October 15: The Rawalpindi District and Sessions Court got recovered and freed<br />

17 people, including women and children, recovered from the illegal custody at a<br />

Labour 235


ick-kiln in Rawat area.<br />

October 21: The Additional Sessions Judge-II at Mirpurkhas freed 32 people,<br />

including women and children, recovered from illegal confinement at a landlord’s farm<br />

in Faqeer Abdullah Leghari village.<br />

October 20: The Umerkot District and Sessions judge directed the police to inspect<br />

the farm of a local landlord on a complaint that 85 people were in illegal confinement<br />

there. However, the police could not recover them as, the complainant said, the landlord<br />

had shifted them to a different place on getting prior in<strong>for</strong>mation of the raid. Later, the<br />

complainant moved the Sindh High Court which again ordered the police to raid the<br />

farms and this time 86 people, including 35 women and 32 children, were recovered.<br />

November 10: The LHC freed 18 people recovered from illegal confinement at a<br />

brick kiln in Manga Mandi. They had been in illegal custody <strong>for</strong> more than 10 months.<br />

November 3: The LHC freed 28 people recovered from illegal confinement at a<br />

brick-kiln in Kasur. They said they had worked the Kilon <strong>for</strong> more than 11 years at the<br />

kiln.<br />

November 7: The LHC got 18 people, including six children, recovered from<br />

illegal confinement at a brick kiln at Kamoke, near Lahore.<br />

November 12: On the orders of the Sialkot District and Sessions Judge, a bailiff<br />

recovered 19 people, including five women and six children, from illegal custody at a<br />

brick kiln in the limits of Motra Police Station.<br />

December 4: On the direction of the Umerkot District and Sessions Judge, the<br />

police recovered 40 people, including 13 children and 16 women, recovered from<br />

illegal custody at a farm near Pithoro.<br />

December 15: On the orders of the Mirpurkhas District and Sessions Judge, the<br />

police freed 69 people, including women and children, recovered from a private jail at<br />

a farm in Ahmad Khan Bhurgari Village. Police was still making ef<strong>for</strong>ts to recover<br />

another 10 people allegedly held in illegal confinement there.<br />

Government actions<br />

In the national budget <strong>for</strong> 2009, the government announced 15 per cent increase in<br />

the salaries of its employees as against 30-50 per cent rise in the cost of living. Minimum<br />

pension <strong>for</strong> workers was increased from Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,000 per month. However,<br />

the decision to increase the salaries of public sector employees was not implemented<br />

till the second half of the financial year 2009.<br />

The Employees Old Age Benefit Institution (EOBI) paid Rs. 500 million to 280,000<br />

retired labourers in the country while a total of 3.5 million employees were registered<br />

236 State of Human Rights in 2009


under the scheme. EOBI claimed it was working to set up an insurance company and<br />

provide medical facilities to workers.<br />

Industrial workers, on the other hand, were completely ignored in this regard. The<br />

government was unable even to ensure payment of the minimum wage to workers due<br />

to suspension of labour inspections.<br />

According to the International Labour Organisation, during 2009 it had 16 projects<br />

operating in the fields of employment and skills development, bonded labour, labour<br />

market in<strong>for</strong>mation, rural infrastructure and women empowerment with a total budget<br />

of $35 million.<br />

The ILO also had six upcoming projects worth $30 million aimed at addressing<br />

women employment concerns, promoting international labour standards and skill<br />

development.<br />

In 2009 the<br />

Punjab government<br />

approved an amount<br />

of Rs. 123 million<br />

<strong>for</strong> the eradication of<br />

bonded labour in<br />

brick kilns.<br />

According to the<br />

Punjab labour<br />

secretary, 70,000<br />

children mostly from<br />

the carpet weaving<br />

and soccer ball<br />

industry had been<br />

rehabilitated with the<br />

help of International<br />

Labour Organization. According to the Punjab government, social security hospitals<br />

across the province were providing free health care to 4.5 million registered labourers.<br />

Recommendations<br />

A verse painted on a rickshaw mourns the situation of moral<br />

decay and lack of national sovereignty<br />

1. Proper implementation of labour laws including that on minimum wage must<br />

be ensured.<br />

2. Laws should be vigorously applied to protect working women from<br />

discrimination. Women should be recognized as part of the labour <strong>for</strong>ce and given<br />

Labour 237


equal rights in trade unions. Work and transport facilities should be improved in order<br />

to encourage women to join the work <strong>for</strong>ce.<br />

3. To protect farmers’ interests, Sindh Tenancy Act, 1950, needs to be amended<br />

and hari courts set up under the Bonded Labour (System) Abolition Act, 1992.<br />

4. The provincial government must make it mandatory <strong>for</strong> the brick kilns to get<br />

all their labourers registered with the labour department so that bonded labour could<br />

be effectively checked and welfare measures taken <strong>for</strong> the kiln labour.<br />

238 State of Human Rights in 2009


Social and economic rights<br />

III<br />

Education 239


240 State of Human Rights in 2009


Education<br />

The state shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary<br />

education within minimum possible period; make technical and professional education<br />

generally available and higher education equally accessible to all on the basis of<br />

merit...<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 37 (b) and (c)<br />

Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free at least in the<br />

elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.<br />

Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher<br />

education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 26(1)<br />

Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to<br />

enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle (27)<br />

The education sector of Pakistan, a fundamental indicator of the country’s future,<br />

has been granted less and less resources in budgets over the past few years. The year<br />

2009 was a particularly difficult year <strong>for</strong> the education sector, with traditional institutional<br />

hurdles as well as the widespread violence in the country undermining both the quality<br />

and the capacity of the sector. Thus, the year under review that started with promises<br />

of increased interest and renewed government initiatives saw a less than satisfactory<br />

per<strong>for</strong>mance as the threat to security continued to reduce the already alarmingly slow<br />

Education 241


pace of progress.<br />

Pakistan in international rankings<br />

According to the UNESCO Global Monitoring Report of 2009, Pakistan is one of<br />

the very few countries which failed to achieve even a single EFA (Education <strong>for</strong> All)<br />

goal set at Dakar, Senegal in April, 2000. Pakistan remains one of the few odd cases<br />

where despite modest increases in literacy, the number of illiterates keeps increasing.<br />

Pakistan was ranked 141 st out of 182 countries on UNDP’s Human Development<br />

Index of 2009. From being the 135 th out of 177 countries in the rankings issued in<br />

2005, this was a further reflection on the deterioration of the quality of life as measured<br />

by GDP, life expectancy and literacy among other things. In the World Economic<br />

Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index, released on 8 th September 2009, Pakistan ended<br />

up at a poor 117 out of the 134 countries in terms of quality of primary education.<br />

The government priorities and policies<br />

The year 2009 was the elected government’s second year in office. The New<br />

Education Policy that was announced towards the end of 2009 came as a result of<br />

lengthy drafting procedures. However, allocations <strong>for</strong> the education sector <strong>for</strong> the year<br />

2009-2010 were too low to meet the towering needs of the sector despite the fact that<br />

the year 2010 was declared as the “Year of Literacy” by the Prime Minister, Yousaf<br />

Raza Gillani. The budgetary allocation (2009-10) of three per cent of the GDP by the<br />

federal government <strong>for</strong> the education sector was less than the minimum amount of 4<br />

percent recommended by UNESCO. It was announced that the education budget will<br />

be increased to 4 per cent of the GDP over the next three years. However, the claim<br />

seemed hardly realistic in view<br />

Year<br />

2000-01<br />

2001-02<br />

2002-03<br />

2003-04<br />

2004-05<br />

2005-06<br />

2006-07<br />

2007-08<br />

2008-09<br />

2009-10<br />

Expenditure on education<br />

as % of GDP<br />

1.82<br />

1.79<br />

1.86<br />

2.20<br />

2.15<br />

2.24<br />

2.50<br />

2.47<br />

2.10<br />

2.3<br />

of the track record of the<br />

government and its budgetary<br />

priorities. The new education<br />

policy also laid an unnecessary<br />

emphasis on the religious<br />

<strong>content</strong> of the curriculum.<br />

In Punjab, the year was<br />

consumed by talks of setting up<br />

a Danish School System where<br />

the children of families<br />

registered under the Food<br />

Support Programme were to be<br />

provided educational facilities<br />

free of cost. <strong>Ar</strong>ound Rs. 700<br />

242 State of Human Rights in 2009


million were<br />

released by the<br />

government of<br />

Punjab under this<br />

project to provide<br />

quality education in<br />

the rural areas and<br />

bring them at par<br />

with urban areas.<br />

However, the whole<br />

year was spent in<br />

discussions on the<br />

ambitious plan and<br />

the system could not A scene depicting the conditions prevailing in countless public<br />

be launched<br />

schools all across Pakistan<br />

properly till the end<br />

of 2009. The government claimed to have set up IT labs in some four thousand schools<br />

by the end of the year and a few schools were opened under the banner of the Danish<br />

School system.<br />

As an “educational emergency” was announced in NWFP aimed at improving<br />

literacy rates and standards of education, USAID offered funds to assist second-shift<br />

schools in the area. The Education Sector Re<strong>for</strong>m unit of NWFP chalked out a new<br />

plan <strong>for</strong> improving standards and availability of education throughout the province. Six<br />

donor agencies signed a memorandum of understanding with the NWFP government<br />

to aid the implementation of this policy though it was yet to be actively pursued.<br />

Schools in disarray<br />

As many schools across the country struggled with a lack of facilities, equipment<br />

and basic provisions, students were <strong>found</strong> attending classes in most deplorable<br />

conditions. In a policy dialogue, the Executive Director of Institute of Social and Policy<br />

Sciences (I-SAPS) quoted that 16.8 per cent of all public primary schools had no<br />

buildings, 39 per cent had no drinking water, 62 per cent had no electricity, 49 per cent<br />

had no toilets and 46 per cent had no boundary walls.<br />

Similarly, in a report released by UNICEF, it was stated that 20, 000 children in<br />

63,000 schools in Punjab do not have facilities <strong>for</strong> drinking water.<br />

Quality of education<br />

The problem faced by the education sector is not just one of quantity but of the<br />

quality of education as well. The system suffers from a lack of transparency and<br />

Education 243


“A school in a sorry state”<br />

A school in Kot Azam Khan in Kasur presented an odd and sorry<br />

state of things. The headmaster employed a dozen or few students to<br />

work as labourers <strong>for</strong> building latrines, saving thousands <strong>for</strong> his personal<br />

pocket and making the students miss all their lecturers. A student told<br />

this reporter that two students are employed as gate keepers every<br />

day and this practice has been going on <strong>for</strong> many years. Embezzlement<br />

of funds is an open secret here. Most classrooms have no furniture<br />

and students have to drink water from taps situated close to the latrines.<br />

On top of everything, a couple of classrooms were allowed to be used<br />

as a police post <strong>for</strong> a few months; a case of acute corruption and<br />

bureaucracy at the expense of the students. (Dawn, 7 th Feburary, 2009)<br />

accountability in procedures <strong>for</strong> appointment of teachers to the syllabus of primary<br />

and secondary classes. The schools are suffering due to neglect of globally recognised<br />

standards. The year under review was filled with scattered, inter-woven measures of<br />

policies aimed at improving the quality of education and facilities offered.<br />

After the funding of the Punjab Endowment Fund of Rs one billion, some 800<br />

students were expected to benefit from the scholarships offered by it. As the scholarships<br />

were <strong>for</strong> institutes of high quality where otherwise the less-privileged students could<br />

not af<strong>for</strong>d to enroll, questions were raised with regard to the transparency of the<br />

endowment fund. The World Bank also expressed concern over the use of funds<br />

provided by it and set up a monitoring office in the education department in Sindh to<br />

oversee the processes through which funds were disbursed.<br />

A major concern over quality came as a result of the alleged politicization of the<br />

process through which teachers were hired. Political influence and nepotism continued<br />

to play a major role in the allocation of high teaching posts to under-qualified individuals.<br />

In a meeting held <strong>for</strong> assessing the progress of the Pre-Service Teacher Education<br />

Programme, USAID and UNESCO stressed the importance of training teachers. USAID<br />

invested $ 75 million in the Pre-service Teacher Education Programme as reported on<br />

UNESCO’s official page <strong>for</strong> this specific project. These were small steps <strong>for</strong><br />

improvement while radical changes were needed in the entire process of selection and<br />

training.<br />

In 2009, Chief Minister of Punjab, constituted special committees at district level<br />

to supervise the recruitment of educators at the regional level on merit and in a transparent<br />

manner. There were discussions during the year of revising the syllabus again and of<br />

discarding some subjects. The Punjab government alone proposed setting up of 68<br />

244 State of Human Rights in 2009


committees to review the curriculum, but little concrete came out of these moves.<br />

Higher education<br />

It was reported that admissions in postgraduate classes increased to 15 per cent of<br />

the total number of people enrolling <strong>for</strong> higher education. In other words, four percent<br />

of the total population was enrolling <strong>for</strong> postgraduate studies. This figure is still much<br />

lower than the 12 per cent of the population enrolling <strong>for</strong> postgraduate studies in India<br />

and 85 per cent in Korea.<br />

The ambitious higher education re<strong>for</strong>ms launched by the Higher Education<br />

Commission received positive reviews over the past two years. As per statistics released<br />

by the Commission, research publications increased from 600 in 2001 to 4300 in 2008,<br />

51 new universities were set up during 2002-2008, among other re<strong>for</strong>ms like having<br />

tripled the enrollment figures. While bodies like World Bank and British Council applauded<br />

these improvements, the picture presented was widely debated and contested by<br />

Pakistani intellectuals. Despite a credit-crunch, HEC released a number of scholarships<br />

in 2009 under its Human<br />

Resource Development<br />

Programme.<br />

A majority of these<br />

new universities were<br />

deserted mid-way<br />

through their<br />

construction and<br />

launching processes as it<br />

was realized that the<br />

required number of<br />

trained and qualified<br />

teachers was not<br />

available. Moreover,<br />

what matters is not the<br />

number of research<br />

papers alone but the<br />

quality and diversity of<br />

Students of Fatima Jinnah Medical College, Lahore<br />

protesting against affiliation with the University of the<br />

Health Scinces<br />

topics these papers discuss. The few names dominating the publications arena continued<br />

to be professors and intellectuals from select institutes only. Although the national<br />

expenditure on Science and Technology increased, the re<strong>for</strong>ms did not address the<br />

root-cause quality-deficiency.<br />

Towards the end of the 2009, the Punjab Higher Education Department conducted<br />

an exercise which revealed that universities, despite their identical legislations, had<br />

Education 245


different fee structures, student intake and examinations and internal quality control<br />

mechanisms. The provincial government directed that a committee be set up to ensure<br />

standard operational procedures which could be seen as a first step towards reducing<br />

institutional differences that existed at the university level.<br />

The academic life in state universities continued to be influenced and controlled by<br />

politicised student unions. The administration of Punjab University issued a press release<br />

condemning the violation of standard codes by activists of Islamiat Jamiat Talaba<br />

(IJT), the most influential ‘political’ student union in Punjab but neither the complaints<br />

were registered nor any action taken by the Chief Minister or any government official.<br />

Private institutons, catering to the upper and upper middle classes, remained isolated<br />

from this extreme politicization but they were only loosely regulated by the governing<br />

bodies.<br />

Educational institutions under attack<br />

21 st October 2009 saw a sharp spurt in attacks on educational institutions; the two<br />

suicide attacks on the new campus of the International Islamic University, Islamabad<br />

resulted in the death of six people and<br />

injures to 37 others. As institutions<br />

remained closed in face of security<br />

threats, several days of learning were<br />

lost and semesters prolonged. To add<br />

to a disastrous year <strong>for</strong> an average<br />

income earner, public universities<br />

increased their fees ignoring the<br />

impact of this on the income bracket<br />

that they were supposedly catering to.<br />

Another shot of a school destroyed by<br />

Taliban in Swat<br />

Memorandums of Understanding<br />

were signed between the Punjab<br />

government and organizations from<br />

Netherlands to build a state-of-the-art<br />

‘university town’ in the province of<br />

Punjab, among the other aid-<strong>for</strong>education<br />

contracts the government<br />

entered into. The World Bank, <strong>for</strong><br />

example, approved two projects of<br />

$300 million <strong>for</strong> strengthening the<br />

safety nets and higher education in<br />

Pakistan. Despite the increased funds<br />

and claims of launching several<br />

246 State of Human Rights in 2009


initiatives, several scandals exposed lack of transparency in several procedures:<br />

Gender disparity<br />

Pakistan suffers from one of the world’s highest gender-disparity-in-education<br />

figures; the increased activities of militant groups in northwestern tribal regions in<br />

early 2009 aggravated this educational disaster. In the wake of the Nizam-e-Adal<br />

Regulation, a contract of cooperation signed between the Federal government and the<br />

tribal chiefs, the environment became favourable to <strong>for</strong> banning girls’ education, instead<br />

of encouraging pursuit of re<strong>for</strong>m with renewed vigour. Some 4000 schools with over<br />

40, 000 girls on their rolls were shut down; some 10 schools in the Malakand district<br />

that did try to open after the deadline issued by the Taliban were blown up.<br />

On the national level, despite the adoption of several initiatives, the gender-gap at<br />

the primary school level was estimated to be at 11.3 per cent as recorded in a study<br />

issued by Lahore School of Economics in 2009 with a majority of families still placing<br />

boys’ education higher than girls’ education.<br />

Children out of school<br />

While official policies focused more on funding new projects, insignificant attention<br />

was paid to the problem caused by an alarmingly large number of children out of<br />

school. By the end of 2009, an estimated 35 per cent to 40 per cent children of school<br />

going age were out on the streets or did not have access to education while 20 per cent<br />

of Pakistan had no educational facilities at all.<br />

In NWFP alone 2.6 million<br />

children were out of school in<br />

2008. In 2009 this region<br />

experienced another set-back:<br />

the terrorist activities and the<br />

operation against them entailed<br />

direct attacks on civil life, and<br />

an internal displacement of<br />

nearly 3.5 million people. The<br />

militants destroyed over 180<br />

schools in Swat, <strong>for</strong>cing about<br />

50,000 boys and girls to sit at<br />

home. Militants continued to<br />

target both girls’ and boys’<br />

schools in NWFP and<br />

The hands that should carry books<br />

Education 247


Nepotism in appointment<br />

of caretakers<br />

Two out of 800 candidates who<br />

had applied <strong>for</strong> posts of college<br />

laboratory and hostel caretakers in<br />

Dera Ghazi Khan District alleged that<br />

the chairman of the recruitment<br />

committee violated the policy by hiring<br />

two of his relatives <strong>for</strong> the post. The<br />

district offices denied these charges,<br />

ignoring the allegation that one of the<br />

persons appointed did not meet the<br />

experience-criteria <strong>for</strong> the job. He said<br />

that he had made all these<br />

appointments strictly on merit. (7 Dec<br />

2009, Dawn)<br />

Mafia active ahead of<br />

varsity admissions<br />

The Director of Admissions at<br />

Karachi University has confirmed that<br />

the admissions process is being<br />

compromised in the face of various<br />

threats and political pressures after<br />

the issue of the first merit-based<br />

admission list. He appealed to these<br />

influential persons not to harass the<br />

administration or pressurize them <strong>for</strong><br />

sabotaging the transparency of the<br />

admission process. No official has<br />

been reported to have taken notice<br />

of the plea or the external pressures<br />

that are putting the future of<br />

thousands of deserving students at<br />

stake <strong>for</strong> the sake of the privileged<br />

few. (11 Nov 2009, The Nation)<br />

remained largely unchallenged.<br />

The phenomenon of ‘ghost<br />

schools’ with both teachers and<br />

students absent from the premises<br />

was noticed in all four provinces.<br />

According to a survey carried out by<br />

Johi Organization <strong>for</strong> Rural<br />

Development and Natural Disaster in<br />

January 2009, some 50 per cent of<br />

the 233 primary schools in the district<br />

of Jacobabad alone were nonfunctional.<br />

In Dadu, the situation was<br />

reported to be a lot worse with 300<br />

out of 2,134 schools being nonfunctional.<br />

Some 2000 ‘ghost’<br />

teachers were <strong>found</strong> to be receiving<br />

salary on a regular basis. The figures<br />

<strong>for</strong> ghost schools and ghost teachers<br />

were significantly higher in rural areas<br />

than in big cities like Karachi and<br />

Lahore. However, even these urban<br />

centres had many on-paper-only<br />

schools where government funds<br />

were spent on non-existent<br />

educational facilities.<br />

The year ended on an even more<br />

alarming note <strong>for</strong> the education sector<br />

as schools and colleges were shut <strong>for</strong><br />

several days in the face of threats<br />

issued by the militants to many<br />

institutions. The suicide attack on<br />

Islamic University in Islamabad on 21<br />

October 2009 caused wide-spread<br />

apprehension about the security of<br />

students nationwide. The government<br />

issued statements implying that it was<br />

the schools’ own responsibility to<br />

provide ample security <strong>for</strong> their<br />

students. The majority of students sat<br />

248 State of Human Rights in 2009


home as both public and private<br />

institutions built additional walls and<br />

barriers around their facilities and<br />

installed security equipment. During<br />

preparations <strong>for</strong> these security plans, a<br />

very large number of valuable school<br />

days were lost.<br />

Corporal punishment<br />

Another recurring theme discussed<br />

in the education circles was that of<br />

‘corporal punishment’. According to<br />

Society <strong>for</strong> the Protections of the Rights<br />

of the Child (SPARC), almost 35, 000<br />

high school students drop out of school<br />

each year as a result of corporal<br />

punishment; this most high drop-out rate<br />

“Cattle, not students,<br />

<strong>found</strong> in a Bahawalpur<br />

school”<br />

Punjab Secretary <strong>Ar</strong>chives<br />

<strong>found</strong> cattle and not students in<br />

a girls’ primary school near Sama<br />

Satta. He said that it seemed that<br />

the school had never been used<br />

<strong>for</strong> educational facilities since its<br />

construction. It was <strong>found</strong> that the<br />

premises were being used by a<br />

local feudal lord <strong>for</strong> keeping his<br />

cattle and agricultural equipment.<br />

(The News Rawalpindi, 25 th<br />

January, 2009)<br />

stood at 50 per cent <strong>for</strong> the first five years of education. Reports of students suffering<br />

physical abuse and of teachers inflicting brutal corporal punishment were a disturbingly<br />

common occurrence. The reason <strong>for</strong> this attitude can be attributed to the lack of<br />

teacher training, facilities, absence of legislation banning corporal punishment and a<br />

largescal social approval of corporal punishment. Horror stories of injuries inflicted on<br />

students by teachers revealed a most unsafe and discouraging atmosphere <strong>for</strong> a majority<br />

of the school children.<br />

All provincial governments issued directives banning the infliction of any <strong>for</strong>m of<br />

corporal punishment on students. However, like much else, poor implementation of<br />

these directives impeded the growth of learning without fear. The similarly titled global<br />

advocacy campaign was the most recent of the initiatives launched by the nongovernment<br />

sector at the beginning of December 2009. Research indicated that corporal<br />

punishment was awarded equally in rural and urban areas.<br />

New education policy<br />

The New Education Policy was finally announced towards the end of 2009 though<br />

the draft was being worked on since 2005. The policy drew a rather critical response.<br />

The strongest part of the policy was perhaps the chapter dedicated to “Understanding<br />

System Deficiencies” where it commendably recognized that the two main issues of<br />

the much-troubled sector were commitment gap and implementation gap. It <strong>found</strong> that<br />

the commitment to education had been anything but unwavering as evident from the<br />

Education 249


less than recommended budgetary allocations <strong>for</strong> educational re<strong>for</strong>ms. It also <strong>found</strong><br />

that the implementation of policies had been faulty especially in the areas of governance,<br />

planning and accountability. It stressed the point that the tripartite system of education<br />

(public, A/O level and madrassa) had failed to achieve the goal of providing equal<br />

opportunities which eventually translated into a more equitable income distribution in<br />

society.<br />

The education policy aimed at high percentage of enrollment, minimum drop-out<br />

rate and, equity, access and a “qualitative” approach to learning. A few other notable<br />

milestones included provision of free education up to matric by 2025, increase in adult<br />

literacy rate to 86 per cent by 2015 and increase in higher-education enrolment to 10<br />

per cent from a mere 4.7 per cent by 2015. It proposed the much-discussed Danish<br />

School System <strong>for</strong> providing the poor masses with what had been termed “Aitchison”<br />

standard of education. Another such launch will be of the “Apna Ghar School”<br />

Programme which, again, was expected to cater to the poverty-stricken masses.<br />

Ambitious as it is, it was termed a ‘wish-list’ of a policy. The main areas where the<br />

policy failed and invited criticism were as follows:<br />

The recognition of the implementation gap by the policy was indeed a noteworthy<br />

approach towards correcting the situation but, disappointingly enough, the<br />

document stopped at that. It focused on what had to be done but not how and through<br />

what processes. It failed to elaborate extensively on the process and the exact authorities<br />

who would report on the measures proposed, pushing the promise of its success back<br />

Public school teachers protest their low wages and the lack of other facilities<br />

250 State of Human Rights in 2009


to the problems of typical neo-colonial heritage of accountability, misuse of funds and<br />

lack of transparency.<br />

The ‘wish-list’ the policy put <strong>for</strong>ward was not backed by statistics. It declared<br />

a target <strong>for</strong> achieving a very high rate of literacy, but there was not enough in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

on the population statistics, the exact estimate of the resources needed to achieve the<br />

target and how this ambitious plan could be sustained. The projections were missing<br />

completely in the document and so was the evidence of due deliberation and planning<br />

with regards to the milestone NEP 2009 had set <strong>for</strong> itself. In this manner, policy<br />

monitoring, even in case of the proposed national <strong>for</strong>um, namely Inter-provincial<br />

Education Ministers’ Committee, which was to execute the policy was nowhere to be<br />

<strong>found</strong>.<br />

The focus was again on providing a larger number of schools and not on refurbishing<br />

or utilizing the schools we already had in place.<br />

There was a repetitive emphasis on the ‘quality’ of education in the policy<br />

document but what ‘quality’ actually meant was missed out. It was announced that the<br />

new schools and programmes that were being launched would provide education of<br />

the standard offered by the private sector schools. However, this looked past the<br />

debate that providing education in ‘English’ was not the same as providing ‘quality’<br />

education. It did not take into account the fact that the society needed an education<br />

system that offered qualifications directly related to the sort of work opportunities that<br />

it offered the majority of its individuals. The New Education Policy of 2009 ignored the<br />

need <strong>for</strong> increased skill-oriented education that should suit better a poverty-stricken<br />

majority that ws struggling to earn the minimum living wage.<br />

Almost nothing was done about the tripartite system that had been held<br />

responsible by the policy <strong>for</strong> creating polarization and a society-within-society in the<br />

country. Partnerships between public and private institutions, madrassah-re<strong>for</strong>ms and<br />

increased monitoring of these institutions were hinted at but details as to how and<br />

when this would be achieved were not present in the document. The need to launch a<br />

system of education that envisaged primarily instruction in the native language as<br />

recommended by UNICEF and treated English as a compulsory subject alongside it<br />

remained unanswered.<br />

The minorities were ignored during the revision of the curriculum. While a<br />

good ef<strong>for</strong>t was made in terms of giving non-Muslim students the option to choose<br />

‘Ethics’ over ‘Islamiyat’, the laudability of this directive had been undermined by the<br />

fact that the text of ‘Ethics’ was written by Muslim scholars and Muslim writers<br />

which, as announced by Pakistan’s Minorities’ Teachers’ Association, was a good<br />

enough reason <strong>for</strong> condemning the document.<br />

In summary, National Education Policy (NEP) 2009 seemed to offer little chance<br />

Education 251


of meaningful re<strong>for</strong>m which in this time and day was much needed in a state that<br />

suffered from what can almost be called anarchy.<br />

Recommendations<br />

The recommendations <strong>for</strong> the education sector can be made in the light of the New<br />

Education Policy 2009 and what it failed to achieve or state.<br />

1. The <strong>for</strong>emost priority should be to stick to the promise of increasing the budgetary<br />

allocation <strong>for</strong> the sector. A detailed plan should outline the way this increased allocation<br />

will be spent. It is important to start with improving the structures we have in place<br />

rather than starting anew with projects that will still take time to build and launch.<br />

Proper utilization of funds is a big issue along with the lack of funds.<br />

2. The need <strong>for</strong> producing skilled-workers <strong>for</strong> all levels needs to be integrated<br />

into the new education policy to serve as what can only be called a more ‘coherent’<br />

approach.<br />

3. A de-politicization of the education process is required in terms of selection,<br />

training and qualifications of teachers and examinations.<br />

4. Legislation is required to ban corporal punishment in schools completely.<br />

252 State of Human Rights in 2009


Health<br />

The state shall secure the well-being of the people, irrespective of sex, caste,<br />

creed and race ... provide basic necessities of life, such as ... medical relief, <strong>for</strong> all<br />

such citizens, irrespective of sex, caste, creed or race, as are permanently or<br />

temporarily unable to earn their livelihood on account of infirmity, sickness or<br />

unemployment. ...<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 38(a) and (d)<br />

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate <strong>for</strong> the health and well<br />

being of himself and of his family, including ... medical care and necessary social<br />

services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability,<br />

widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 25(1)<br />

Pakistan is currently spending only 15 dollars per capita in the health sector,<br />

according to a study titled ‘Investing in maternal, newborn and child health’ published<br />

by the Asian Development Bank. The report says that whereas South Asia as a whole<br />

spends 26 dollars per capita on health, the spending by Pakistan is at the bottom of the<br />

rung in the region.<br />

According to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2008-09, the government’s spending<br />

on public health as a percentage of GDP went down to 0.55 per cent from 0.57 per<br />

cent in the previous year. Because of falling national expenditure in the sector the poor<br />

find it increasingly difficult to af<strong>for</strong>d essential healthcare.<br />

Pakistan specially lags behind in facilities that provide mother and child a better<br />

Health 253


chance of survival. While access to emergency obstetrics care is often inadequate,<br />

poor nutrition is also a chronic problem. The rising food costs are likely to make things<br />

worse, especially <strong>for</strong> the poor.<br />

Pakistan suffers from disturbingly high maternal and child mortality rates. In the<br />

South Asian region the under-5 mortality per thousand is the highest in Pakistan i.e. 90,<br />

as compared to India (72), Bangladesh (61), Nepal (55) and Sri Lanka (21). During<br />

2007 the infant mortality rate in Pakistan was the highest at 78 per 1,000 followed by<br />

India (54), Bangladesh (47) Nepal (43) and Sri Lanka (17).<br />

The Pakistan Economic Survey 2008-9 revealed that there is only one doctor <strong>for</strong><br />

1,212 persons, one dentist <strong>for</strong> 18,010 persons and one hospital bed <strong>for</strong> 1,575 persons,<br />

showing the unmet needs in the country’s health sector.<br />

In absolute terms, the budgetary allocation <strong>for</strong> health increased from Rs 60 billion<br />

in 2007-08 to Rs. 74 billion in 2008-09, but as a percentage of GDP it declined. During<br />

2008-09, there were only 133,956 doctors, 9,012 dentists, 39,000 nurses and 10,002<br />

LHVs in Pakistan. The country faces a shortage of 50,000 nurses in public hospitals<br />

alone.<br />

Health budget 2009-10<br />

The health budget <strong>for</strong> 2009-10 provides <strong>for</strong> per capita expenditure of less than $16<br />

which is far short of the $34 recommended by the World Health Organisation to deliver<br />

essential services in a country. More than 50 percent of the allocations during 2009-10<br />

were earmarked <strong>for</strong> two programmes—the National Programme <strong>for</strong> Family Planning<br />

and Primary Health Care and the Expanded Programme <strong>for</strong> Immunisation.<br />

Health policy<br />

In April 2009, the federal government set up a 24–member task <strong>for</strong>ce to prepare a<br />

new national health policy to replace the policy prepared in 2001. Health experts said<br />

the step was taken because emerging diseases, changing disease patterns and new<br />

challenges in public health had made a new policy necessary. The 2001 health policy<br />

had identified the major weaknesses in the health sector - urban bias, neglect of rural<br />

population, inadequate financial allocations, emphasis on tertiary medical facilities with<br />

little attention to primary health, ineffective monitoring and regulatory control of the<br />

private health sector.<br />

State of public hospitals<br />

The government’s health budget has not kept pace with the increasing number of<br />

254 State of Human Rights in 2009


The crowd outside Ganga Ram hospital after it is evacuated in wake of a rumour of<br />

a bomb plant<br />

patients as reflected in the dismal state of affairs at public hospitals. The problems<br />

faced by some of these hospitals briefly surveyed here can give an idea of the overall<br />

situation.<br />

Mayo Hospital, Lahore<br />

Lahore’s Mayo Hospital kept making headlines in the press <strong>for</strong> its dilapidated<br />

infrastructure and poor service delivery. The roads within the hospital were broken<br />

which made it difficult to transport patients on wheel-chairs from one ward to the<br />

other. The hospital’s sewerage system was in a shambles with sewage overflowing on<br />

the roads. The hospital’s laboratory test machine <strong>for</strong> hepatitis was out of order.<br />

Nishtar Hospital, Multan<br />

In summer 2009, a survey of Nishtar Hopsital in Multan, the biggest public hospital<br />

in southern Punjab, <strong>found</strong> patients outnumbered beds. The number of approved beds<br />

in the hospital is 1,030 while 1,600 patients were admitted there. Several patients who<br />

could not be refused entry due to their serious condition were lying on benches or on<br />

the floor.<br />

Institute of Psychiatry, Rawalpindi<br />

According to the head of the institute, neither the federal nor the provincial<br />

government gave any attention to the provision of health facilities to a large section of<br />

the country’s population suffering from mental disorders and problems. A glaring example<br />

of the government’s apathy in the matter was the construction of a new block of the<br />

Health 255


institute on self-help basis. The institute published a brochure titled ‘Mental Health in<br />

Need of Your Wealth’ to collect funds from the public. The institute, which was<br />

established in 1973, is providing mental health facilities to a large number of people,<br />

with patients coming from all four provinces of Pakistan.<br />

Civil Hospital, Sukkur<br />

The poor state of health care at Civil Hospital Sukkur, one of the biggest hospitals<br />

in upper Sindh, was highlighted by a report in Dawn on 1st May 2009. Only 24 doctors,<br />

14 specialists, 18 nurses and 150 paramedics were working at the 398-bed hospital.<br />

Millions of rupees are spent every year <strong>for</strong> the purchase of medicines <strong>for</strong> the hospital<br />

but even then the doctors <strong>for</strong>ced the patients to purchase medicines from nearby<br />

private medical stores which allegedly belonged to some of the doctors on the hospital<br />

staff. Instead of using disposable syringes, the hospital staff used traditional syringes,<br />

which were not properly sterilised and thus contributed to the spread of hepatitis-B and<br />

C.<br />

The Emergency Ward lacked facilities to meet any emergency. It was ill-equipped<br />

and did not have an operation theatre. Even a suction machine was not available in the<br />

emergency ward. Since its establishment four years earlier the ICU remained closed<br />

and equipment worth millions of rupees was not being used due to non-availability of<br />

trained staff.<br />

There was also an acute shortage of stretchers in the hospital due to which patients<br />

were shifted from one ward to another either on wheel-chairs or were carried on<br />

shoulders. The hospital’s Medical Superintendent admitted that they faced an acute<br />

shortage of doctors and paramedics. He said that he had written to the high-ups <strong>for</strong><br />

providing staff and funds but to no avail.<br />

General Hospital Lahore<br />

A major hospital of Lahore, which specialises in the treatment of neuro-surgical<br />

problems, General Hospital suffered from an acute shortage of beds and doctors. The<br />

hospital had only 30 beds <strong>for</strong> indoor patients, each of which was used <strong>for</strong> three patients.<br />

With 628 beds and 300 doctors in total <strong>for</strong> all departments, the hospital had one doctor<br />

to treat more than 80 patients in the neuro-surgery department. There was no doctor<br />

<strong>for</strong> cardiology, only two doctors <strong>for</strong> chest diseases and no senior doctor in emergency<br />

ward.<br />

Diseases and prevention<br />

Hepatitis and inadequate testing facilities<br />

Expensive laboratory tests at private clinics and inadequate testing facilities at<br />

256 State of Human Rights in 2009


public hospitals is a big health care issue in Pakistan. One example is the test <strong>for</strong><br />

hepatitis disease (genotyte) available only in one public hospital, Jinnah Hospital, Lahore.<br />

In 2009, according to health officials, one out of 10 Pakistanis is a carrier of hepatitis<br />

B.<br />

According to experts, about 15 million people in the country and 3-4 million in<br />

NWFP alone were suffering from hepatitis B and C because of using infected water.<br />

The standard treatment with regular Ribavirin Interferon costs between Rs 60,000 and<br />

Rs70,000 and Pegylated Interferon Ribavirin costs Rs 0.25 million, which most people<br />

in Pakistan cannot af<strong>for</strong>d.<br />

Cancer<br />

According to WHO estimates, in males as many as 61,624 incident cases and<br />

42,624 cancer deaths occur annually and in females 75,095 incident cases and 43,188<br />

deaths annually are reported in Pakistan. Doctors say that lack of awareness about<br />

cancers and their signs and symptoms is one major cause of delayed presentation.<br />

According to experts, breast cancer is the second most common malignancy among<br />

women after lung tumour in the country.<br />

HIV/AIDS<br />

According to an NGO, the Amal-Human Development Network, which has been<br />

working on HIV-AIDS in collaboration with UNICEF and UNAIDS, there are 85,000<br />

individuals infected with HIV-AIDS in Pakistan out of which nearly two percent are<br />

children under the age of 14. Although the number of people infected with HIV-AIDS<br />

looks small, it may go up in the next few years if factors causing the infection are not<br />

controlled. Moreover, official ef<strong>for</strong>ts to create awareness about AIDS have remained<br />

largely ineffective.<br />

Tuberculosis (TB)<br />

Pakistan is ranked 8th among the TB-affected countries across the globe with the<br />

number of TB patients increasing every year. Surveys reveal that 75 percent of the TB<br />

patients in the country are youth. The government claims that 90 percent of the patients<br />

are being treated free of cost while under a public-private partnership programme titled<br />

‘Stop TB’, 7,000 TB care centres are being set up in the country.<br />

Blindness<br />

In Pakistan around 6,000,000 people are suffering from blindness due to two<br />

major ailments of cornea trachoma and trauma. The World Health Organisation has<br />

proposed a strategy <strong>for</strong> the elimination of trachoma from the third world countries by<br />

Health 257


the year 2020 (GET 2020).<br />

In Pakistan corneas are mainly imported from Sri Lanka and in small quantity from<br />

Nepal and European countries. A cornea imported from Sri Lanka costs Rs 24,000<br />

whereas those imported from other countries cost around Rs. 50,000 each. At home,<br />

doctors are doing cornea grafting successfully at centres such as Mayo Hospital,<br />

Lahore, which has established a cornea bank in the College of Ophthalmology and<br />

Allied Vision Sciences (COAVS) to preserve corneas but not a single cornea donation<br />

came from Pakistan.<br />

Polio<br />

Pakistan is among the half a dozen countries in the world which are still not<br />

completely polio free. In October 2009, the nationwide count of polio cases was 72,<br />

with 19 cases reported from NWFP, 13 from Swat, 14 from FATA, 11 from Sindh, 9<br />

from Punjab and 6 from Balochistan. In 2008, 117 polio cases were reported from all<br />

over the country.<br />

Because of the ongoing militancy and military operation in the tribal region, the<br />

inoculation of children against polio virus in Bara tehsil could not be carried out. As a<br />

consequence of the failure of health teams to access Swat region and vaccinate children<br />

against polio, 13 cases of polio had been reported from there by October 2009. One<br />

child in Karachi was <strong>found</strong> with polio virus, the family had moved from Swat to<br />

Karachi.<br />

In September, a child in Bajaur agency of the Federally Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>ea<br />

(FATA) was confirmed by the Polio Referral Laboratory of the National Institute of<br />

Health (NIH) as being infected with polio. This brought the number of cases in Bajaur<br />

tribal agency to a staggering 12, the highest reported from any district or agency<br />

during the year. The child recently affected by polio in Bajaur did not receive even a<br />

single dose of polio vaccine. Similar is the case with another child in Swat, also<br />

confirmed with polio.<br />

In the tribal region and other parts of the NWFP, local residents were warned<br />

against getting their children vaccinated. Polio teams were <strong>for</strong>bidden from operating in<br />

the area and those who made an ef<strong>for</strong>t to convince the militants were kidnapped,<br />

brutalised and driven out of the area. Local clerics have been issuing fatwas (religious<br />

edicts) against vaccination <strong>for</strong> several years.<br />

Diabetes<br />

According to the National Research Centre <strong>for</strong> Prevention and Cure of Diabetes,<br />

the number of diabetic patients has reached 16 million in the country. Ten percent of<br />

258 State of Human Rights in 2009


the country’s population is suffering from the disease while another 10 percent are<br />

about to fall prey to this disease. According to the Centre, Pakistan is ranked sixth<br />

among the world’s most diabetes-affected countries.<br />

Renal diseases<br />

Urologists say that 20,000 people die of renal failure every year in the country.<br />

Warm and dry weather, use of salt in daily meals and inadequate intake of water are<br />

said to be main causes of the high incidence of renal diseases in the country.<br />

Thalassaemia<br />

The incidence of blood disorder, Thalassaemia, is becoming a murky story of<br />

neglect and inaction in Pakistan. According to Press reports about 6,000 new cases are<br />

reported each year and the current total is 80,000 Thalassaemia patients in the country.<br />

Owing to lack of proper surveys and awareness, the actual number of Thalassaemia<br />

cases is not known. It has been pointed out that at the present rate Pakistan will have<br />

over 200,000 Thalassaemia patients in the next 10 years. Citing financial crunch, the<br />

federal government postponed the launching of a Rs-500-million national plan <strong>for</strong> the<br />

prevention and control of Thalassaemia which was to be completed in five years. The<br />

plan had envisioned the blood-screening of the entire population to identify Thalassaemia<br />

carriers in the country.<br />

Malaria<br />

About 130,000 confirmed malaria cases are reported annually in the country but<br />

the actual number could be significantly higher, because about 80 percent of malaria<br />

patients are treated at private hospitals. According to some estimates, the actual number<br />

of new malaria cases in Pakistan could be as high as half a million a year.<br />

Over the years, Pakistan has received considerable <strong>for</strong>eign funds <strong>for</strong> the health<br />

sector, particularly <strong>for</strong> prevention and vaccination. But malaria remains one of the<br />

most neglected diseases, particularly after increased focus on more serious threats like<br />

HIV/AIDS and cancer.<br />

According to the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey the prevalence of malaria<br />

is the highest in Balochistan (30 percent), followed by Sindh (27 percent), Punjab (15<br />

percent) and the NWFP (14 percent). These figures show that Balochistan province<br />

requires the most immediate help <strong>for</strong> malaria prevention and cure.<br />

The Ministry of Health has launched a five-year exclusive malaria control<br />

programme in the country with focus on 56 high-risk districts with an estimated cost<br />

of Rs 3.4 billion to reduce the disease occurrence by at least 50 percent by the end of<br />

2010. Under the programme, provincial health centres would be strengthened besides<br />

Health 259


involving private sector in ef<strong>for</strong>ts to control malaria.<br />

Typhoid<br />

According to a recent study Pakistan is among the five Asian countries including<br />

China, Indonesia and Vietnam which have high rates of typhoid cases among children.<br />

Alzheimer<br />

According to the Doctors’ Society Alzheimer Pakistan, there are about a million<br />

people suffering from Alzheimer and dementia in the country which is becoming a<br />

major threat to the lives of the elderly people.<br />

Asthma<br />

Official estimates put the number of asthma patients in Pakistan at 30 million.<br />

Health experts believe that dust, mites, pollution, smoking, industrial waste and changes<br />

in dietary habits and lifestyle are some of the causes of the rise in the number of asthma<br />

patients in Pakistan. Major allergens include house dust mites, dust from wheat threshing,<br />

rice husking and cotton ginning, pollens from paper mulberry plants (in Islamabad,<br />

Attock, Peshawar, and Sialkot), wild bhang or cannabis (in Northern Pakistan), prosodies<br />

glandulous, the common keekri bush in Karachi and Southern Sindh, and various other<br />

plants.<br />

Dengue fever<br />

On August 25, five people were declared positive <strong>for</strong> dengue fever at Holy Family<br />

Hospital, Islamabad, by the National Institute of Health (NIH). The confirmation of<br />

five cases proved the existence of ‘Aedes Aegypti’, the female mosquito that causes<br />

dengue fever.<br />

Health experts believe that with the detection of five confirmed cases in the outskirts<br />

of twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, the threat of an outbreak of Dengue and<br />

Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DF/DHF) seems to be lurking as the disease has a tendency<br />

to occur in epidemics and outbreaks and spreads like wild fire.<br />

Swine Flu<br />

On August 11, 2009, the Federal Minister <strong>for</strong> Health confirmed the first case of the<br />

H1N1 virus, swine flu, in Pakistan. Subsequently, more swine flu cases were reported<br />

from Lahore, Karachi and other places. Several deaths have also occurred. Special<br />

wards have been set up in some hospitals to quarantine swine flu patients. According<br />

to media reports, 212 confirmed cases of Swine Flu were recorded during 2009.<br />

Medicines<br />

Non-availability of drugs<br />

It was a common experience that from time to time some essential drugs were in<br />

260 State of Human Rights in 2009


short supply in the market thereby putting the lives of patients in jeopardy. In mid-<br />

September, medicines <strong>for</strong> diabetic patients went missing from drug stores in Karachi,<br />

Lahore and some other parts of Punjab. It was alleged that the drug companies in<br />

league with hoarders delayed the supply of medicines to the market and when they<br />

reappeared their prices rose higher. Another reason <strong>for</strong> the shortage of some drugs<br />

was said to be their smuggling to neighbouring countries where their prices are higher.<br />

Spurious and sub-standard drugs<br />

When the Supreme Court of Pakistan started hearing a case about sub-standard<br />

and spurious drugs, the Chief Justice observed that expired medicines were on sale<br />

openly but the authorities concerned were not taking any notice. He added that many<br />

cases involving spurious drugs were pending in drug courts <strong>for</strong> years without any<br />

outcome because the accused did not appear in the courts. The Ministry of Health<br />

officials told the Supreme Court that there was an acute lack of the infrastructure<br />

required to en<strong>for</strong>ce the law to check malpractices regarding sub-standard drugs.<br />

An investigative feature on sub-standard drugs in the daily Nawa-i-Waqt on March<br />

1, 2009 claimed that spurious medicines worth 5.5 billion rupees were sold in Pakistani<br />

markets every year. The inadequacy of the government’s regulatory infrastructure<br />

regarding pharmacies can be gauged from the fact that <strong>for</strong> more than 7,000 pharmacies<br />

in Karachi city there are only eight drug inspectors to check them.<br />

Quacks<br />

The presence of quacks as medical practitioners is a persistent problem in both<br />

the urban and rural areas. Launching a drive against quacks in Sialkot district in July<br />

2009, EDO Health Sialkot told the press that at least 2,000 quacks were operating in<br />

the district. He was of the view that the Allopathic Ordinance 1965 was the main hurdle<br />

in the way of taking direct action against quacks. Under the Ordinance, only a nominal<br />

fine could be imposed on quacks.<br />

Health facilities in jails<br />

According to a report 36 per cent of the prisoners in Adiala jail were suffering<br />

from hepatitis A, B and C and jaundice, 24 per cent from tuberculosis, 15 per cent<br />

from stomach diseases and 8 per cent from asthma. It was reported that the major<br />

cause of these diseases was unhygienic food and contaminated water provided to the<br />

prisoners. There was a hospital in the jail but not a single specialist doctor was available<br />

to attend to ailing prisoners.<br />

Public health<br />

Unsafe drinking water is a major cause of diseases like acute gastroenteritis, cholera,<br />

Health 261


Hundreds of children suffered due to lack of safe drinking water<br />

typhoid, shigella<br />

and hepatitis A and<br />

E. On 28<br />

September 2009<br />

the federal cabinet<br />

approved a<br />

National Drinking<br />

Water Policy with<br />

the aim to improve<br />

the quality of life of<br />

the people. The<br />

policy’s goal is to<br />

remove the existing<br />

disparities in the<br />

availability of safe<br />

drinking water. The<br />

policy provides specific guidelines <strong>for</strong> increasing access to safe drinking water and<br />

conservation and protection of surface and groundwater resources. In Karachi, <strong>for</strong><br />

example, a study revealed that poor people living in areas without any sanitation or<br />

hygiene education spent six times more on medical care than people who lived in areas<br />

with access to sanitation and who had a basic knowledge of household hygiene.<br />

Private hospitals<br />

People’s grievances against private hospitals in the country are on the rise, but no<br />

regulatory mechanism is in place. In 2007, the Sindh government was said to have<br />

drafted a legislation in consultation with various stakeholders, but it was never presented<br />

in the assembly <strong>for</strong> approval. Instances of doctors’ alleged negligence in two expensive<br />

private hospitals in Lahore brought out this issue into limelight as the victim families<br />

launched aggressive campaigns against the private hospitals holding them responsible<br />

<strong>for</strong> causing the death of their patients.<br />

Women’s health issues<br />

The Pakistan Medical Society (PMS) has described anaemia, pregnancy risks,<br />

menopausal disturbances and heart disease as major causes of morbidity and mortality<br />

among Pakistani women. A 2009 survey showed that more than 50 per cent women<br />

suffered from iron deficiency while cardiovascular disease was <strong>found</strong> to be the leading<br />

killer in women. Women with diabetes are two to three times more likely to have heart<br />

attacks than men. High blood pressure is also common among women who use oral<br />

262 State of Human Rights in 2009


contraceptives.<br />

The Society of<br />

Obstetricians and<br />

Gynaecologists of<br />

Pakistan says that about<br />

30,000 women die<br />

during pregnancy and<br />

more than 400,000<br />

suffer from pregnancy<br />

related complications<br />

every year in Pakistan.<br />

The society says<br />

women’s health will not<br />

improve until the basic<br />

health care structure in<br />

rural areas and city slums<br />

is improved.<br />

Breastfeeding<br />

According to the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey, only 23 per cent infants<br />

are exclusively breastfed in the country. The number of breast-fed infants needs to be<br />

raised as infants less than two months of age are six times more prone to infectious<br />

diseases if he/she is not exclusively breastfed. The government is yet to notify the rules<br />

and regulations of the Breastfeeding Ordinance 2002 which says: “No person shall in<br />

any manner assert that any designated product is a substitute <strong>for</strong> mother’s milk, or that<br />

it is equivalent to or comparable with or superior to mother’s milk.” However, presumably<br />

under pressure from <strong>for</strong>mula milk companies, no action has yet been taken to implement<br />

the law.<br />

Sale of human organs<br />

A lady health doctor attending to the problems of women<br />

in a remote village of Pakistan<br />

According to a report in the daily Nation on May 4, 2009, 12 poor farmers kept<br />

hostage by a landowner sold their kidneys to repay their debt. The incident took place<br />

in Bar Musa village, and kidneys were sold at a rate of Rs 130,000 to Rs 180,000 each.<br />

One of the farmers told the press that he had to pay Rs 136,000 to the land-owner who<br />

was keeping his two sisters hostage. He said he wanted to get his sisters free.<br />

Earlier in the year, the Federal Shariat Court had declared the Presidential Ordinance<br />

2009 on transplantation of organs to be un-Islamic and ruled that the sale of human<br />

organs was against the principles of Islam. Maj General A Q Usmani, chairman of the<br />

Human Organ Transplant Authority (HOTA), said the adoption of the law would have<br />

Health 263


a positive effect on the organ transplant situation in Pakistan which had acquired a<br />

reputation <strong>for</strong> ‘organ tourism’ internationally. HOTA has been working <strong>for</strong> encouraging<br />

people to donate their organs after death.<br />

Of the 1,078 renal transplants carried out in Pakistan during Sept 2007 - March<br />

2009, organs were obtained from live related donors in 1,027 cases. This testifies to<br />

the beneficial impact of the new law. Prior to the promulgation of the ordinance, nearly<br />

2,000 kidney transplantations were taking place in Pakistan annually of which only 500<br />

were carried out under ethical conditions. It was claimed that now almost all renal<br />

transplantations were carried out with organs donated by relatives.<br />

Mental health<br />

According to an expert every fifth person in the country suffers from some kind<br />

of psychological disease. The most common <strong>for</strong>m of mental ailment is depression.<br />

Social behaviour creates hurdles in curing psychological diseases because people<br />

generally shy away from consulting doctors lest they attract stigma. There are only<br />

400 qualified psychologists to handle the rapidly growing number of psychiatric cases<br />

in the country.<br />

Hospital waste<br />

According to WWF-Pakistan, incineration as a method of medical waste disposal<br />

is becoming obsolete. In the developed countries, the disposal of hospital waste is<br />

shifting towards an environmentally safer method known as autoclaving, a process of<br />

neutralizing or sterilizing potentially infectious medical waste prior to disposal in the<br />

standard municipal solid waste procedure.<br />

According to press reports, tonnes of waste piled up every day at various hospitals.<br />

The teaching and other public hospitals of Lahore did not have incinerators to dispose<br />

of waste and the only incinerator at the Children’s Hospital was reported to be out of<br />

order. The city had only one incinerator working in the private sector at the Shalamar<br />

Hospital that does not have the capacity to treat the huge quantity of waste produced<br />

by various hospitals.<br />

Doctors in villages<br />

Many Basic Health Units in villages and Rural Health Centres in towns mostly exist<br />

on paper. A majority of young doctors don’t want to work in rural and semi-rural areas<br />

because of poor living conditions, lack of facilities to treat patients, bureaucratic<br />

interference and undue pressure from local notables. Many physicians, especially female<br />

doctors, have concerns about physical safety while living in villages or travelling to and<br />

264 State of Human Rights in 2009


from rural medical centres.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. There is a need to focus on public health and providing people with potable<br />

water, sanitation and a clean environment. Improving public sanitation and clean<br />

water supply are the basic two steps needed to prevent most waterborne diseases.<br />

2. The government should launch a massive primary health education programme<br />

<strong>for</strong> boys and girls in rural areas and city slums on an emergency basis, activate basic<br />

health units, rural health centres and taluka hospitals and arrange training to produce<br />

midwives and paramedics.<br />

3. A law needs to be made requiring couples getting married to produce medical<br />

proof that they are not afflicted with thalassaemia. Thalassaemia centres need to be set<br />

up in all teaching hospitals and district hospitals. The care of mother and child should<br />

be accorded high priority in new malaria prevention programmes.<br />

4. In order to prevent malaria, the government needs to focus on increased<br />

awareness about the problem among communities most vulnerable to the disease.<br />

5. Spending on health – particularly on maternal, newborn and child health –<br />

must not only be increased but also be improved. It currently suffers from many problems<br />

that the government and its development partners should tackle.<br />

6. The government should promulgate a law to regulate the functioning of private<br />

sector healthcare centres across the country.<br />

Health 265


Housing<br />

The state shall secure the well-being of the people, irrespective of sex, caste,<br />

creed and race, by raising their standard of living .<br />

Constitution of Pakistan<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 38(a)<br />

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate <strong>for</strong> the health and wellbeing<br />

of himself and his family, including ... housing ...<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 25 (1)<br />

In the absence of adequate housing facilities, slums (katchi abadis) continued to be<br />

the biggest housing issue in Pakistan. The displacement of more than 2.5 million people<br />

from Swat owing to military operations in the violence-hit area against militants also<br />

created an issue of shelter <strong>for</strong> the displaced people. In 2009, too, <strong>for</strong>ced eviction of<br />

slum dwellers and the destruction of their houses in rains and floods continued to<br />

trouble the poor. The government took the ceremonial initiative of launching the PM<br />

Housing Scheme but failed to take concrete actions to follow up on the promise.<br />

Instead, the government’s focus remained on building motorways and airports such as<br />

high-budget Faisalabad-Multan motorway and Islamabad airport.<br />

Inadequate housing<br />

In the year under review, the total number of housing units in the country was<br />

estimated at 22.8 million out of which 67.5 percent were in rural areas and 32.5 percent<br />

in urban centers; the household size was 3.13 persons per room. According to the<br />

Housing Ministry, the country currently faced a shortfall of nearly eight million housing<br />

units. In the mid-1980s, this shortfall was 2.8 million housing units per year which<br />

266 State of Human Rights in 2009


Make-shift bed to spend the night in<br />

kept rising owing to the failure of the state to tackle this basic human need.<br />

If the pace of increasing deficit is not contained, it is estimated that the shortage<br />

will rise to a million houses per year in the not too distant future. The construction<br />

costs became so prohibitive that even the middle income group <strong>found</strong> it hard to af<strong>for</strong>d<br />

reasonable accommodation in major cities.<br />

Katchi Abadis<br />

The ever-widening housing deficit resulted in mushrooming of squatter colonies<br />

(katchi abadis) and slum localities, particularly in main urban centres and metropolitan<br />

towns where many families were <strong>for</strong>ced to live in one-room shanty shelters. The<br />

katchi abadis were a response to the failure of the state to ensure housing facilities <strong>for</strong><br />

the low-income people. Generally, slum-dwellers faced many obstacles, and were<br />

constrained to live in sub-human conditions in over-crowded localities. According to a<br />

conservative estimate, over 20 per cent of Pakistan’s urban population lived in slum<br />

areas in 2009, which were devoid of basic civic amenities. On the one hand, Karachi<br />

had more than half of its population residing in katchi abadis while, on the other hand,<br />

there was an inventory of more than 150,000 vacant residential plots in the city.<br />

At the start of the year 2009, two major incidents in separate parts of the country<br />

highlighted the plight of homeless people in big cities. In Rawalpindi, heavy rains brought<br />

misery to slum dwellers of the city living in mud houses on the banks of Leh Nullah<br />

and New Khatrian. Most residents left their houses made of mud, tattered clothes,<br />

Housing 267


plastic sheets, logs and straws fearing they would cave in heavy rains. These people<br />

took refuge under bridges and in under-construction houses and other public places<br />

such as bus stations.<br />

In another gory incident, on 9 January 2009, in North Karachi area a fire broke out<br />

at night in a temporary labour settlement and spread to more than two dozen tents on<br />

a small 240-yard residential plot. Out of 100 people living there 42, including 22 children,<br />

were trapped inside the settlement that had only a single entry and exit point. They<br />

were burnt to death and most bodies were charred beyond recognition. All of them<br />

were migrants from district Rahim Yar Khan. Ten days later, a fire broke out in six<br />

dwellings of a shanty town in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, claiming the life of an eight months old<br />

child.<br />

North Karachi’s incident was a reflection on the lives of millions of working class<br />

people in Karachi who come from far-flung areas in search of livelihood and live in<br />

make-shift shelters that lack basic amenities. In the past 10 years, nearly 2000 people<br />

have died in such slum fires. There was apprehension that the so-called spontaneous<br />

fires were a deliberate attempt by the land mafia to evict squatters from lands considered<br />

valuable from the development point of view. The provincial and city governments<br />

announced some relief measures <strong>for</strong> the affected people but the government’s actions<br />

did not include any policy to resolve the issue of temporary settlements.<br />

Islamabad slums<br />

There were 28 katchi abadis in Islamabad inhabited by more than 70,000 dwellers<br />

and their living conditions were appalling. Under the Urban Shelter Programme, the<br />

C a p i t a l<br />

D e v e l o p m e n t<br />

Authority (CDA)<br />

a c k n o w l e d g e d<br />

only 10 ‘katchi<br />

abadis’ <strong>for</strong><br />

provision of basic<br />

facilities because<br />

the national policy<br />

introduced by the<br />

government did<br />

not allow it to<br />

facilitate dwellers<br />

of the ‘katchi<br />

One of the many slums across the country<br />

abadis’ set up after<br />

268 State of Human Rights in 2009


March 1985. There were 3,805 houses in the legally recognised slums of Islamabad.<br />

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) faced problems in the execution of its<br />

plans <strong>for</strong> the upgradation of six ‘katchi abadis’ on their existing locations and shifting<br />

four others to Ali Pur Farash. However, the CDA had no plans <strong>for</strong> the other 18 ‘katchi<br />

abadis’, which it did not recognize as legal. In one of the katchi abadis selected <strong>for</strong><br />

relocation, called Haq Bahu, in 1-11 sector, the residents rejected the idea of relocation<br />

due to the long distance between Alipur Farash and the existing settlement.<br />

On the other hand, in Lahore, there were more than 310 katchi abadis out of which<br />

only 150 were registered with the Lahore Development Authority (LDA). On more<br />

than 200 vacant plots, gypsies lived in their temporary shelters. In 2009, LDA demolished<br />

more than 200 temporary katchi bastis on the complaint of the owners of the plots.<br />

Evictions<br />

January 21: In Lahore, the police was accused of demolishing a house built in<br />

Gulshan Colony’s slum area, allegedly on railways land. The resident said he had been<br />

granted a stay order by the civil court which was violated.<br />

Police demolished<br />

the shelters of residents<br />

in a slum area, Basti<br />

268-H, in Fort Abbas<br />

district and evicted the<br />

dwellers who claimed<br />

they had been living<br />

there <strong>for</strong> 15-20 years.<br />

The shelters were<br />

pulled down without<br />

issuing any notice to the<br />

dwellers. The district<br />

officials said the land<br />

had been allotted to a<br />

school to be set up by<br />

the Punjab government.<br />

Slum-residents protest against the demolition and<br />

<strong>for</strong>ced evacuation<br />

February 22: Dozens of villagers, including women and children, demonstrated<br />

in front of the Commissioner’s Office in Sahiwal city demanding that their 20-year old<br />

temporary dwellings should not be demolished and instead be declared Katchi Abadi by<br />

the provincial government.<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ound 55 dwellings housed 600 people <strong>for</strong> the last two decades on the outskirts<br />

of a village, 79/5-R. District revenue officials started an anti-encroachment drive and<br />

Housing 269


asked the residents to vacate their houses as they had no legal allotment. The revenue<br />

officials eventually ordered the demolition of the houses in question.<br />

March 18: In Multan, the authorities announced that hundreds of residents of the<br />

katchi abadi on railways land near the Old Shujabad Bridge would be transferred to a<br />

new place.<br />

April 15: In Faisalabad, the city administration demolished more than one hundred<br />

houses in a slum built on Sargodha Road at Chak No 6 GB. The dwellers had been<br />

living there <strong>for</strong> the past ten years. When some dwellers resisted the demolition, the<br />

police beat them up. The authorities took action without issuing any legal notice to the<br />

residents.<br />

April 24: In, Lahore, the residents of Christian Colony Bab-i-Pakistan, a stum<br />

area, staged a demonstration and alleged that influential people of the area wanted to<br />

occupy the land allotted to them <strong>for</strong> building houses. These people were earlier evicted<br />

from a slum called Ghosia Colony and were promised a piece of land <strong>for</strong> settlement<br />

near Bab-i-Pakistan.<br />

May 18: In Islamabad, nearly 3,500 families living in an illegal slum in Chak Shehzad<br />

were displaced when the Capital Development Authority (CDA) razed their settlements<br />

without giving them any notice. The settlement was built on a piece of land owned by<br />

the Water and Sanitation Agency. The victims said they were beaten up by the police<br />

during the operation against the settlement. They said the authority had allowed them<br />

to construct dwellings on the land after extorting Rs. 200,000 from each family.<br />

June 25: In Johar Town, Lahore, the Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA)<br />

dismantled 500 huts housing hundreds of people to pave the way <strong>for</strong> building a park.<br />

June 30: Hundreds of people were rendered homeless after the Punjab government<br />

de-notified the status of two katchi abadis in Lahore, namely Rasoolpura and Nawan<br />

Pind at Harbanspura. Six years ago, the Punjab government had declared these<br />

settlements as legal katchi abadis but it got the land evacuated to get the ring-road built<br />

on the site.<br />

October 19: The Lahore Cantonment Board Lahore launched an operation against<br />

the residents of Dhobi Ghat Katchi Abadi near Saddar Bazaar demolishing more than a<br />

dozen shelters. The residents staged a protest demonstration by burning tyres on the<br />

road.<br />

Government initiatives<br />

In March 2008, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani announced in the National<br />

Assembly a programme <strong>for</strong> the construction of one million housing units in the country,<br />

but the project moved at a snail’s pace. In the short term, the government announced<br />

the construction of 1,000 housing units in each provincial capital and in Islamabad. In<br />

270 State of Human Rights in 2009


the long term, 440,000 units were to be built in the Punjab, 300,000 in Sindh, 150,000<br />

in Frontier, 40,000 in Balpchistan, 40,000 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Northern<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>eas and 25,000 in Islamabad.<br />

State land in the federal and provincial capitals was identified and expressions of<br />

interest from private land developers obtained. The financial strategy developed <strong>for</strong> the<br />

implementation of the Prime Minister’s Housing Programme also aimed at providing<br />

cross subsidy to the low-income groups on purchase of constructed units but it was<br />

not implemented during the year under review.<br />

Towards the end of 2009, the Prime Minister’s initiative ran into difficulties. Hosuing<br />

and Works Minister Rehmatullah Kakar told the National assembly’s Standing Committee<br />

on Housing and Works that Punjab and NWFP had refused to provide land <strong>for</strong> the<br />

project and Sindh had allotted small chunks of land in remote areas near Kemari, which<br />

would take around 10 years to develop. According to the minister, only Balochistan<br />

provided land <strong>for</strong> the PM housing project. The minister also claimed that the government<br />

had allotted 3,000 kanals of land in Bara Khu area of Islamabad where 15,000 flats and<br />

plots would be developed and allotted to government employees and general public<br />

through the Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation.<br />

Sindh<br />

On many occasions, the Sindh government’s functionaries issued conflicting<br />

statements about the fate of katchi abadis. It seems power-wielders in urban Sindh<br />

viewed katchi abadis as an eyesore and wanted them demolished because they did not<br />

favour immigration from other areas, particularly the NWFP, which might tip the<br />

demographic balance against some ethnic groups in the long term. In this way, housing<br />

and katchi abadis in urban Sindh became a political issue. In January, Sindh Minister<br />

<strong>for</strong> Katchi Abadis, Rafique Engineer, said the government had decided to regularize<br />

1,200 old villages and katchi abadis and give ownership rights to the inhabitants.<br />

However, he said that the government did not recognize katchi abadis established after<br />

1985. He said the government was considering regularizing the katchi abadis that had<br />

cropped up on the land owned by different government departments. He said the<br />

government had started a process to obtain no-objection certificates from the land<br />

owning organisations. He promised residents of all regularized katchi abadis, established<br />

villages and housing schemes that they would be provided civic amenities. At the end<br />

of the year, these promises were unfulfilled as usual as only a few katchi abadis were<br />

granted ownership rights.<br />

On the other hand, the Sindh Assembly passed a resolution on 22 April 2009 asking<br />

the federal government to give ownership rights to legal katchi abadis established on<br />

the land of federal ministries such as Railways, Karachi Port Trust and Evacuee Properties<br />

Board. Moreover, the Sindh Board of Revenue announced a policy of Statement of<br />

Conditions <strong>for</strong> Grant of Lease-hold Rights 2008 to regularize katchi abadis and villages<br />

Housing 271


which had come into existence after 1985.<br />

Punjab<br />

The Punjab government announced that it would provide five-marla plots free of<br />

cost to homeless people under [he Jinnah Abadi Scheme in rural areas. The government’s<br />

committee <strong>for</strong> this purpose decided that one member of each family will be eligible to<br />

apply and only homeless residents could apply. The government would acquire land<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Jinnah Abadis from private owners where government land was not available.<br />

The cash-strapped provincial government, however, could not start implementing the<br />

ambitious project. In the Punjab Assembly, the provincial minister, Dost Muhammad<br />

Khosa, declared that the government had given ownership rights to 90,769 residents of<br />

601 katchi abadis in the province.<br />

Meanwhile, swindlers and fraudulent operators were given a free hand to capitalize<br />

on the need of the<br />

people. In Lahore<br />

alone, there were<br />

103 illegal<br />

housing societies<br />

which did not get<br />

approval from the<br />

LDA. These<br />

illegal operators<br />

received millions<br />

of rupees from<br />

the ordinary<br />

people while the<br />

r e l e v a n t<br />

authorities looked<br />

A high-rise in Lahore gets demolished - a common sight in 2009 the other way.<br />

Land <strong>for</strong> the rich and the privileged<br />

While the federal and provincial governments might not have had land to build<br />

low-cost houses <strong>for</strong> the poor, there was no shortage of precious land <strong>for</strong> the rich and<br />

the mighty, be it Sindh or Punjab. There were promises and evictions <strong>for</strong> the poor and<br />

plots <strong>for</strong> the rich. Even public spaces were not spared while catering to the greed of<br />

top political figures and bureaucrats. One example was Gutter Baghicha open space<br />

near Shah Abdul- Latif Bhitai, Old Golimar, Manghopir Road area in Karachi. The local<br />

and provincial governments joined hands to build a housing colony <strong>for</strong> <strong>for</strong>mer KMC<br />

officers on 200 acres out of the remaining 480 acres of public land. Workers of a<br />

political party also encroached upon another 20 acres in the Baghjcha besides other<br />

272 State of Human Rights in 2009


instances of illegal occupation. The mafia in command there was blamed <strong>for</strong> the brutal<br />

murder of Nisar Baloch, a leading civil society activist who was resisting their unlawful<br />

acts. Similarly, the Auditor General revealed in the Public Accounts Committee on<br />

October 2 that the DHA Karachi had illegally occupied 1800 acres of land worth hundreds<br />

of millions of rupees. The Committee requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar<br />

Muhammad Chaudhry to take suo motu notice of the occupation. In another instance,<br />

the land mafia in Karachi was making ef<strong>for</strong>ts to get ownership of 3.6 million yards of<br />

prime land of Mai Kolachi worth one billion dollars in the market at throw-away prices.<br />

The Evacuee Trust Property Board, a federal body, sold to DHA Lahore 544 kanals<br />

of agriculture land attached to two Sikh shrines in Lahore Cantonment. This sale was<br />

in violation of the Board’s own scheme of management of evacuee trust’s agriculture<br />

land.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. A housing need assessment is rquired to figure out the scale and characteristics<br />

of housing requirements, especially <strong>for</strong> the poor and low-income groups. At the same<br />

time, a land management study must be done to examine the availability of land <strong>for</strong><br />

housing the low-income groups.<br />

2. The government must allocate substantial amounts in the development budget<br />

<strong>for</strong> providing low-cost houses to the poor.<br />

3. The government needs to revamp and improve the working of the House<br />

Building Finance Corporation so that it could serve a larger number of people, especially<br />

in the low-income bracket.<br />

4. All katchi abadi dwellers should be given ownership rights, regardless of the<br />

dates of their establishment.<br />

Housing 273


Environment<br />

All human beings have the fundamental right to an environment adequate <strong>for</strong><br />

their health and well-being.<br />

States shall conserve and use the environment and natural resources <strong>for</strong> the<br />

benefit of present and future generations.<br />

States shall establish adequate environmental protection standards and monitor<br />

changes in and publish relevant data on environmental quality and resource use.<br />

Proposed Legal Principles <strong>for</strong> Environmental<br />

Protection and Sustainable Development<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 1,2,4<br />

The year 2009 began with the much-publicised claims by the government to control<br />

environmental pollution, but the words did not translate into practical action. This<br />

negligence is despite the fact that the country is faced with drought and acute water<br />

shortage that could create political rows between the provinces and unrest among the<br />

people.<br />

The cost of environmental damage<br />

The environment has become an issue of survival <strong>for</strong> Pakistan. The constantly<br />

declining water availability could result in low yield of crops and threats to food security<br />

in the country. Moreover, it has the potential of igniting inter-provincial conflicts over<br />

water resources. Still, the government, at both federal and provincial levels, seems to<br />

be obsessed with mega development projects such as airports, motorways, flyovers<br />

and construction works without paying attention to the cost of these projects to the<br />

environment.<br />

The cost of environmental degradation in the country is massive. According to a<br />

274 State of Human Rights in 2009


World Bank estimate, damage to the environment costs Pakistan nearly a billion rupees<br />

a day. Latest figures released by the Ministry of Environment in 2009 estimated that<br />

about 38 percent of Pakistan’s irrigated land was waterlogged; the productivity of soil<br />

was being lost due to salinity. To achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG)’s<br />

target of vegetation cover of 6 percent by 2015, the government launched a Mass<br />

Af<strong>for</strong>estation Programme on December 22, 2008. This five-year programme was to<br />

be sponsored by private entrepreneurs <strong>for</strong> planting trees on state and other suitable<br />

lands.<br />

Climate change is also a matter of concern <strong>for</strong> Pakistan because of the impact it<br />

will have on glaciers and availability of water <strong>for</strong> crops. The Planning Commission<br />

established a task <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

to investigate the<br />

impact of climate<br />

change on the<br />

country’s agriculture,<br />

economy and natural<br />

resources. Pakistan<br />

also signed a grant<br />

agreement with the<br />

World Bank amounting<br />

to US$ 500,000 <strong>for</strong> the<br />

preparation of<br />

Technical Assistance<br />

<strong>for</strong> National<br />

Environment Policy<br />

with the objective of<br />

strengthening the<br />

government’s capacity<br />

Living among decay<br />

<strong>for</strong> environmental<br />

management. During 2009, the government increased the allocation <strong>for</strong> environmental<br />

projects in the annual development budget. However, the ambitious plan remained at<br />

the paperwork stage during 2009.<br />

While declaring the year 2009 as the National Year of Environment, the federal<br />

minister <strong>for</strong> environment, said the government was considering the inclusion of a<br />

subject on environment in the curriculum of educational institutions. In a public<br />

statement, the minister admitted that Pakistan was facing a number of environmental<br />

challenges due to the accelerated economic and demographic changes.<br />

The country’s natural resources are increasingly under stress due to rapid population<br />

Environment 275


growth and environmentally unsustainable practices. Thus, climate change is not only<br />

an environmental issue but also an economic one as it has been posing a serious threat<br />

to agriculture, water resources, energy, livestock and other areas important <strong>for</strong> the<br />

country’s economy. According to official estimates, collective environmental degradation<br />

costs the country at least 6 percent of GDP or about Rs 365 billion per year, and these<br />

costs fall disproportionately upon the poor.<br />

The working group on the environment set up by the Planning Commission has<br />

proposed Rs 28 billion outlay to control pollution through a five-year programme (2010-<br />

2015) and urged the government to recognise environmental improvement as an<br />

economic activity, keeping in view the environmental damage.<br />

Contrary to the tall claims of observing 2009 as the year of environment, several<br />

measures taken by the federal and provincial governments showed utter disregard <strong>for</strong><br />

the environment. Ignoring the alarming increase in air and water pollution, the Punjab<br />

government reduced its annual allocation in the budget <strong>for</strong> the Punjab Environment<br />

Department to Rs 500 million, 50 percent less than the previous year’s allocation of Rs<br />

1 billion.<br />

During the year 2008-09, the EPD-Punjab failed in achieving some targets – to<br />

mention a few, the department completed only 20 percent of monitoring of the surface<br />

water bodies in the province and was able to meet only 40 percent of the target of<br />

establishing environmental laboratories in six districts of the province. Although Pakistan<br />

is signatory to international conventions and protocols on various environmental issues,<br />

mercury, which is considered to be highly toxic and a threat to human health, was still<br />

in massive use in industries, hospitals and research laboratories.<br />

Drought and unprecedented water scarcity<br />

By the end of 2009, the total irrigation water shortage was estimated to be 33 to 34<br />

per cent of the total requirement in 2010. However, Meteorological department estimated<br />

it to be 40 per cent. According to it, the country had crossed two stages of drought -<br />

meteorological and hydrological drought – and was entering the agricultural drought<br />

stage, that would result in crop failures in barani (rain-fed) areas and drought conditions<br />

in irrigated plains.<br />

By the 2009 winter, river flows were down by 21 per cent and water storage<br />

capacity had declined by 34 per cent as compared to 2008 and the meteorological<br />

department <strong>for</strong>ecast the emerging agricultural drought conditions would prevail till<br />

summer 2010.<br />

The drought in Pakistan is the result of extremely dry conditions mainly because<br />

of prevailing El-Nino conditions in the Pacific Ocean. The El-Nino conditions, which<br />

276 State of Human Rights in 2009


developed in June 2009 and reduced Pakistan’s monsoon rainfall by about 30 per cent,<br />

are likely to continue till 2010 summer. As a result, the country is threatened with<br />

agricultural drought because low rainfall, reduced soil water reserves and evaporation<br />

losses combined may start affecting crops.<br />

According to a 2006 World Bank report, Pakistan is moving fast from a “water<br />

stressed country to a water scarce country.” The inadequate irrigation and water<br />

infrastructure deficit alone is estimated at US $70 billion. In order to cater to this<br />

deficit, Pakistan needs to invest almost US $1 billion per year in new water conservation<br />

schemes and related infrastructure over the next five years.<br />

In 2009, Pakistan came to be counted amongst the most water-limited nations.<br />

According to the United Nations’<br />

World Water Development<br />

report, the total renewable water<br />

resources in Pakistan decreased<br />

from 2,961 cubic metres per<br />

capita in 2000 to 1,420 cubic<br />

metres per capita in 2005. A<br />

more recent study indicates an<br />

available supply of water of little<br />

more than 1,000 cubic metres<br />

per person, putting Pakistan in<br />

the category of a high waterstress<br />

country. As per data from<br />

the federal government’s<br />

Planning and Development<br />

division, the overall water<br />

availability fell from 1,299 cubic<br />

metres per capita in 1996-97 to<br />

1,101 cubic metres in 2004-05.<br />

In view of the growing population, urbanization and increased industrialization, if the<br />

current trends continue, it could go as low as 550-cubic metres by 2025.<br />

This situation is alarming because 38.5 million people in Pakistan, already lack<br />

access to safe drinking water.<br />

Water pollution<br />

Millions have limited or no access to safe<br />

drinking water<br />

Official statements admit that water-borne and sanitation diseases cost almost Rs<br />

112 billion per year to the national exchequer. Urbanisation, increased population,<br />

industrialisation, inefficient use of water <strong>for</strong> irrigation and dependence of agriculture<br />

sector on chemicals and fertilizers have resulted in deterioration of water quality and<br />

Environment 277


contamination of lakes, rivers, and ground water bodies.<br />

According to the authorities, more than 60 percent of the country’s population is<br />

without access to safe drinking water. Pakistan falls in the category of a water stressed<br />

country as water availability per person per year is just a little more than 1,000 cubic<br />

metres, much less than the required normal standard of 1,700 cubic metres.<br />

Sialkot<br />

According to the Punjab’s EPA, 350 tanneries existed in Sialkot during the beginning<br />

of 2009. The water released by these factories contained poisonous chemicals that<br />

caused a great deal of pollution of the under-ground water used <strong>for</strong> drinking purposes.<br />

Rawal Lake<br />

Rawal Lake, a part of the National Park and the main source of drinking water <strong>for</strong><br />

the town of Rawalpindi, suffered due to human habitation in the catchment areas.<br />

Other major cuases of contamination of its water include sedimentation, poultry waste<br />

and above all discharge of untreated domestic waste into the lake, apart from the<br />

emergence of restaurants and shops around it.<br />

Rawal Lake caters to almost 50% of the water demand of the fourth largest city of<br />

the country, costing only one rupee per thousand litres of water while groundwater is<br />

eight times more expensive. The storage capacity of the lake was 47,230 acres feet at<br />

the time it was built in 1960, but it has declined to 31,000 acres feet due to accelerated<br />

sedimentation.<br />

Kinjhar and Manchhar Lakes<br />

The country’s biggest fresh water lake, Kinjhar or Kalri, is a major source of<br />

drinking water <strong>for</strong> Karachi. However, owing to discharge of domestic and industrial<br />

effluents into it, the lake suffers from pollution. In addition, the lake’s environment is<br />

affected due to free access to the lake <strong>for</strong> tourists and visitors. Experts claimed that the<br />

lake’s bio-diversity had been badly affected in recent years causing a remarkable decline<br />

in the number of migratory birds landing on the lake. According to WWF-Pakistan,<br />

Kalri Baghar feeder provides water to Karachi, Keenjhar and Haleji lakes and the Ramsar<br />

site.<br />

Another big water source in Sindh, Manchhar Lake, has been affected by<br />

contamination because of reduced Indus in-flows and continuous discharge of waste<br />

and at the same time depletion of fisheries and livestock resources.<br />

Sea pollution<br />

The sea water of Karachi is considered to be extremely polluted because of the<br />

discharge of industrial waste from Korangi, Landhi, and the Karachi Export Processing<br />

Zone. The Korangi industrial area houses around 2,500 industrial units, including 170<br />

278 State of Human Rights in 2009


tanneries, which dispose untreated waste into the sea. A continuous flow of water with<br />

animal dung from Bhains Colony is another source of pollution. Oil discharge in the<br />

Port Qasim area resulting from shipping activities also affects marine communities,<br />

while large oil spills in the region disrupt fishing activity, paralyze economic activity<br />

and eventually harms the local fishing community.<br />

Port activity affects the environment due to heavy oil shipping and subsequent<br />

dredging. An estimated 90,000 tons of oil is pumped out per year within port limits<br />

while no oil-ship waste reception or treatment facility is available within the port.<br />

According to experts’ opinion, marine life has often been contaminated with lead, and<br />

if consumed by humans it can lead to anemia, kidney failure, and brain damage.<br />

The City District Government Karachi (CDGK) is another major contributor to sea<br />

pollution as it discharges almost three tons of waste into the sea per day, not only<br />

depriving the fishermen of their livelihood but also destroying the mangrove and marine<br />

life. The mangrove <strong>for</strong>ests, that protect the feeder creeks from sea erosion and help in<br />

maintaining an ecological balance, also act as a source of sustenance <strong>for</strong> fishermen.<br />

However, they are severely threatened by pollution and the greed of land mafia.<br />

Death of the Delta<br />

Migratory birds, peculiar to this part of the country, have disappeared in the recent<br />

past owing to increasing environmental degradation. Degradation of mangrove <strong>for</strong>ests,<br />

loss of fresh water supply and the change in climatic patterns have not only disturbed<br />

the nesting and breeding patterns of birds but have also changed their routes.<br />

According to the ministry of environment, the mangrove <strong>for</strong>ests of Pakistan located<br />

at four geographical locations along the 1,046 km-long Indus delta coastline and in<br />

Sindh extended over 26,000 sq km, have now deteriorated immensely due to a<br />

combination of natural causes and human activity leaving the deltaic people vulnerable<br />

to cyclones and tsunamis. The delta land in Sindh has been severely ravaged by sea<br />

water intrusion.<br />

Soil water<br />

The government needs to control the excessive use of pesticides which are polluting<br />

the soil and sub-soil shallow water because the pesticides used in Pakistan are mostly<br />

not easily bio-degradable. Pests should be controlled through biological means rather<br />

than through pesticides. Industrial waste containing heavy metals thrown into the rivers<br />

and irrigation canals also adversely affects crop production and crop quality.<br />

Trees and <strong>for</strong>ests<br />

Forest land in the country is often being used <strong>for</strong> non-<strong>for</strong>est purposes. The Federal<br />

Minister <strong>for</strong> Environment revealed that the Sindh government distributed nearly 111,000<br />

Environment 279


hectares of <strong>for</strong>est land <strong>for</strong> non-<strong>for</strong>est use during the year. According to him, the Forest<br />

Act 1927 is insufficient to meet the requirements of the present day and needs to be<br />

revised to keep timber theft and de<strong>for</strong>estation in check. The ministry <strong>for</strong>mulated the<br />

draft of a new <strong>for</strong>est policy to discourage the use of <strong>for</strong>est land <strong>for</strong> non-<strong>for</strong>est purposes,<br />

but it was not presented in the parliament till the end of the year.<br />

Depleting <strong>for</strong>est area<br />

Pakistan’s <strong>for</strong>est area decreased from 2,527,000 hectares in 1990 to 1,902,000<br />

hectares in 2005, that is, equal to only 2.5 percent of the land area of the country,<br />

putting it in the category of countries with low <strong>for</strong>est cover. Under the latest national<br />

<strong>for</strong>est policy, <strong>for</strong>est cover is expected to increase to 6 per cent of the country’s land<br />

area by 2015.<br />

The absence of trees has been affecting rain patterns in the country. The river<br />

<strong>for</strong>ests that covered 4,634 hectares of land in 1986 were reduced to mere 877 hectares<br />

in 2002. Sindh’s <strong>for</strong>ests occupied only 2.5 per cent of the land and the number of trees<br />

declined due to<br />

overgrazing while sea<br />

intrusion consumed<br />

around 1.2 million<br />

acres of land,<br />

according to a 2001<br />

survey. In 2009, the<br />

government had<br />

decided to plant 70<br />

million saplings<br />

throughout the<br />

country, but the target<br />

was not met.<br />

An evident scene of rapid de<strong>for</strong>estation at Changa Manga In Matiari district<br />

of Sindh province,<br />

trees spread over 90,000 acres of land along the Indus were cut off and the land was<br />

brought under cultivation, thus depriving the region of a rich source of wood and<br />

medicinal plants.<br />

On a positive note, the Punjab Forest Department, in collaboration with the WWF-<br />

Pakistan and a private chemical industry, planted trees on 180 acres of land at Changa<br />

Manga near Lahore, in order to bring down the effect of greenhouse gas emissions by<br />

the chemical industry. The Sindh Forest Department also planted as many as 450,000<br />

mangrove saplings near Keti Bunder in July 2009.<br />

The Punjab government abandoned the New Murree Project, planned in 2003, of<br />

280 State of Human Rights in 2009


uilding a tourist resort and township over 4000 acres of reserved <strong>for</strong>est land in Patriata,<br />

north of Islamabad. The civil society also had opposed the project <strong>for</strong> its severe ecological<br />

and social implications.<br />

Islamabad’s trees<br />

Several infrastructure projects were undertaken in the federal capital at the cost of<br />

a large number of rare trees, plants and wild life. In recent years, thousands of trees<br />

were cut down in the federal capital to broaden highways and roads.<br />

A federal government project of building a tunnel through the Margalla hills to<br />

connect the federal capital with Haripur was underway in 2009, despite the fact that<br />

the two cities already had reasonably good road links. Even though Margalla Hills were<br />

declared a National Park in 1980, several environmentally hazardous projects were<br />

carried out in that area. In 1984, a cement factory was set up in the vicinity of the Hills,<br />

upsetting the flora and fauna of the National Park. Islamabad’s environment also suffers<br />

from the stone-crushing activities in the National Park area, which continue despite the<br />

government’s repeated promises to ban them completely. Furthermore, the residents<br />

of the Park also cut trees to use them as fuel. To stop this activity, the government<br />

made promises to provide them with alternative energy sources, but did little on ground.<br />

Karachi’s trees<br />

Karachi has nearly 2.5 million trees in the urban areas, which is seven to eight<br />

times less than the world standards. According to a satellite-imagery survey conducted<br />

in March 2007, the city tree-cover stands at a mere seven per cent, with localities<br />

falling under the cantonment boards and Defence Housing Authority (DHA) being<br />

particularly short of greenery. For an atmospherically ideal condition, experts say at<br />

least one tree per person is required in the city. Since July 2008, the city government<br />

planted about 300,000 trees in various areas of Karachi, but at the same time about<br />

1,000 trees were cut down in the city.<br />

Lahore’s trees<br />

According to official statistics, 40 percent of Lahore’s land area should be covered<br />

with trees; however, only 20 percent of the city land area has trees - this percentage is<br />

likely to drop to 15 percent due to rapid urbanization in the coming years.<br />

Construction and widening of the roads in Lahore has led to more than 3,600 trees<br />

being cut down while more than 6,000 trees have been destroyed due to the construction<br />

of four under-passes in last 10 years. During June 2009, Parks and Horticulture Authority<br />

(PHA) Lahore, cut down almost half the trees along the Jail Road allegedly on demands<br />

of advertising agencies who wanted to increase the visibility of billboards. The authority<br />

reportedly also cut down 20 fully-grown trees along the Club Road in GOR-1 in order<br />

to widen the greenbelt.<br />

The Punjab government plans to widen the Lahore canal bank road at the cost of<br />

Environment 281


cutting hundreds of Eucalyptus trees. The widening of the canal road by 18 feet on<br />

both sides from Thokar Niaz Beg to Mustafabad (Dharampura), requires cutting down<br />

of more than 1474 trees. The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) Punjab approved<br />

the project, but the World Wide Fund-Pakistan <strong>found</strong> the official assessment factually<br />

flawed.<br />

In the mid-monsoon season, the Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) launched<br />

a tree plantation campaign with a target of planting 70,000 saplings in Lahore, 30,000<br />

less than in the previous year. The PHA authorities claim that the mortality rate of trees<br />

planted every year is almost 52 years on average.<br />

Air pollution<br />

According to government statistics, some 23,000 people die in the country because<br />

of air-pollution each year. As many as 45 million Pakistanis suffer from respiratory<br />

diseases every year, mainly caused by air pollution, a World Bank report suggests.<br />

According to a study on pollution control carried out by a working group on<br />

environment <strong>for</strong> the Planning Commission, data collected in five major cities through<br />

continuous monitoring stations confirmed the presence of high concentration of<br />

suspended particles. Ambient concentrations of particulates in these cities lie consistently<br />

above the World Health<br />

Organization (WHO)<br />

guidelines, and are on an<br />

average two to four times<br />

the recommended levels.<br />

The high air pollution levels<br />

are mainly caused by<br />

excessive increase in the<br />

number of motor vehicles<br />

and inefficient automotive<br />

technology, use of unclean<br />

fuels, uncontrolled<br />

emissions from industrial<br />

units, and brick kilns,<br />

unregulated burning of<br />

garbage and presence of<br />

A common sight on the roads of Pakistan<br />

loose dust.<br />

Given the lack of en<strong>for</strong>cement of motor vehicle fitness regulations, the increase in<br />

air pollution caused by vehicles alone is alarming. The problem is compounded by the<br />

fact that the average life of vehicles used in the country is quite long. As a result,<br />

vehicles are estimated to emit 25 times the amount of carbon monoxide, 20 times the<br />

amount of hydrocarbons and 3.6 times the amount of nitrous oxide of emissions from<br />

282 State of Human Rights in 2009


an average vehicle in the United States.<br />

Islamabad<br />

According to the results of the visual monitoring done in Islamabad by Pakistan<br />

Environmental Protection Agency (PAK-EPA), air pollution in Islamabad’s industrial<br />

area (I-9 and I-10 sectors) was highest in the city. In 2009, the capital’s environment<br />

further deteriorated when hundreds of trees on the Zero Point avenue were axed, some<br />

of which were later transported to other parts of the city, during the construction of a<br />

road interchange in that area.<br />

In the suburbs of the capital are situated nine steel furnaces, hundreds of smalland<br />

medium-sized industrial units, more than 72 brick kilns and 31 marble factories.<br />

The EPA’s study shows that 90 per cent of Islamabad’s air pollution is caused by<br />

industrial units. Brick kilns in the capital burn organic material, tires and raw coal as<br />

fuel and discharge hazardous gases such as carbon mono-oxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen<br />

peroxide etc, in huge quantities<br />

The Ministry of Environment approved in principle a proposal by the PAK-EPA to<br />

relocate the steel furnaces in a new industrial area that was being developed in I-17<br />

sector to house the relocated factories. The Pak-EPA also planned to shut down 74<br />

brick kilns in the federal capital in three phases, the first of which aimed at closing<br />

down 12 brick kilns near the airport that caused thick smoke that reduced visibility on<br />

the runways.<br />

Karachi<br />

Diesel engines and two-stroke vehicles are considered to be the main cause of air<br />

pollution in Karachi. They emit huge amounts of smoke and noise, as they carry massive<br />

loads. Two-stroke vehicles accounted <strong>for</strong> about 60 per cent of the motor vehicle fleet<br />

and contributed significantly to air pollution, resulting in adverse effects on urban<br />

dwellers’ health.<br />

A study conducted by the chemistry department of the University of Karachi <strong>found</strong><br />

that major parts of the city were exposed to acute lead pollution, a neuro-toxin that<br />

poses a serious threat to the health of citizens. The study was conducted by examining<br />

the lead <strong>content</strong> on the leaves of Peepal trees in different parts of the city. As per the<br />

study results, significant deposits of lead were <strong>found</strong> on the sample of leaves, which<br />

confirmed high levels of lead concentration in the air. Most of the lead in the air came<br />

from automobiles having weak engines, usage of leaded fuel, and the use of coal and<br />

furnace oil <strong>for</strong> power generation.<br />

Lahore<br />

Increased number of vehicles in Lahore, like other major cities, contributed to high<br />

air pollution levels in the city. More than 500 marble-cutting units were polluting populous<br />

Environment 283


esidential localities of Lahore while many units were working in and around the newly<br />

established residential areas during the year. The marble-cutting units caused a great<br />

deal of environmental degradation by emitting marble dust and noise, besides affecting<br />

traffic flow on various roads.<br />

According to the Environment Protection Agency of Punjab, the majority of the<br />

marble-cutting units were operating on the Ferozpur Road near Ichhra, Wahdat Road,<br />

Johar Town, and the College Road, Township. Marble dust is injurious to humans,<br />

especially children, as it causes asthma, shortness of breath and many other diseases<br />

related to lungs.<br />

The Punjab provincial authorities took a few steps during 2009 to control air<br />

pollution as EPA Punjab had been monitoring air pollution through two monitoring<br />

stations and was planning to set up two more monitoring stations in the province.<br />

The Punjab government allocated Rs 35 billion to education and health as compared<br />

to Rs 45 billion to the building of infrastructure (roads and bridges) in the previous<br />

budget (2008-09). Even though less than 20 per cent of the city’s population has<br />

access to cars, a huge part of the annual provincial budget is spent on roads that only<br />

automobile owners have access to.<br />

Indoor pollution<br />

Relatively little attention has been paid in Pakistan to the gases and particles that<br />

pollute the indoor air quality in cities and villages. A major contributor to child mortality<br />

resulting from respiratory ailments is indoor air pollution. The common indoor pollutants<br />

include dirt, lead from paints and pesticides. However, smoke coming out of cigarettes,<br />

cooking and heating is also injurious to health. Rural areas face a higher level of indoor<br />

pollution than urban areas as cheap biomass fuels such as wood, dung, coal, crop<br />

waste etc are commonly used there in traditional inefficient stoves, and massive quantities<br />

of smoke are produced due to incomplete combustion. However, even in urban areas<br />

indoor air pollution is quite high because a good number of urban houses are unventilated<br />

and still use inefficient stoves or fuel appliances.<br />

Municipal and industrial solid waste<br />

The dumping of industrial waste, including hazardous materials such as toxic<br />

metals, in canals, rivers and the sea and throwing municipal waste on private lands in<br />

cities are major environmental issues. Industrial waste treatment systems are nonexistent<br />

in the country except <strong>for</strong> a few industries but these do not meet the required<br />

standards or are non-operational.<br />

At present, more than 400 million gallons of untreated industrial waste are being<br />

discharged into the <strong>Ar</strong>abian Sea daily out of which 80 million gallons is contributed by<br />

Karachi and the remaining comes from the rest of the country through rivers. In the<br />

284 State of Human Rights in 2009


absence of regulatory mechanisms and poor implementation of laws, industries in the<br />

city find it most convenient to dump industrial waste into the sea. Major industrial<br />

zones produce enormous amounts of industrial solid waste which is dumped either on<br />

vacant plots or in the Lyari and Malir rivers. In some cases, it is burnt outside factory<br />

premises leading to massive pollution.<br />

More than 264 tanneries in Sialkot district, having a production capacity of 297<br />

tons of leather per day, were reported to be producing every day effluents containing<br />

nearly 11,000 cubic litres of 130 toxic chemicals. Although these tanneries claimed to<br />

be con<strong>for</strong>ming to ISO 14000, they discharged solid waste, packing material, plastic<br />

bottles, rubber and polythene material into the drains. In Dadu district, dumping of<br />

chemical waste into ponds just adjacent to a village in Johi Taluka by an oil and gas field<br />

was causing skin diseases to the local residents in the area.<br />

In several cases, the effluents are often discharged untreated into canals and rivers<br />

and their water is used <strong>for</strong> irrigating crops and even <strong>for</strong> drinking in some regions. In<br />

Sindh, the waste water discharge into Rice and Dadu canals, the only source of drinking<br />

water <strong>for</strong> the<br />

people of Larkana<br />

and other adjoining<br />

towns, is posing<br />

threats to the<br />

people’s health.<br />

Three other<br />

canals, old Phuleli,<br />

new Phulleli and<br />

Akram Wah, near<br />

Hyderabad are<br />

almost choked<br />

with the entire<br />

waste of<br />

Hyderabad. In<br />

Hyderabad, toxic<br />

industrial solid<br />

A wasteland resulting from careless dumping exorbitant<br />

industrial waste, a great part of it toxic<br />

waste is also dumped on the banks of the Phuleli canal that is the main source of<br />

drinking water <strong>for</strong> Badin district. The K.B Feeder canal receives industrial wastewater<br />

from industries in Kotri. Time and again the Sindh government has made promises to<br />

resolve the issue but has invariably failed to do so.<br />

Early in 2009, a Punjab environmental tribunal ordered the Lahore Cantonment<br />

Board to stop dumping waste at the Chak Padri village landfill site because the illegal<br />

Environment 285


dumping was causing significant environmental pollution. The waste dumping site had<br />

become a plague spot as it was attracting dogs and vultures and had turned into a<br />

breeding space <strong>for</strong> flies and mosquitoes. The Lahore Cantonment Board was dumping<br />

almost 600 tonnes of municipal waste from the Cantonment and DHA areas on a daily<br />

basis.<br />

The EPA Punjab claimed that 90 percent of the hospitals in the province were not<br />

complying with the Hospital Waste Management Rules 2005. It said that district officers<br />

of the provincial environment department had taken action against 272 pathological<br />

laboratories <strong>for</strong> violation of rules in Punjab.<br />

Similarly, the EPA Sindh ordered the closure of a poultry feed manufacturing factory<br />

in the Korangi area, Karachi. The agency had acted on public complaints that the unit<br />

was causing severe pollution in the area.<br />

According to a daily Dawn report published on July 19,2009, there were 37 public<br />

and private hospitals in Sahiwal district, none of which had an arrangement <strong>for</strong> safe<br />

disposal of the nearly 31 metric tons of waste generated by them each month.<br />

In Punjab, all private and public sector hospitals were bound to dispose off their<br />

waste according to the Hospital Waste Management Rules. As many as 125 private and<br />

public hospitals were <strong>found</strong> violating the rules, and their cases were sent to the<br />

environment tribunal. By June 2009, the Punjab Environment Protection Department<br />

had proceeded against 30 medical laboratories of Lahore <strong>for</strong> violating Hospital Waste<br />

Management Rules and practising unsafe disposal of hospital solid waste.<br />

According to Punjab Secretary <strong>for</strong> Environment, 530 production units were <strong>found</strong><br />

violating the Environment Protection Act and were tried in different courts of law<br />

while 62 projects were closed down after the intervention of the Environment<br />

department. The Sindh Environment Ministry also issued notices to 100 industrial units<br />

in Karachi on charges of polluting air in 2009.<br />

Polythene bags<br />

A poll conducted by Gallup Pakistan amongst a sample of 1,570 people from both<br />

rural and urban areas of Pakistan during mid 2009, revealed that more than two thirds<br />

of Pakistanis put their household purchases in polythene bags whereas only 15 percent<br />

of the population used bags made of cloth, 5 percent made use of paper bags and only<br />

four percent of the respondents used a basket.<br />

Polythene bags choke sewers and are a major cause of environmental pollution.<br />

The Sindh home department took action against the use of polythene bags having 30 or<br />

less microns thickness issuing a ban on their production, sale and use in the province.<br />

However, the city district government of Karachi altered the limit by raising it to 150<br />

286 State of Human Rights in 2009


microns thickness.<br />

Although, the<br />

Sindh High Court had<br />

banned polythene bags<br />

in 2008, giving a sixmonth<br />

deadline to the<br />

government to halt<br />

plastic bag production,<br />

newspaper reports<br />

suggested that the<br />

government failed to<br />

impose the ban in<br />

Karachi. The same is<br />

the case in other<br />

provinces.<br />

Noise pollution<br />

Pakistani cities are becoming noisier by the day and unruly traffic, and the constant<br />

blaring of horns, loud music from vehicles and deafening noise made by rickshaw<br />

engines are the main causes. Despite the fact that noise adversely affects public health,<br />

there is no specific body to regulate noise pollution in the country. In the last couple of<br />

years, with long hours of power outages, the use of generators in houses has also<br />

contributed immensely to a rise in the level of noise in the urban areas.<br />

In 2009, the EPA Punjab decided to compel local car manufacturers to install<br />

catalytic converters in silencers and urge tractor-manufacturers to prepare Euro-standard<br />

tractors to reduce noise pollution in the country.<br />

A delay in completing the construction of the 100-km stretch of Lahore-Gujranwala<br />

section of the national highway resulted in permanent presence of dust, noise and<br />

smoke on the highway and residential suburbs along the road. The NHA failed to limit<br />

dust pollution in the area by not regularly sprinkling water on the construction site and<br />

not ensuring speedy completion of the road.<br />

Development and environment<br />

Roads serve as a dumping ground <strong>for</strong> all sorts of waste,<br />

including polythene bags<br />

The National Highway Authority (NHA) was involved in dumping of debris into<br />

the Indus River system and which eventually flowed into the Tarbela dam lake. This<br />

happened while the NHA was building the 100 km stretch of Karakoram Highway.<br />

The building of 1.66-km flyover by the DHA between Subamrine Chowk and<br />

Khayaban-i-Shamsheer in Karachi came under criticism on environmental grounds and<br />

Environment 287


Move to “noise pollution”<br />

was challenged by<br />

the Sindh<br />

E nvi r onment a l<br />

Protection Agency.<br />

The authority had<br />

not completed the<br />

<strong>for</strong>mality of an<br />

envi r o nmenta l<br />

impact assessment<br />

(EIA) be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

starting the<br />

construction of the<br />

flyover, as required<br />

under the law.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. Water shortage has become survival issue in the country. The government<br />

needs to launch awareness campaigns to persuade consumers to conserve drinking<br />

water. Sensors in taps need to be introduced in cities to stop the wastage of clean water<br />

in houses. New irrigation methods like sprinkler and drip irrigation need to be promoted<br />

in order to meet the problem of low water availability, in addition to planting fir trees<br />

which keep the salinity levels in check and maintain fertility of the soil, and other<br />

measures such as rotation of crops and lining of watercourses.<br />

2. There is a need to highlight the issue of indoor air pollution and educate the<br />

masses in this respect and help them protect their lives with cleaner indoor air.<br />

3. According to experts, about 20 percent of all project costs should be reserved<br />

<strong>for</strong> green activities such as parks, green spaces and trees.<br />

4. Broad-leaf trees should be grown on all roadsides as trees absorb deadly<br />

emissions of vehicular traffic and industrial plants.<br />

5. Slow land filters need to be introduced in rural and peri-urban towns in Sindh<br />

<strong>for</strong> water purification and they should consist of typical treatment units like storage<br />

tanks, sedimentation tanks, slow sand filters, disinfection, and clear water tanks, in<br />

that order.<br />

288 State of Human Rights in 2009


Refugees<br />

Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from<br />

persecution.<br />

This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from<br />

non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United<br />

Nations.<br />

Universal Declaration of Human Rights<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>ticle 14<br />

In Pakistan, the alarmingly high number of people living in refugee-like conditions<br />

includes individuals belonging not just to other countries (mostly Afghans) but also<br />

hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis rendered homeless by the ongoing war on terror.<br />

In 2009, the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) swelled in the wake of<br />

military operations in Swat, South Waziristan, Khyber Agency, Bajaur, Orakzai and<br />

adjacent areas.<br />

At the end of 2009, according to UNHCR, 1.7 million Afghan refugees were living<br />

in Pakistan while, according to Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC),<br />

1.25 million people were displaced from their homes within Pakistan. Of these, 500,000<br />

were children living with their families.<br />

Afghan refugees<br />

Pakistan has been, in recent years, host to one of the largest refugee populations in<br />

the world. Most of them were Afghans with a sprinkling of asylum seekers from Iraq,<br />

Iran and Somalia. At the end of 2009, according to the Pakistan government, 2.1<br />

million Afghan refugees were still residing in Pakistan. Of these only 1.7 million were<br />

Refugees 289


egistered. The<br />

government had<br />

earlier announced<br />

its goal to complete<br />

the repatriation<br />

process by the end<br />

of December 2009.<br />

However, the<br />

<strong>for</strong>mer United<br />

Nations High<br />

Commissioner <strong>for</strong><br />

Refugees requested<br />

Pakistan to revise<br />

its policy, pleading<br />

with it to “continue<br />

to be a generous<br />

Clueless in refugee camps<br />

host”. At this, the<br />

Pakistan government agreed to extend the Proof of Registration (PoR) card <strong>for</strong> Afghans<br />

until 2012.<br />

Repatriation<br />

HRCP surveyed the conditions at the refugee camps and the process of repatriation<br />

in its report titled “Push Comes to Shove: Afghan Refugees in Pakistan”. A very high<br />

number of individuals expressed their inability to start a new life back home amidst<br />

conditions of political turmoil, security threats and a weak economic infrastructure.<br />

When asked if he was going back home voluntarily, a father of five replied “Raza Na<br />

Da” (No, not willingly) and added that he was doing so in the face of threats by the<br />

authorities to bulldoze the temporary shelters. A large number of refugee homes were<br />

demolished all over the tribal areas including those in Landi Kotal.<br />

In the past six years, some 3.5 million refugees returned to Afghanistan. In 2008,<br />

UNHCR reported that 270, 000 Afghan refugees returned home and this trend continued<br />

through the early months of 2009 as another 50, 000 refugees were repatriated. Early<br />

in March 2009, the UN Secretary General and the International Committee of Red<br />

Cross (ICRC) made a bleak <strong>for</strong>ecast about the future of Afghanistan saying that the<br />

security, humanitarian and political situation there was set to worsen.<br />

The slowdown in the rate of repatriation in 2009 was attributed to uncertain<br />

economic and security conditions back home in view of the upcoming Afghan elections.<br />

As the Afghan elections in October were conducted amidst incidents of sporadic violence,<br />

290 State of Human Rights in 2009


tensions had mounted again in the region. Moreover, throughout 2009 there were<br />

reports of Taliban’s claims of recapturing towns, and the NATO’s counterclaims of<br />

having crushed the militants, leaving the ordinary Afghan refugee in Pakistan in a state<br />

of uncertainty and confusion.<br />

In the backdrop of violence on both sides of the border, the Chief Commissioner<br />

<strong>for</strong> Afghan Refugees told HRCP that the conditions in Afghanistan made it unlikely <strong>for</strong><br />

Pakistan to meet the repatriation target set under the tripartite accord between Islamabad,<br />

Kabul and the UN. He<br />

emphasised the need <strong>for</strong><br />

early repatriation, saying<br />

that Pakistan in the face<br />

of its ongoing internal<br />

military operations and<br />

a precarious economy<br />

could not continue to<br />

host such a large<br />

number of refugees.<br />

The Integrated Regional<br />

In<strong>for</strong>mation Network<br />

(IRIN) quoted the<br />

Afghan Ministry of<br />

Refugees and<br />

Repatriation of Afghan refugees slowed down during 2009<br />

Repatriation as saying<br />

that it did not have the capacity to absorb such a large number of refugees. The<br />

international community criticised Pakistan’s hardening attitude towards the Afghan<br />

refugees as the country was faced with another worsening humanitarian crisis owing<br />

to millions of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).<br />

Rehabilitation<br />

The Afghans arriving after 2007 were considered ineligible to apply <strong>for</strong> the proof<br />

of registration cards and even those who had PoR cards were provided no other legal<br />

rights except the right to stay in Pakistan temporarily. A large number of the Afghans<br />

who were working in Pakistan had been absorbed in the in<strong>for</strong>mal sector outside the<br />

realm of law-en<strong>for</strong>cement agencies and were vulnerable to all sorts of injustices.<br />

In 2009, under the Registration In<strong>for</strong>mation Project <strong>for</strong> Afghan Citizens (RIPAC),<br />

three initiatives were launched: smart cards <strong>for</strong> Afghan refugees as a <strong>for</strong>mal document<br />

of their identity, conduct of community and household surveys to identify protection<br />

and survival needs of the refugees, and solution of their problems.<br />

Also, in the same year, the Refugee-Affected and Housing-<strong>Ar</strong>eas (RAHA) initiatives<br />

Refugees 291


The displaced children turn from school to work<br />

were launched with the<br />

joint collaboration of<br />

the Government of<br />

Pakistan, UNHCR and<br />

UNDP. This was a part<br />

of UN’s Delivering as<br />

One programme, a fiveyear<br />

development<br />

programme which will<br />

initially be implemented<br />

in NWFP and<br />

Balochistan. The main<br />

aim of this programme<br />

was to facilitate<br />

peaceful co-existence<br />

of Afghan refugees in<br />

communities that had hosted them <strong>for</strong> over three decades. Its focus was not just on<br />

rehabilitating the refugees but on the host communities’ interest as well.<br />

Mounting problems<br />

When the wave of Afghan refugees entered Pakistan after the fall of Taliban<br />

government in Kabul, most of the refugee camps were set up in remote and difficultto-access<br />

tribal areas. These camps lacked basic facilities and were set up in violation<br />

of international standards that stipulate that refugees should be settled at a safe distance<br />

from international frontiers.<br />

The highly volatile political circumstances allowed sectarian and extremist factions<br />

to exploit the refugees and recruit them to their cause. As unregistered and illegal<br />

refugees continued to stay on in Pakistan, they became prime targets <strong>for</strong> the security<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces that mistreated them in many ways. In Mardan, police launched a crackdown<br />

on illegal Afghan nationals under the pretext of countering the increased crime rate in<br />

the surrounding areas. According to a fact-finding mission of HRCP, authorities in<br />

Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad arrested more than 800 Afghan nationals after<br />

Baitullah Mehsud, the head of the Pakistani faction of Taliban, claimed responsibility<br />

<strong>for</strong> various suicide attacks across the country.<br />

Internally displaced persons (IDPs)<br />

Be<strong>for</strong>e the start of the military operations against militants in the North-West Frontier<br />

region of Pakistan, the Internally Displaced Population in Pakistan mostly consisted of<br />

people from Balochistan who had been trapped in civil and tribal wars in the province.<br />

At the beginning of 2009, as more military offensives were launched to counter the<br />

292 State of Human Rights in 2009


growing threats from militant factions like Taliban, the region saw a humanitarian<br />

crisis in the <strong>for</strong>m of Internallay Displaced People (IDPs) as initially two million people<br />

were driven from their homes in NWFP and FATA (Federally Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>ea).<br />

According to Internal displacement Management Centre (IDMC), in July 2009<br />

there were between<br />

2.7 and 3.5 million<br />

IDPs in NWFP alone,<br />

and 30 camps had<br />

been set up across the<br />

province. However,<br />

most IDPs were<br />

eager to return to their<br />

homes as soon as<br />

fighting stopped in the<br />

Swat valley. In<br />

November, the UN<br />

estimated around<br />

1.25 million people<br />

were still displaced<br />

while nearly 1.6<br />

Moving out of home-towns and towards uncertainty<br />

million displaced<br />

people had returned to their homes. In the tribal areas of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank,<br />

no camps were set up <strong>for</strong> the IDPs till the end of 2009, though UNHCR had distributed<br />

tents to families hosting IDPs.<br />

Malakand<br />

The civilian population of Malakand region was caught between the Taliban who<br />

showed no respect <strong>for</strong> civilians and the security <strong>for</strong>ces that seemed to be relying<br />

dangerously on fire power. Accounts of heavy shelling during these operations were<br />

followed by an increasing number of people fleeing the troubled region. In the summer<br />

of 2009, the NWFP government and the UNHCR put the number of displaced persons<br />

at more than three million but the verified figures were put at 1.7 million, a majority of<br />

them from Swat and Buner districts. The displaced families from Swat, Shangla, Buner,<br />

Lower Dir and Malakand Agency were settled in comparatively peaceful districts of<br />

Peshawar, Mardan, Nowshera and Charsadda. About 12 official camps were set up <strong>for</strong><br />

these homeless people. However, a majority of the IDPs was living in the houses,<br />

hujras and school buildings of the host communities. As the military operations were<br />

wrapped up in the region towards the end of 2009, a large number of the Malakand<br />

Refugees 293


IDPs had returned to their homes.<br />

South Waziristan<br />

In South Waziristan, the security <strong>for</strong>ces launched an operation in the Mehsud tribal<br />

territory on October 17. The same month, the government registered 19, 548 families<br />

(149, 934 people) from South Waziristan. A majority of them were residing with host<br />

communities in the adjacent districts of Tank and Dera Ismail Khan as the authorities<br />

failed to establish camps in the face of ethnic problems and poor law and order situation.<br />

Towards the end of the year, the UN reported that the influx of civilians fleeing South<br />

Waziristan had slowed down. NADRA said more than 2,60,000 displaced persons<br />

were registered at the notified points in Tank and Dera Ismail Khan.<br />

Orakzai Agency<br />

As military operations in the Orakzai Agency intensified, the UN reported that<br />

40,000 people had sought refuge in the neighbouring Hangu and Kohat districts of the<br />

NWFP. The NADRA declared 17,546 families ineligible <strong>for</strong> the status of IDPs. According<br />

to Fata Secretariat and NWFP Social Welfare Department, relief camps were established<br />

<strong>for</strong> the IDPs from Orakzai Agency but the number of families registered there was<br />

small. Only 60 families were staying at the lone relief camp.<br />

Bajaur and Mohmand IDPs<br />

The war-affected people from Bajaur and Mohmand agencies had moved to<br />

Peshawar, Nowshera and other settled districts of the province when the military had<br />

started operation in Bajaur Agency in August 2008. According to official estimates,<br />

about 550,000 people from Bajaur and Mohmand agencies had been displaced. A<br />

majority of them was yet to be repatriated. They were living at Katcha Garhi Camp in<br />

Peshawar and Jalozai refugee camp in Nowshera. According to official reports, some<br />

110,368 people or 20,778 families were still living in the 13 camps in Peshawar,<br />

Nowshera, Mardan, Lower Dir and other districts. About 70 percent of the IDPs in<br />

camps belonged to Bajaur.<br />

Other tribal agencies<br />

Besides these officially registered displaced families, a large number of people<br />

from Darra Adamkhel and Khyber, Kurram and North Waziristan agencies had been<br />

shifted from their hometowns to the settled districts of the NWFP but they were yet to<br />

be recognized as IDPs. According to the Fata Secretariat report titled “Cost of Conflict”<br />

some 9,000 families had been displaced from Darra Adamkhel by the end of 2009.<br />

Balochistan<br />

According to HRCP estimates, more than 80,000 people were displaced from their<br />

294 State of Human Rights in 2009


Queuing up <strong>for</strong> food - a common sight in IDP camps<br />

homes in Balochistan till 2008 owing to the ongoing strife. Out of these, nearly 40,000<br />

people returned to their homes, mostly in Sui and Dera Bugti areas as tension between<br />

rival sub-clans of the Bugti tribe subsided.<br />

Helping the displaced<br />

As several conflict-affected areas were declared out-of-bounds <strong>for</strong> aid workers<br />

and as many NGOs kept their workers away from these regions, the issue of the<br />

survival and resettlement of the IDPs became critical. The Red Cross repeatedly reported<br />

on the increased number of civilian casualties in the conflict areas. It also pointed out<br />

that compared to the preceding year international aid <strong>for</strong> IDPs had dwindled significantly.<br />

The Federal government initiated a Damage Needs Assessment (DNA) process in<br />

June, with the help of sector-wise teams consisting of workers from World Bank and<br />

Asian Development Bank who were given the task of training representatives of the<br />

NWFP government. As a part of this initiative, a sum of Rs 15.891 billion was released<br />

<strong>for</strong> the development of education and sanitation sectors and strengthening the lawen<strong>for</strong>cement<br />

agencies in the FATA region. In November, the government announced<br />

that it would distribute Rs. 3.82 billion among IDPs in December (which it did) under<br />

the Benazir Income Support Programme.<br />

The World Health Organization announced that 30 percent of the displaced persons<br />

suffered from trauma-induced psychological problems. But no action was taken to<br />

address the situation.<br />

The greatest cause of anxiety was dwindling international support <strong>for</strong> the IDPs<br />

and the failure of the government to deliver speedily and on a regular basis. The UN<br />

stated that it had received only 3 percent of the $58 million it needed <strong>for</strong> ‘early recovery<br />

Refugees 295


projects’. Oxfam also criticised the rich countries <strong>for</strong> “doing little <strong>for</strong> the IDPs”.<br />

The Disbanding of Emergency Response Unit caused unrest among the displaced<br />

people. As international coordinating agencies reduced the number of food distribution<br />

points, endless queues were seen as the IDPs lined up to receive food and other items<br />

of daily use. Reports of clashes between the police and the IDPs at the food distribution<br />

points came in regularly. At the end of the year, the government had yet to develop a<br />

coordination plan with UN and other aid agencies to provide health facilities to the<br />

IDPs. The overall planning and implementation was poor, creating a widespread feeling<br />

among the IDPs that the government and the nation had abandoned them to their fate.<br />

The UN officials who toured the camps also warned of a worsening crisis, with the<br />

UN High Commissioner <strong>for</strong> Refugees emphasising the need <strong>for</strong> immediate help from<br />

the international community to avert a disaster.<br />

Recommendations<br />

1. A major review of the military tactics is needed as operations are launched in<br />

areas inhabited by sizeable civilian population that has to face conditions of a war<br />

zone with little support or warning.<br />

2. IDP camps should be established a little farther away from the hosting towns,<br />

so as to prevent friction and to take the burden of hosting these families off the people<br />

who themselves are not well off.<br />

3. There is need to issue an urgent plea <strong>for</strong> increased aid <strong>for</strong> the IDPs, who face<br />

the prospect of displacement <strong>for</strong> an indeterminate period of time and will need to be<br />

supported until they can go back home.<br />

4. Efficient planning and service delivery in coordination with aid agencies is<br />

an area that needs immediate attention.<br />

5. A feasible plan of action should be drawn up <strong>for</strong> the long-term support and<br />

rehabilitation of IDPs and Afghan refugees.<br />

296 State of Human Rights in 2009


Appendices<br />

III<br />

HRCP activities 297


298 State of Human Rights in 2009


Appendix - I<br />

HRCP activities<br />

HRCP undertook a range of activities to raise awareness among citizens about<br />

human rights as well as to monitor and document the rights’ situation in the country.<br />

Highlights of the year under review were HRCP fact-finding missions to IDP camps in<br />

NWFP and conflict-ridden areas of Swat and Balcohistan to monitor, document and<br />

highlight human rights violations in these regions. HRCP observed Gilgit-Baltistan<br />

elections and made its findings public. HRCP published a research study on factors<br />

contributing to intolerance.<br />

HRCP chapters and task-<strong>for</strong>ce offices throughout the country organised<br />

workshops, seminars and surveys, rallies and fact-findings on human rights-related<br />

issues during 2009 and highlighted the issues and concerns of religious minorities.<br />

Monthly meetings of HRCP members at several offices discussed current human rights<br />

situation in the country. The organisation’s complaint cell received queries and complaints<br />

from across the country which the Commission brought to the notice of the relevant<br />

authorities.<br />

HRCP website and blog drew extensive comments on the organisation’s stance<br />

and initiatives, possible activities and human rights issues in general.<br />

A break-up of some of the organisation’s activities during the year follows.<br />

Workshops/consultations/seminars/meetings<br />

January 2, Multan: A discussion was held on the topic of ‘Indo-Pak relations and<br />

peace promotion.’<br />

January 9, 11, Karachi: HRCP held meetings with Mr. Asadullah Bhutto, President,<br />

HRCP activities 299


Jamat-e-Islami Sindh, and Dr. Farooq Sattar, a central leader of the MQM, and presented<br />

them with the civil society organizations’ joint statement on Pakistan-India strained<br />

relations.<br />

January 14, Quetta: HRCP organized a meeting on the law and order situation in<br />

the province, which was attended by various political leaders and civil society activists.<br />

January 15, Islamabad: HRCP organized a public discussion and a documentary<br />

presentation on girls’ education titled: ‘Allaho: A Lullaby <strong>for</strong> You, My Daughter’ produced<br />

by the anthropologist film-maker and Executive Director of Ethno-Media, Ms. Samar<br />

Minallah.<br />

January 15, Multan: A meeting was held on “Construction of waste water treatment<br />

plant at Moza Akbarpur.” Members of the local community explained their objections<br />

to the project. A delegation from ADB visited the site and discussed different aspects of<br />

the project. HRCP gave its input to the delegates.<br />

January 16, Peshawar: HRCP Chairperson Asma Jehangir visited Peshawar and<br />

expressed HRCP’s pro<strong>found</strong> concern at the day-by-day deteriorating law and order<br />

situation in the Federally-Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas (FATA) and the North-West Frontier<br />

Province (NWFP). Later, an HRCP delegation visited the area.<br />

February 6, Multan: A meeting was organized on the topic of “Election re<strong>for</strong>ms<br />

in the context of democratic norms” at the HRCP office, Multan.<br />

February 7, Multan: A dialogue on election re<strong>for</strong>ms and democratic norms was<br />

arranged at Bahawalpur. Workers and office-bearers of different political parties<br />

participated.<br />

February 19, Multan: A survey was conducted on the administrative set-up in<br />

the tribal area in Dera Ghazi Khan district to ascertain the capacity of the administration<br />

to resolve the local problems.<br />

March 5, Lodhran: A dialogue on election re<strong>for</strong>ms and democratic norms was<br />

Peshawar: HRCP delegation meeting with governor NWFP in January<br />

300 State of Human Rights in 2009


organised. It was largely attended by the workers and office-bearers of different political<br />

parties.<br />

March 6, Multan: The monthly meeting debated the current political situation and<br />

responsibility of human rights activists.<br />

March 13, Quetta: HRCP organized a meeting on the issue of missing persons<br />

with the participation of victims’ families.<br />

Mar 28, Lodhran: A meeting was held in the Tehsil Council Hall, Lodhran in<br />

which representatives of working women, political parties, local councillors and the<br />

media discussed the problems faced by the working people.<br />

April 4, Multan: A demonstration was organized to condemn the flogging of a girl<br />

in Swat.<br />

April 5, Lahore: Seminar on ‘Militancy in FATA and Swat - impact and remedies.’<br />

April 17, Multan: A demonstration was held in front of the press club to protest<br />

the killing of three Baloch leaders.<br />

May 3, Islamabad: A meeting was held with Afzal Khan Lala to express solidarity<br />

with him as he survived several assassination attempts by militants in Swat. His house<br />

in Bara Darushkhela was attacked and some of his relatives were killed. But he refused<br />

to submit to the Taliban or leave Swat.<br />

May 5, Karachi: In a lecture organised by HRCP, historian Dr Mubarak Ali made<br />

presentation on the issue of ‘Terrorism.’<br />

May 15, Islamabad: HRCP arranged a seminar with the collaboration of AGHS on<br />

“Prevention of Child Abuse & Exploitation.”<br />

May 23, Swat: A seminar on the problems of Swat IDPs was organised.<br />

May 23, Peshawar: The HRCP held a seminar on the ‘IDP situation.’<br />

July 2, Karachi: HRCP arranged a meeting with Swat IDPs at Shershah Colony.<br />

July 4, Karachi: HRCP organised a workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful coexistence<br />

among different communities’.<br />

July 8, Multan: A dialogue was organised on the topic “Protection of civil rights<br />

and media responsibility” with the chairman of Urdu Deptt. At the Federal Urdu University,<br />

Karachi, Professor Tauseef Ahmad Khan, as the main speaker.<br />

July 10, Hyderabad: A workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful co-existence among<br />

different communities’ was attended by rights’ activists.<br />

July 11, Mirpurkhas: HRCP organised workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful coexistence<br />

among different communities.’<br />

July 12, Mithi: A workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful co-existence among<br />

HRCP activities 301


different communities’ was held.<br />

July 17, Karachi: A one-day workshop on International Covenant on Economic,<br />

Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) was attended in <strong>for</strong>ce by representatives of civil<br />

society in Karachi.<br />

July 20, Karachi: A meeting was arranged to discuss the latest position of the<br />

case of Ms. Kainat Soomro, 13, who was allegedly raped on January 10, 2007. Ghulam<br />

Nabi Soomro father of the victim managed to lodge an FIR against the accused after<br />

great difficulty. Facing threats the victims’ family was compelled to leave their hometown<br />

of Mehar in District Dadu.<br />

July 23, Shikarpur: Civil society members took part in a workshop organised by<br />

HRCP on ‘Tolerance and peaceful co-existence among different communities.’<br />

July 24, Khairpur: A workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful co-existence among<br />

different communities’ was held.<br />

July 25, Nawabshah: A workshop on ‘Tolerance and peaceful co-existence among<br />

different communities’ was organised <strong>for</strong> rights’ activists.<br />

July 27, Islamabad: A one-day consultation on “Parliament’s supremacy and role<br />

of political parties” was attended by a large number of parliamentarians.<br />

July 31, Lahore: A consultation on local government system re<strong>for</strong>m was held.<br />

July 31, Karachi: Mr. Ayub Qureshi made a presentation on the topic of ‘Right to<br />

Life.’<br />

August 4, Loralai: A workshop on “Youth mobilization” was attended by the<br />

young rights activists of the city.<br />

Lasbella: A workshop on “Tolerance among religious<br />

and ethnic communities”<br />

August 5, Ziarat: HRCP<br />

Quetta organized at Ziarat a<br />

workshop on “Youth<br />

mobilization”.<br />

August 10, Lasbella:<br />

The HRCP Quetta chapter<br />

organized a workshop,<br />

“Promotion of tolerance<br />

among religious and ethnic<br />

communities.”<br />

August 11, Karachi:<br />

HRCP Chairperson Asma<br />

Jahangir delivered a lecture on<br />

overall human rights situation<br />

in Pakistan at the Karachi<br />

302 State of Human Rights in 2009


University.<br />

August 18, Qila Saif Ullah: HRCP Quetta chapter organised a workshop on<br />

“Youth mobilization”.<br />

August 19, Multan: A protest demonstration was organised against the prevalent<br />

local tradition of denial of women’s right of inheritance. A case was cited in which a<br />

woman Noor Mai, a widow, resident of Muzaffargarh, was deprived of her inheritance<br />

through false divorce papers prepared by her in-laws.<br />

August 21,<br />

Jafarabad: HRCP Quetta<br />

chapter organised a<br />

workshop on “Youth<br />

mobilization” <strong>for</strong> local<br />

activists.<br />

August 27, Multan:<br />

Urgent meeting was<br />

convened at the HRCP<br />

office to discuss the<br />

people’s right to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation. The unlawful<br />

ban imposed by the MS<br />

Nishtar Hospital was<br />

condemned.<br />

Quetta: Youth mobilization workshop<br />

September 4, Karachi: A lecture by Prof. Dr. Mutahir Ahmad of the International<br />

Relations Department, Karachi University was arranged on ‘Afghanistan and its regional<br />

impact.”<br />

September 7, Karachi: Mr. Iqbal Haider. Co- Chairperson HRCP, addressed a<br />

press conference on ‘Human Rights violations in Balochistan’.<br />

September 10, Quetta: A workshop on “Youth mobilization” was attended by a<br />

large audience.<br />

September 12, Bahawalpur: A meeting was convened in collaboration with the<br />

core group in Bahawalpur to analyze women and children rights situation in the district<br />

and identified the role of young people in the democratic process.<br />

September 15, Karachi: HRCP Co-Chairperson, Vice Chairperson <strong>for</strong> Sindh, and<br />

several Council members addressed a press conference on the Khori Garden incident<br />

in which 17 women and a teenage girl were killed in a stampede while trying to obtain<br />

food items.<br />

September 27, Khushab: HRCP (Punjab chapter) organised a workshop on<br />

HRCP activities 303


“Democratic education and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation” <strong>for</strong> local activists.<br />

October 2, Karachi: HRCP organised a lecture by Prof. Dr. Muhammad Ali<br />

Siddiqui on ‘India-Pakistan Relations and Jaswant Singh’s book on Jinnah’.<br />

October 1, Okara: A “workshop on “Religious tolerance and resistance to<br />

extremism” was held.<br />

October 2, Multan: HRCP office in its monthly meeting decided to observe the<br />

International Day to Abolish Death Penalty and discussed the prevailing human rights<br />

situation in the region.<br />

October 3, Pakpattan: HRCP (Punjab chapter) organised a workshop on<br />

“Religious tolerance and resistance to extremism.”<br />

October 9, Quetta: A training workshop <strong>for</strong> core group coordinators was<br />

organised.<br />

October 9, Quetta: A Workshop on “En<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances” was held to highlight<br />

the issue of missing persons.<br />

October 9, Karachi: A meeting of labour unions and federations was held at<br />

HRCP office to discuss labour issues and IRA 2008. Representatives of different trade<br />

unions and federations participated in this meeting.<br />

Another meeting was held with Mr. Abid Hussain of Ministry of Human Rights to<br />

Quetta: HRCP Council members addressing a news conference after a week-long<br />

fact-finding mission in Balochistan<br />

304 State of Human Rights in 2009


discuss women’s issues and providing relief to the affected women.<br />

October 10, Quetta: A consultation on “Democratic Development in Balochistan”<br />

was attended by representatives of political parties and the civil society.<br />

October 10, Multan: A seminar on International Day <strong>for</strong> Abolition of Death Penalty<br />

was organized and it was attended by people from different sections of the society. A<br />

declaration was adopted demanding that the government of Pakistan should fully protect<br />

the right to life and abolish the death penalty.<br />

October 11, Khanewal: A meeting was held to discuss the human rights situation<br />

in the district.<br />

October 18, Kalat: A one-day workshop on “Youth mobilization” was attended<br />

by civil society representative.<br />

October 20, Sargodha: A workshop was organised on “Religious tolerance and<br />

resistance to extremism.”<br />

October 22, Multan: A workshop was organised on “Religious tolerance and<br />

resistance to extremism.”<br />

October 22, Khanewal: A workshop was organised on “Democratic education<br />

<strong>for</strong> students and youth”.<br />

October 23, Bahawalpur: A workshop was organised on “Democratic education<br />

<strong>for</strong> student and youth.”<br />

October 23, Lodhran: A workshop organised on “Religious tolerance and resistance<br />

Karachi: Consultation on supremacy of parliament and role of political parties<br />

HRCP activities 305


to extremism”.<br />

October 23, Bahawalpur: A workshop organised on “Democratic education and<br />

right to in<strong>for</strong>mation”.<br />

October 23, Dalbandin: HRCP conducted a workshop on “Tolerance and religious<br />

and ethnic extremism”.<br />

October 24, Noshki: HRCP orgnised a workshop on “Tolerance and religious and<br />

ethnic extremism.”<br />

October 24, Karachi: A consultation on ‘Supremacy of the parliament and role of<br />

political parties” was attended by leaders of different political parties from Sindh and<br />

Balochistan, <strong>for</strong>mer judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, representatives of civil<br />

society and educationists.<br />

October 25, Kharan: A workshop was organised on “Tolerance and religious and<br />

ethnic extremism.”<br />

October 27, Swabi: A workshop was organised on “Promotion of religious<br />

tolerance.”<br />

October 29, Nowshera: A day-long workshop on ‘Promotion of tolerance among<br />

religious, ethnic communities and development of resistance to extremism’ was organised<br />

<strong>for</strong> local participants.<br />

October 31 , Dadu: HRCP organised a workshop on ‘Democratic education and<br />

right to in<strong>for</strong>mation”.<br />

October 31, Gujranwala: A workshop was organised on “Democratic education<br />

A workshop on “Promotion of tolerance among religious communities”<br />

306 State of Human Rights in 2009


and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation,” which highlighted the importance of democratic freedoms.<br />

October 31, Mardan: A day-long workshop on ‘Promotion of tolerance among<br />

religious, ethnic communities and development of resistance to extremism’ was attended<br />

by participants from different communities.<br />

November 1, Charsadda: A day-long workshop on ‘Promotion of tolerance among<br />

eligious and ethnic communities and development of resistance to extremism’ was<br />

successfully organised.<br />

November 4, Kasur: A workshop on “Religious tolerance and resistance to<br />

extremism” was organised.<br />

November 6, Jhang: A workshop on “Democratic education and right to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation” drew a large number of local participants.<br />

November 8, Dera Ghazi Khan: A Workshop on the rights of the people of the<br />

tribal areas identified some important issues of that area and gave suggestions <strong>for</strong> their<br />

solution.<br />

November 11, Karachi: HRCP Office arranged a presentation on “Freedom of<br />

press and contribution<br />

of journalist’s<br />

organisations” by Dr.<br />

Tauseef Ahmad Khan.<br />

The event was<br />

presided over by Dr.<br />

Mubarak Ali.<br />

November 12,<br />

Karachi: HRCP<br />

arranged MCB Union<br />

meeting in<br />

collaboration with<br />

other trade unions.<br />

November 13,<br />

Mingora: A day-long<br />

workshop was<br />

A monthly meeting of Multan task <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

organised on<br />

‘Promotion of tolerance among religious and ethnic communities and development of<br />

resistance to extremism.’<br />

November 13, Islamabad: A consultation on making the Election Commission of<br />

Pakistan truly independent was organised on 13 th November.<br />

November 14, Dargai: A day-long workshop was organised on ‘Promotion of<br />

HRCP activities 307


eligious tolerance’ in Dargai.<br />

November 14, Mandi Bahauddin: A workshop on ‘Democratic education and<br />

right to in<strong>for</strong>mation’ was organised.<br />

November 15, Thatta: HRCP conducted a workshop on ‘Democratic education<br />

and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation’ <strong>for</strong> local youths and students.<br />

November 15, Sahiwal: A workshop on “Religious tolerance and resistance to<br />

extremism” was organised.<br />

November 19, Sialkot: Two workshops - one on ‘Religious tolerance and resistance<br />

to extremism’ and the other on ‘Democratic education and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation’ - were<br />

held.<br />

November 21, Upper Dir: A day long workshop on ‘Right to in<strong>for</strong>mation and<br />

democratic governance’ was held <strong>for</strong> the youth of Upper Dir.<br />

November 21, Mianwali: A workshop on ‘Democratic education and right to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation’ proved a useful exercise in raising awareness.<br />

November 21, Karachi: HRCP held meeting with Syed Mumtaz Alam Gillani,<br />

Federal Minister <strong>for</strong> Human Rights to discuss human rights situation, women police<br />

stations and police attitude towards the common citizens.<br />

November 22, Timergara, Dir Lower: A day-long youth workshop on ‘Right to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation and democratic governance’ was held <strong>for</strong> the youth of the areas.<br />

November 22, Multan: At the monthly meeting, Mr. I. A. Rehman, secretary<br />

general of HRCP, speaking to activists and members of HRCP Multan, shared the<br />

importance of raising mass awareness on social, economic and cultural issues.<br />

November 24, Chiniot: Local civil society members attended a workshop on<br />

‘Democratic education and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation’.<br />

December 1, Loralai: A workshop on ‘World Aids Day’ was organised to create<br />

awareness on Aids and related problems.<br />

December 2, Karachi: A meeting with civil society representatives and lawyers<br />

was held to discuss possibilities of opening the case of Nazeer Abbasi, who was tortured<br />

and killed in 1980 by law-en<strong>for</strong>cing agencies.<br />

December 4, Noushero Feroz: HRCP organised a workshop on ‘Democratic<br />

education and right of in<strong>for</strong>mation’ <strong>for</strong> students and youths, which was largely attended.<br />

December 5, Dadu: HRCP organised a day long workshop on ‘Democratic<br />

education and right of in<strong>for</strong>mation’ <strong>for</strong> students and youths.<br />

December 5 Mansehra: A workshop was organised on ‘Right to in<strong>for</strong>mation.’<br />

December 6, Larkana: Local students participated in a workshop on ‘Democratic<br />

education and right to in<strong>for</strong>mation’ <strong>for</strong> students and youths.<br />

December 7, Haripur: A workshop on Right to In<strong>for</strong>mation was held to sensitise<br />

308 State of Human Rights in 2009


the participants regarding the issue.<br />

December 10, Mastung: A workshop on “Tolerance and extremism” was held to<br />

create awareness on the subject.<br />

December 11, Lahore: A consultation on the death penalty.<br />

December 14, Kachhi: A workshop on “Tolerance and extremism” was<br />

successfully organised.<br />

December 15, Sibi: A workshop on “Tolerance and extremism” was organised.<br />

December 16, Nowshera: HRCP organised a workshop on ‘Right to in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

and democratic governance’ <strong>for</strong> the youth.<br />

December 17, Mardan: A day long workshop was organised on ‘Right to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation and democratic governance’ with the participation of local activists.<br />

December 24, Abbottabad: A workshop on “Promotion of religious tolerance”<br />

drew an enthusiastic response from the local participants.<br />

Dec 30-31, Lahore: A capacity-building workshop <strong>for</strong> HRCP staff at in the chapters<br />

and task <strong>for</strong>ces was held.<br />

Protest rallies / protests<br />

January 10, Karachi: HRCP in collaboration with the Citizens Against War<br />

organised a protest rally from Karachi Press Club to Regal Chowk to express solidarity<br />

with Palestinians and condemn aggression against civilians in Palestine.<br />

March 12, Karachi: Sindh Chapter of HRCP actively supported the long march of<br />

lawyers.<br />

April 18, Quetta:<br />

HRCP participated in a<br />

rally against the murder<br />

of three Baloch leaders,<br />

Ghulam Muhammad<br />

Baloch, Lala Munir<br />

Baloch and Sher<br />

Muhammad Baloch,<br />

organised by the<br />

Baloch National Front<br />

(BNF) with the<br />

collaboration of other<br />

political parties.<br />

May 1, Multan:<br />

HRCP held a rally on<br />

May Day with the<br />

Karachi: Demonstration <strong>for</strong> the rights to shelter <strong>for</strong> Esa<br />

Khaskheli Ghoth’s residents<br />

HRCP activities 309


collaboration of labour<br />

leaders.<br />

May 13, Multan: A<br />

demonstration was<br />

organised to protest<br />

against the Gulgasht and<br />

Seetal Mari police who<br />

meted out inhuman<br />

treatment to women who<br />

approached it <strong>for</strong> the<br />

redress of their grievances.<br />

July 1, Karachi: A<br />

demonstration was held at<br />

the Karachi Press Club by<br />

HRCP stands <strong>for</strong> abolishing the death penalty<br />

the Esa Khaskheli Goth’s<br />

residents <strong>for</strong> their<br />

residential rights. HRCP Karachi office in collaboration with other civil society bodies<br />

joined the protest.<br />

Aug. 6, Karachi: A demonstration was organised at Karachi Press Club against<br />

sectarian violence.<br />

October 23, Karachi: HRCP held a meeting with Fisher Folk Pakistan representative<br />

and apprised him about the findings of HRCP delegation’s visit to the Landhi Prison.<br />

December 10, Quetta: HRCP representative participated in a rally against nonrecovery<br />

of missing persons from Balochistan, on the eve of “International Human<br />

Rights Day”, organized by Voice <strong>for</strong> Baloch Missing Persons.<br />

December 10, Lasbella: A demonstration was staged on the eve of “International<br />

Human Rights Day” <strong>for</strong> the rights of the Baloch people.<br />

Fact-finding missions<br />

February 6, Karachi: Fact-finding of so-called White Corolla Car Case – involved<br />

in robberies, rapes, gang-rapes and looting with impunity <strong>for</strong> a number of weeks in and<br />

around the Defence and Clifton areas.<br />

February 17, Quetta: Two minor daughters of Muhammad Ismail were slaughtered<br />

by unknown persons. The HRCP team visited the site and met the victims’ family to<br />

ascertain the facts.<br />

February 19, Quetta: The HRCP team visited the family of Maulana Iftekhar<br />

Habibi who was assassinated on Mano Jan Road and issued a press release.<br />

March 5, Karachi: Upon receiving in<strong>for</strong>mation that a newly-wed woman was<br />

310 State of Human Rights in 2009


<strong>found</strong> strangled in the<br />

water tank of her house,<br />

a fact finding team of<br />

HRCP visited her house<br />

on March 05, 2009. The<br />

culprits had reportedly<br />

strangled the woman four<br />

days earlier and dumped<br />

her body in an<br />

underground water tank<br />

in their house and claimed<br />

that the woman had gone<br />

missing.<br />

March 11, Umerkot:<br />

Upon receiving HRCP fact-finding mission in Layyah in January 2009<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation about a clash<br />

between two religious groups in Umerkot, a fact-finding mission of HRCP visited the<br />

town and had meetings with the District Coordination Officer, District Police Officer,<br />

District Nazim, several journalists and the victims.<br />

March 21, Multan: In<strong>for</strong>mation was collected from Taunsa focusing on the<br />

communication system from Taunsa to the tribal area.<br />

April 17: HRCP arranged release of 15 bonded labourers, including women and<br />

children in Dumba Goth, Gadap, District Malir. The HRCP had received a complaint<br />

from Achar and Chanesar that a landlord had detained 15 persons in his private jail.<br />

April 24-29, Turbat: An HRCP fact-finding team visited various places of Turbat<br />

to hear the complaints of political activists against state excesses, met the authorities,<br />

victims, eye witnesses and others.<br />

May 13, Mardan: A four-member team of the HRCP Peshawar chapter visited<br />

Jalala, Sheikh Yaseen and Sheikh Shahzad camps in Mardan district to survey the<br />

arrangements made <strong>for</strong> the IDPs.<br />

May 15, Swabi: An HRCP mission visited Swabi where the Pakistan Red Crescent<br />

Society had set up 2,000 tents to accommodate the displaced persons. HRCP highlighted<br />

the issue through the press, asking the government to shift the IDPs from overcrowded<br />

camps in Mardan to Shah Mansoor camp.<br />

May 30, Karachi: HRCP conducted an inquiry into a complaint of corporal<br />

punishment at a school in Malir.<br />

June 19, Quetta: The head of the Qazi Court of Dasht, District Mastung, M. Zia<br />

HRCP activities 311


Ullah Qazi, along with his reader Khaliq Dad, was gunned down by unknown assailants<br />

on Sariab Road. HRCP members visited the site to collect in<strong>for</strong>mation about the killing.<br />

June 23, Quetta: Amanat Ali Beg, Principal, Commerce College, Quetta, was<br />

shot dead by unknown armed motorcyclists on Querry Road. HRCP representatives<br />

gathered details of the target killing incident.<br />

June 27, Karachi: An HRCP team met SSP District West to investigate the case<br />

of Anisur Rehman, an HRCP member, who had been falsely implicated by the police in<br />

a drug case to extract money from him. Later, the police agreed to withdraw the case.<br />

June 29, Karachi: Probed the killing of five men by the police in a fake encounter.<br />

July 4, Kasur: HRCP conducted a fact-finding mission after the 2 nd July incident<br />

in which Christians were attacked in village Bhamniwala <strong>for</strong> allegedly committing<br />

blasphemy.<br />

July 5, Karachi: HRCP team looked into the case of Baby Sana, aged three and a<br />

half years, who was allegedly murdered by two traffic constables.<br />

July 18, Peshawar: A two- member team from the Lahore office paid a two-day<br />

visit to Peshawar, which was followed by a visit to IDP camps in Jalala, Mardan.<br />

July 28, Swat: A two-member team of the HRCP arrived in Swat <strong>for</strong> a 3-day visit.<br />

On the first day the team met the Swat District Police Officer, representative of the<br />

Inter-Services Public Relations and members of the public. Next day the team went up<br />

to Khwazakhela and met people from various walks of life. It also visited the areas<br />

bombed during the indiscriminate shelling by artillery guns, gunship helicopters and jet<br />

fighters. On the last day the team visited Saidu Sharif and Mingora.<br />

August 4, Shujabad Multan: A girl, 14, was raped and murdered but police took<br />

no action against the accused. HRCP sent its findings to the police and the Sessions<br />

Judge, Multan; the police registered a case and arrested the accused.<br />

August 5, Muridke: HRCP conducted a fact-finding mission in Muridke,<br />

Sheikhupura district, where the owner of a leather factory had been killed by a mob <strong>for</strong><br />

allegedly defiling Holy Quran.<br />

August 6, Gojra: HRCP conducted a fact-finding mission to look into Gojra killings<br />

where on 5 August the houses of the Christian community were attacked and some<br />

people belonging to the minority community were burnt alive by religious extremists.<br />

August 17, Quetta: HRCP investigated the target killing of a college professor,<br />

Dr. Iqbal Zaidi.<br />

September 4, Karachi: HRCP investigated the case of Imran who was allegedly<br />

shot dead by a police inspector.<br />

September 22, Karachi: A Christian boy, 13, was kidnapped and allegedly<br />

312 State of Human Rights in 2009


sodomised at gun-point in Gulzar Colony, Korangi, by three persons. HRCP probed the<br />

incident. Police arrested the accused who confessed to their crime.<br />

October 5-11, Quetta: Headed by HRCP Chairperson Ms Asma Jehangir, a factfinding<br />

mission spent a week in Quetta (5-11 October 2009) and tried to meet with as<br />

many people as it could from different schools of thought and political and ethnic<br />

groups. HRCP team also visited Kalat to meet political activists and members of the<br />

Hindu community. The mission mainly focused on two areas: to hold consultations on<br />

democratic developments in Balochistan and to document human rights violations in a<br />

conflict situation. Later, a detailed report on the mission’s findings, “Pushed to the<br />

wall” was published.<br />

November 10, Karachi: Nisar Baloch, a prominent civil society campaigner against<br />

the land mafia, was shot dead. HRCP probed the foul murder.<br />

November 20, Buner: A team from Peshawar office surveyed the situation in<br />

Buner district after the return of the IDPs.<br />

December 23, Karachi: Abid Javed Masih was allegedly killed by the police.<br />

HRCP investigated the case.<br />

Miscellaneous<br />

February 3, Multan: HRCP organised a demonstration to protest against Seetal<br />

Mari police who lodged a false FIR against Abid Hussain and Rabia Riaz <strong>for</strong> getting<br />

married by mutual consent.<br />

February 7, Lahore: A briefing by the NWFP government on the security situation<br />

of the province,<br />

especially Malakand<br />

division.<br />

February 7,<br />

Karachi: HRCP in<br />

collaboration with<br />

Pakistan Institute of<br />

Labour Education<br />

and Rights (PILER)<br />

and other partner<br />

organizations of<br />

Pakistan Social<br />

Forum (PSF)<br />

o r g a n i z e d<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mative and<br />

cultural events as a<br />

Hyderabad: Bonded labourers freed from the private jail<br />

of a landlord<br />

HRCP activities 313


follow-up to World Social Forum, 2009.<br />

April 7, Karachi: HRCP hosted a Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on the<br />

IDPs of Swat.<br />

May 6, Karachi: HRCP organised a meeting with the villagers evicted from Essa<br />

Khas Kheli goth, and called upon the government to extend them relief.<br />

June 2, Karachi: HRCP organised a meeting of civil society representatives to put<br />

pressure on Sindh government to allot land to peasants who were <strong>for</strong>cibly evicted.<br />

July 16, Khuzdar: The activists of Core Group, Distt. Khuzdar, held a consultation<br />

with Pakistan Medical Association and local representatives. The aim of the consultation<br />

was to review the protest movement of doctors against the abduction of Dr. Din<br />

Muhammad and other missing Baloch people allegedly picked up by security <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

Later, HRCP activists also set up a hunger strike camp with the collaboration of Pakistan<br />

Medical Association.<br />

August 28, Karachi: In collaboration with Sindh Independent Media Association.,<br />

HRCP arranged a lecture on ‘Promise of and Demand <strong>for</strong> Freedom of In<strong>for</strong>mation in<br />

Pakistan.’ Thirty-three journalists from different newspapers and electronic media<br />

participated. The same day, HRCP also arranged a presentation on ‘Inadequate coverage<br />

of violence against women in Urdu and English newspapers’.<br />

August 28, Multan: HRCP organized a meeting with the students of Multan Law<br />

College to discuss the role of youth in the human rights movement.<br />

September 1, Lasbella: Following the murder of a political activist Rasool Bux<br />

Mengal, the activists of Core Group, District Lasbella, visited the site to probe the<br />

matter.<br />

November 6, Islamabad: An HRCP representative attended the National Assembly<br />

Standing Committee meeting on minorities to review the blasphemy laws.<br />

December 10, Islamabad: HRCP Chairperson Asma Jehangir delivered a lecture,<br />

“Derogation of Human Rights in Conflict Situation,” on the Human Rights Day.<br />

December 18, Islamabad: An HRCP representative attended the National Assembly<br />

Standing Committee meeting on minorities to discuss the current human rights situation<br />

in the country.<br />

Jail visits<br />

June 8, Quetta: An HRCP representative visited the District Jail on the request of<br />

a prisoner.<br />

June 25, Karachi : HRCP representatives visited Women’s Prison in Karachi with<br />

314 State of Human Rights in 2009


two interns (from Karachi University) and discussed women trafficking cases with<br />

Justice (retd) Nasir Aslam Zahid and his associate, Ms. Aneela.<br />

June 26, Karachi: HRCP members visited Landhi Jail at the request of some<br />

prisoners who had completed their term but were still languishing in jail as they were<br />

not able to pay the nominal fine.<br />

August 18, Sukkur: A delegation of HRCP representatives visited the Sukkur<br />

Prison.<br />

October 7, Kalat: An HRCP team visited the judicial lock-up, Kalat District, and<br />

met the detainees to inquire about their problems.<br />

Complaint cell<br />

HRCP’s Complaint Cell received numerous complaints about the violation of human<br />

rights from within Pakistan and abroad. HRCP sent these complaints to relevant<br />

authorities <strong>for</strong> action and redress of the grievances. A large number of prisoners also<br />

contacted HRCP <strong>for</strong> help.<br />

Total number of complaints: 1,300<br />

Letters written to the authorities: 353<br />

Response by the authorities: 117<br />

Subjects of complaints<br />

Excesses by police/admin: 162<br />

Excesses by non-state actors/ influentials: 115<br />

Violations of women’s rights/domestic violence: 204<br />

Complaints from prisons: 100<br />

Political victimizations: 18<br />

Minorities: 18<br />

Sectarian cases: 3<br />

Complaints from abroad: 50<br />

Miscellaneous: 630<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>chives<br />

HRCP Reference Section facilitated 276 persons including students, journalists<br />

and academics from both within Pakistan and abroad<br />

Website<br />

HRCP’s website (www.hrcp-web.org) contains electronic versions of its<br />

HRCP activities 315


publications, press releases issued by the organisation besides past issues of annual<br />

reports and monthly Urdu magazine (Jehd-e-Haq) and other related in<strong>for</strong>mation.<br />

Publications<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

HRCP Annual Report: State of Human Rights in 2008 (English/Urdu)<br />

Jehd-e-Haq: 12 monthly issues<br />

Terrorism in Swat (Urdu)<br />

The Malakand IDP crisis<br />

HRCP reports on current issues<br />

Human trafficking through Quetta<br />

Afghan refugees in Pakistan<br />

Recommendations on constitutional re<strong>for</strong>ms<br />

Disappearances - Urdu posters & stickers<br />

Convention on Involuntary Disappearances (English and Urdu)<br />

316 State of Human Rights in 2009


HRCP stands<br />

Disappearances and detention<br />

January 19: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) heard Chief<br />

Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry’s comments on the laxity of human rights organisations in<br />

the country. In his address at the inaugural ceremony of the Karachi Bar Association,<br />

the Chief Justice lauded <strong>for</strong>eign organisation <strong>for</strong> breaking the story on Zareena Marri<br />

and chided the national organisations <strong>for</strong> being unaware of this incident.<br />

HRCP has enormous regard <strong>for</strong> Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and there<strong>for</strong>e<br />

wishes to put the record straight. Human rights violations in Balochistan have been<br />

regularly monitored by HRCP and several reports issued. Those conducting fact-finding<br />

missions ran great risks and some were also fired upon and this <strong>for</strong> exposing grave<br />

human rights violations during the military operations.<br />

HRCP hopes the Chief Justice can recall the petition filed by HRCP on<br />

disappearances in the Supreme Court on 08-02-2007, which was eventually heard by<br />

the honourable Chief Justice himself a mouth later. Mr Muneer Mengal, who is the<br />

source of the Zareena story, was on the list of missing people. The government disclosed<br />

in August 2007 that he had been sent to ATF jail in Quetta after being detained in Central<br />

Jail Khuzdar. HRCP regrets that Muneer Mengal was not produced in court nor was his<br />

statement recorded despite a request made by HRCP. This could have given valuable<br />

leads to other human rights violations that came to his knowledge during detention.<br />

A representative of HRCP met Mr Mengal in jail in November 2007. Mengal<br />

disclosed that he was tortured, offered women, wine and money but did not, at that<br />

time, give details or names of women offered to him. HRCP noted the statement recorded<br />

by RSF on 11-12-2008 after Mengal had left the country and the same statement was<br />

subsequently released by AHRC but with substantial additions. Under these circumstances<br />

HRCP stands 317


any credible organisation will wish to verify facts be<strong>for</strong>e initiating an effective campaign.<br />

HRCP is not in the habit of raising issues without verification.<br />

The shocking disclosure now made obliges all associations and organisations to<br />

probe the allegations. HRCP does not claim to be the sole custodian of the rule of law<br />

and would greatly appreciate co-operation in such difficult fact-findings of eminent<br />

lawyers who have played a laudable role in upholding the rule of law. HRCP appreciates<br />

the Chief Justice’s concern about human rights issues in the country. However, the<br />

role of HRCP goes beyond March 8, 2008 and despite some lapses it has played an<br />

important role since 1986 in investigating human rights violations and promoting<br />

democratic values. It has constantly tried to bring such issues into the public domain<br />

without fear or favour and will continue to do so.<br />

February 20: HRCP has called upon the government to immediately set up a highpowered<br />

and independent commission to deal with cases of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance in<br />

Balochistan, release any people in unacknowledged custody of state agencies, and help<br />

secure the release of the UNHCR official, Mr John Solecki. In a statement, the commission<br />

said:<br />

The case of the abduction of the UNHCR official, Mr Solecki, and the demand by<br />

his abductors <strong>for</strong> the release of a large number of Balochistan citizens, including many<br />

women, continues to assume ever more serious dimensions. It is almost three weeks<br />

since Mr Solecki was abducted and every passing day increases apprehensions about<br />

his safety. At the same time the group that claims to be holding him has issued a list of<br />

867 involuntarily disappeared people, including over a hundred women. A separate list<br />

of 138 women has also been released and it contains addresses of 76 women and the<br />

dates of their ‘arrest’. Whatever one may think of the authenticity of these lists it is<br />

obvious that the situation created by the claim of disappearance of so many women is<br />

far more serious than had so far been assumed. It is the first time that the people, at<br />

least outside Balochistan, have learnt of the en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance of Baloch women.<br />

Even if the list is partly correct it should make all politicians and civil society defenders<br />

of the oppressed hang their heads in shame.<br />

In this situation the government cannot sit with folded hands. Every ef<strong>for</strong>t must be<br />

made to assuage the Baloch people’s feeling of outrage. This should have been a top<br />

priority issue even if Mr Solecki had not been abducted and should remain so after his<br />

case is solved. While attempts to secure Mr Solecki’s release through negotiations<br />

should continue, the federal government must immediately set up a high powered and<br />

independent commission, with Balochistan adequately represented on it, to investigate<br />

the cases of all missing persons and secure the release of all those who are <strong>found</strong> in<br />

unauthorised detention. The commission should have the power to summon any state<br />

employee and to grant appropriate relief. Even be<strong>for</strong>e the commission is <strong>for</strong>med it is<br />

necessary to order all state agencies to immediately disgorge anyone held in their custody<br />

318 State of Human Rights in 2009


or show cause <strong>for</strong> holding him/her. This is necessary to serve as proof of government’s<br />

earnestness in trying to heal the festering sore the issue has become.<br />

April 28: HRCP has rejected as “absolutely untenable” the claim made by <strong>for</strong>mer<br />

president Pervez Musharraf that most of the “disappeared” persons had gone missing<br />

on their own.<br />

In a statement issued following the <strong>for</strong>mer president’s recent interview with Al-<br />

Jazeera TV – in which he denied the role of state agencies in “en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances”<br />

and claimed the missing persons had voluntarily disappeared to join jihad – the<br />

Commission said: “That loss of power causes dementia and other disorders is amply<br />

demonstrated by General Musharraf’s recent interview and denial of state agencies’<br />

well documented role in the illegal practice of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance.<br />

While some individuals may have gone away on their own, the statement that all<br />

victims of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearance had gone missing voluntarily to join the jihad without<br />

in<strong>for</strong>ming their families is absolutely untenable. It contradicts undeniable evidence and<br />

numerous accounts of those who have regained freedom after being missing <strong>for</strong> various<br />

periods.<br />

It is ironic that the <strong>for</strong>mer president should deny the role of state agencies during<br />

his rule, which was acknowledged by the Senate Functional Committee on Human<br />

Rights in February 2007, when it urged the government to present all ‘missing’ persons<br />

be<strong>for</strong>e courts and give them an opportunity to defend themselves. The committee had<br />

observed that the response received from the government had been ‘inadequate and<br />

too little’ and it had taken ‘too much time’. It had said it was not sufficient <strong>for</strong> the<br />

government to say that a missing person was wanted in a case. ‘The civilised world no<br />

longer buys such versions. Whatever be the charges, they should be properly probed<br />

and documented and a legal course of action should be resorted to,’ the committee had<br />

said.<br />

It was during the Musharraf regime that the Supreme Court expressed dismay at<br />

the lack of government’s cooperation in the missing persons case. If his government<br />

had nothing to hide, why did he refer to the Supreme Court’s investigation into the<br />

matter as ‘constant interference in executive functions’ in the November 3, 2007<br />

proclamation of emergency? What of the scores of people released, ‘traced’ or produced<br />

in court by state agencies? Did that not happen either?<br />

One would have ignored Musharraf’s fulminations as being undeserving of a<br />

response but <strong>for</strong> the possibility of his plans to again assume leadership of the enemies<br />

of democracy and basic freedoms.<br />

The government must depart from the previous regime’s ways by coming clean<br />

on the illegal practice and set the record straight and facilitate the recovery and release<br />

HRCP stands 319


of all the missing Pakistanis wherever they may be.”<br />

Democratic rights and political conditions<br />

January 5: HRCP has strongly condemned the arrest of Mumtaz Bhutto and warned<br />

the government of the damage to the democratic experiment that will follow highhanded<br />

suppression of dissent.<br />

A statement issued by the Commission said:<br />

All right-minded people will strongly condemn the arrest and detention of Mumtaz<br />

Bhutto, the old and sick patriarch of a Sindhi nationalist organisation, because it smacks<br />

of political vindictiveness. HRCP’s solidarity with media persons and their establishments<br />

does not need recalling and it will stand by them whenever they are threatened by the<br />

state or any non-state actor. But in the present case the authorities have abused their<br />

powers by going <strong>for</strong> a person who is not even mentioned in the FIR. <strong>Ar</strong>e we now going<br />

to see party chiefs hauled up <strong>for</strong> allegations against their junior-most flag-carriers?<br />

When an establishment that has done little in cases of grave attacks on the media bares<br />

its fangs on a small issue its motives become suspect, to put it mildly. HRCP should like<br />

to advise the government against high-handed suppression of dissent as this will cause<br />

irreparable damage to the fragile experiment in restoration of democratic governance.<br />

The sooner the action against Mumtaz Bhutto is withdrawn the better, especially <strong>for</strong><br />

the establishment.<br />

March 11: HRCP has expressed dismay at curbs on freedom of assembly, arbitrary<br />

arrests and harassment of lawyers, political figures and civil society activists ahead of<br />

the lawyers’ long march.<br />

In a statement, the Commission said: “A wave of indiscriminate arrests has been<br />

reported from across the country ahead of the long march. Such arrests, snatching<br />

and placing of containers on roads, and imposing curbs on the right to peaceful assembly<br />

are measures disturbingly similar to the path military ruler Pervez Musharraf had taken<br />

against dissent and peaceful protest. The government is abusing legal process to prevent<br />

the people from exercising their democratic rights.<br />

There is no justification <strong>for</strong> the government’s undemocratic decision to impose<br />

Section 144 curbs on the right to assembly and unleash a spate of arrests and harassment<br />

against lawyers, political workers and civil society activists. In Punjab, the en<strong>for</strong>cement<br />

of Section 144 restrictions has compounded the already tense situation created by the<br />

imposition of governor’s rule.<br />

All the marches, rallies and protests of lawyers in the past two years have been<br />

peaceful without exception. The government, there<strong>for</strong>e, has no justification in preventing<br />

gathering of lawyers.<br />

Indiscriminate actions – such as arrest and confinement in police stations of people<br />

320 State of Human Rights in 2009


like Tahira Abdullah, an HRCP board member – are hardly a distinction <strong>for</strong> a government<br />

that prides itself at being democratically elected.<br />

The government’s resort to ways of authoritarian regimes has cancelled out whatever<br />

goodwill it had achieved by not interfering with the lawyers’ long march last year.<br />

The government’s action is undemocratic, counterproductive and will only fuel<br />

confrontation. Whatever the outcome of the present protest, the government’s reckless<br />

policy is posing a grave threat not only to the democratic experiment but also to the<br />

state’s integrity.<br />

There is still time <strong>for</strong> the government to give up the policy of conflict and defuse<br />

tensions by accommodating the demands of lawyers, ending governor Raj in Punjab,<br />

and allowing the Punjab Assembly to exercise its right to elect its leader.<br />

The government must release all the detainees and desist from impeding in any<br />

way the people’s constitutional right to peaceful assembly and protest.”<br />

July 27: The parliament must be made strong and popular with the people if<br />

continuation of the democratic system is to be guaranteed. This was the consensus at<br />

a consultation with parliamentarians, leaders of political parties and civil society activists<br />

from Punjab and Pakhtoonkhwa (NWFP) organised by HRCP.<br />

The participants were unanimous in holding the military’s, especially the intelligence<br />

agencies’, interference in political matters as the biggest obstacle to parliament’s<br />

supremacy and stability of the democratic system.<br />

There was complete unanimity among the participants on restoration of the 1973<br />

constitution except <strong>for</strong> certain amendments (voting age, women’s seats, etc).<br />

The participants were also unanimous in calling <strong>for</strong> due accountability of political<br />

leaders and stricter checks on floor-crossing. A call <strong>for</strong> reducing election expenses and<br />

<strong>for</strong> political parties to award election tickets on merit was also supported.<br />

They agreed that parliament will become strong and play its leading role in promoting<br />

democracy if it paid due attention to people’s concerns and gave their interest preference<br />

to all other matters.<br />

There was some difference of opinion on the suggestion that religious <strong>for</strong>ces had<br />

put unwarranted restrictions on the parliament’s supremacy and there<strong>for</strong>e the ideal of<br />

a secular democracy had to be reaffirmed. One political party was seriously opposed<br />

to this <strong>for</strong>mulation.<br />

The main recommendations made by the meeting included:<br />

The federal and provincial legislatures should be the only law-making bodies.<br />

No other entity/<strong>for</strong>um should have the power to make laws. The central parliament<br />

should avoid encroaching on provinces’ legislative functions.<br />

<br />

The constitution should be amended to bar any fresh taxation without the<br />

HRCP stands 321


parliament’s approval. Parliament should also oversee subordinate legislation, such as<br />

rules made under enactments. Non-legislative acts, such as SROs and notifications<br />

enjoying the power of law, should always be put on legislatures’ tables.<br />

A parliamentary commission should examine all ordinances that have been<br />

issued over the past many decades so that they can be validated or dropped under<br />

parliament’s authority. No law that has not been made by a competent legislature should<br />

be allowed to remain on the statute book <strong>for</strong> more than four months.<br />

No government policy should be adopted without a thorough debate in<br />

parliament.<br />

Parliament should have a say in the appointment of Chief Election<br />

Commissioner, service chiefs, and the judges.<br />

<br />

The Rules of Business should be approved by the legislature concerned.<br />

All international treaties signed by Pakistan as well as reports to the UN must<br />

be debated in parliament.<br />

The standing committees should be set up within two weeks of the <strong>for</strong>mation<br />

of the legislatures and they should meet regularly.<br />

<br />

The parliament will gain in stature if Senate’s powers are enhanced.<br />

The proceedings of legislatures should be published within two weeks of<br />

events and in national languages. Each legislature must offer up-to-date in<strong>for</strong>mation on<br />

its website. It should also issue an annual report on its activities.<br />

All legislatures should provide space <strong>for</strong> the articulation of views of special<br />

groups (women, minorities).<br />

The procedure regarding private members’ bills/resolutions should be revised<br />

so as to increase their contribution to legislative work.<br />

The question hour should be used to provide as much in<strong>for</strong>mation on the<br />

state’s and government’s affairs as possible.<br />

The meeting also called upon the political parties to train their workers in<br />

parliamentary proceedings, hold discussion on legislative proposals at the various levels<br />

of organisation, exercise their powers of overseeing the work of their government/<br />

parliamentary parties and sensitise their following to the demands of participatory<br />

democracy.<br />

Prominent among those who attended the Islamabad roundtable were<br />

parliamentarians Afrasiab Khattak (ANP), Begum Tehmina Daultana (PML-N), Shahid<br />

Khaqan Abbasi (PML-N), MNAs Jamila Gillani and Bushra Gohar, <strong>for</strong>mer MNAs Latif<br />

Afridi, and M. Aslam (Jamaat-e-Islami), Punjab Tehrik-e-Insaf leader Asif Khan,<br />

advocates Sher Muhammad (Swat) and Kamran <strong>Ar</strong>if (Peshawar), Mr Amirul Azeem<br />

(JI), media and civil society representatives from Punjab, Pakhtoonkhwa, FATA and<br />

322 State of Human Rights in 2009


Islamabad.<br />

September 01: Strongly condemning the brutal murder after abduction of another<br />

Balochistan leader, Rasool Bakhsh Baloch, HRCP has reiterated its demand <strong>for</strong> earnest<br />

ef<strong>for</strong>ts to prevent killing of dissidents and to resolve the cases of missing persons.<br />

In a statement, the Commission said: HRCP condemns in the strongest possible<br />

terms the brutal murder of Mr Rasool Bakhsh Baloch, an important office-bearer of the<br />

Balochistan National Party and a well-known human rights defender and social activist<br />

from Khuzdar. He had been abducted by armed men on August 23 and on August 30<br />

his son had accused “some intelligence agencies” of abducting him. He had also expressed<br />

the fear that Mr Rasool Bakhsh might be killed. A day later the abducted activist’s dead<br />

body, bearing marks of torture, was <strong>found</strong> hanging from a tree in Bela.<br />

This incident needs to be seen in the context of the tension in Khuzdar caused by<br />

the disclosure of their abduction and torture by two Khuzdar activists, Qadir Qalandrani<br />

and Naeem Baloch, and the disappearance of several other Baloch activists.<br />

HRCP reiterates its view that the killing of prominent political activists cannot be<br />

countenanced on any account. These incidents have been a major cause of the<br />

Balochistan people’s alienation from the state. The government must demonstrate its<br />

earnestness in preventing such target killings. At the same time the task of tracing the<br />

large number of people reported missing must be pursued with diligence. The cost of<br />

dilly-dallying in these matters will be too horribly high to be imagined.<br />

October 11: HRCP calls <strong>for</strong> immediate demilitarisation of Balochistan as the first<br />

confidence-building measure to start a political dialogue in the province and warns if<br />

corrective actions are not taken immediately with the concurrence of Balochistan’s<br />

people, the country may dearly regret the consequences.<br />

The full statement reads as follows:<br />

After a week-long visit of Balochistan, HRCP is of the firm view that the largest<br />

federating unit of the state can only be likened to an active volcano that may erupt<br />

anytime with dire consequences. The situation is alarming and worsening by the day.<br />

It is apparent from the in<strong>for</strong>mation received by HRCP, from various sources,<br />

government and non-government, political parties and individuals that the decisionmaking<br />

is firmly in the hands of elements that were in command be<strong>for</strong>e February<br />

2008. It is the military that still calls the shots. The provincial government is isolated<br />

and made dysfunctional in critical areas. An over-sized cabinet, absence of an opposition<br />

and wide-spread corruption have all contributed to a political vacuum. There are deep<br />

concerns of governance in the entire country but in Balochistan the crisis is deeper.<br />

In this crisis, a large section of the people of Balochistan has been driven to the<br />

conclusion that they are being viewed as enemies of the state. They feel abandoned by<br />

the people as well as political <strong>for</strong>ces in the rest of the country. There is a sense of<br />

HRCP stands 323


isolation, rejection and dejection.<br />

The incidents of human rights’ violations in Balochistan are wide-spread and<br />

harrowing. Regrettably, the state has not addressed these complaints and the media,<br />

either under pressure or on account of its own failings, has been unable to probe and<br />

report the dreadful reality on the ground. The most hair-raising are the continuing<br />

incidents of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances. In addition to a large number of cases already<br />

taken up by HRCP, the Commission has been able to document 30 new cases during its<br />

present mission to Balochistan. This appears to be only the tip of the iceberg as a large<br />

number of families do not have access to any <strong>for</strong>um of protest or redress. Moreover,<br />

the Commission is bound by its method of work to verify each and every case brought<br />

be<strong>for</strong>e it in accordance with accepted international standards of reporting.<br />

HRCP has ample evidence to support the allegations of victims’ families that the<br />

perpetrators of en<strong>for</strong>ced disappearances are intelligence agencies and security <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

This has been conceded by high officials and politicians in authority. The mission<br />

learnt that in a number of incidents, even public figures in power were unable to secure<br />

relief or assurances that such incidents will stop. These public figures cited a number<br />

of incidents of disappearances in which, on the basis of credible evidence, they<br />

approached the intelligence agencies and the security <strong>for</strong>ces only to be met by a bland<br />

denial. This amounts to rubbing of salt into the raw wounds of the victims.<br />

The existence of checkposts causing inconvenience and humiliation was reported<br />

by people from all over Balochistan. Incidents were reported where the FC personnel<br />

manning these checkpoints insulted the people by shaving their moustaches, tearing<br />

the Baloch shalwar and making other gestures derogatory to their culture and bearing.<br />

The mission also received in<strong>for</strong>mation about arbitrary arrests and reports of endemic<br />

torture at unauthorised cells whose existence was confirmed by knowledgeable people.<br />

A history of neglect and betrayal over the decades coupled with systematic human<br />

rights abuses carried out with impunity has made a vast number of Baloch people<br />

desperate. No wonder, in this situation the Baloch youth has been driven into repudiating<br />

their allegiance to the state. Indeed, the voice of the youth is so strident that even those<br />

who disagree with them do not dare to express their views. The refusal of the Baloch<br />

youth to fly the Pakistani flag or play the national anthem in many areas and the insistence<br />

of the authorities to the contrary is only aggravating the situation. When the people’s<br />

will is being broken, their voice ruthlessly stifled and their bodies charred in torture<br />

cells; where mothers die every second waiting to hear from their disappeared children<br />

– the state cannot expect any other reaction but one of rebellion. In such circumstances<br />

the youth is particularly vulnerable to manipulation. It is imperative <strong>for</strong> all national<br />

leaders to act with responsibility and to exercise a positive influence so that facts are<br />

not distorted.<br />

HRCP abhors violence both as a means and as an end, perpetrated by any party. It<br />

regrets that target killings have also been attributed to militants and nationalist <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

324 State of Human Rights in 2009


An important number of people have fallen victims to target killings simply because of<br />

their ethnic origin or belief. HRCP unreservedly condemns such abuse of right to life<br />

and expects all political <strong>for</strong>ces to do the same publicly. The sins of the federal government<br />

must not be visited on unarmed and innocent citizens.<br />

The government’s obligation to investigate and punish the culprits is manifest and<br />

any failure in this regard fuels dis<strong>content</strong> and mistrust. In this climate of fear, a large<br />

number of government employees, academics, skilled people and members of<br />

intelligentsia have migrated from Balochistan to other areas. Many more are following.<br />

This has seriously affected the quality of services available to citizens, especially in<br />

education and health sectors. It is also causing serious imbalances in the community’s<br />

social structure.<br />

An additional factor of insecurity and tension is the uninterrupted sequence of<br />

sectarian killings <strong>for</strong> the last six years. The representatives of Hazara community have<br />

claimed that 270 of their members have been killed since 2004. They have accused the<br />

security agencies of colluding with the criminal elements. As an example, they have<br />

presented the case of two notorious criminals who were arrested and kept in the antiterrorist<br />

lock-up from where they mysteriously fled. The government had set up tribunals<br />

– one in 2004 and one in 2008 – to investigate two separate incidents of sectarian<br />

killings but the findings of these tribunals have not yet been made public.<br />

The representatives of Pashtun community list a long series of grievances relating<br />

to denial of rights, discrimination in the allocation of resources and non-acceptance of<br />

their demand to be an equal unit of the federation.<br />

A large number of people expressed concern over the influx of so-called Taliban<br />

and other categories of militants in Pashtun-dominated areas. There are serious allegations<br />

that these elements are operating within Pakistan and across the border with impunity.<br />

This is particularly worrying <strong>for</strong> the Pashtun community itself.<br />

Recommendations<br />

HRCP is convinced that ill-imagined, ill-in<strong>for</strong>med and belated measures by the<br />

federal government will not improve the situation in Balochistan. The patronising manner<br />

in which “Balochistan package” is being promoted will only add insult to injury. There<br />

is an urgency to create a climate of confidence and trust where wider consultation<br />

with all stakeholders is made possible. As a first step, demilitarisation of Balochistan is<br />

essential. All those held in illegal custody must be freed and compensated. Political<br />

prisoners must be released and perpetrators of human rights violations brought to<br />

justice. In the long run, all political <strong>for</strong>ces of the province should be brought in the<br />

mainstream. The people of Balochistan need to be assured that they will have full<br />

authority to decide their affairs including the management and control of their resources.<br />

HRCP warns that if corrective actions are not taken immediately with the<br />

concurrence of Balochistan’s people and to their satisfaction, the country may dearly<br />

HRCP stands 325


egret the consequences.<br />

November 09: Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s observers have arrived in<br />

Gilgit to monitor the general elections in Gilgit-Baltistan to be held on 12 November.<br />

The HRCP team is led by the organisation’s Co-chairperson Mr Iqbal Haider and<br />

consists of human rights activists and members of the organisation’s governing body<br />

including Mr Hussain Naqi, Mr Kamran <strong>Ar</strong>if, Ms Parveen Soomro, and Mr Najam U<br />

Din. HRCP has already organised a consultation with stakeholders and trained local<br />

observers <strong>for</strong> monitoring the electoral process in their respective areas.<br />

In its statement, HRCP said the monitoring of elections in Gilgit-Baltistan is of vital<br />

importance because elections are the first step towards democratic governance and<br />

rule by consensus. HRCP is of the view that monitoring of the voting in the region by<br />

neutral observers is crucial.<br />

During pre-poll monitoring, HRCP received complaints that the ruling party was<br />

making attempts aimed at deriving benefits of incumbency. HRCP demands of the<br />

federal government to take steps <strong>for</strong> ensuring a fair and impartial conduct of the polls<br />

by addressing the complaints, especially that the acting Governor, who is a member of<br />

the federal cabinet, is throwing his weight around <strong>for</strong> electoral gains.<br />

Besides the obvious benefits of fair elections <strong>for</strong> the region, HRCP is of the view<br />

that lack of impartiality will have a lasting impact on the working relationship among<br />

major political parties in Pakistan as all of them have fielded their candidates in Gilgit-<br />

Baltistan.<br />

November 13: In its preliminary report HRCP Observers’ Mission has expressed<br />

satisfaction over the relatively peaceful conclusion of the Gilgit-Baltistan elections and<br />

appreciated the enthusiastic turnout of voters. At the same time, HRCP expressed its<br />

sorrow over the few incidents of violence which resulted in the death of two persons<br />

and injuries to at least 40 others. The mission has also regretted that the entire electoral<br />

process was marred by flaws caused by haste in holding the polls and inadequate<br />

preparations. Besides, the pre-poll climate had been considerably vitiated by government<br />

ef<strong>for</strong>ts to lure voters with relief and development packages.<br />

The Commission will issue its detailed report after some time.<br />

The HRCP mission was led by the organisation’s Co-chairperson Mr Iqbal Haider<br />

and comprised Ms Parveen Soomro, Mr Kamran <strong>Ar</strong>if, Mr Hussain Naqi and Mr Najam<br />

U Din. The mission was supported by over 70 local observers in all seven districts of<br />

Gilgit-Baltistan.<br />

Pre-poll assessment<br />

HRCP noted with satisfaction that the main political parties in the country showed<br />

tremendous interest in the Gilgit-Baltistan elections.<br />

The HRCP observer mission met with all stakeholders to ascertain their points of<br />

326 State of Human Rights in 2009


view. The chief election commissioner, appointed barely a month be<strong>for</strong>e the election,<br />

mentioned many difficulties the Election Commission (EC) faced in organising the<br />

elections at short notice, such as finalisation of electoral rolls in a mere 18 days which<br />

resulted in many inaccuracies in the lists, inadequacy of the polling stations and the<br />

polling booths therein, insufficient polling staff and a severe lack of security arrangements.<br />

The observer mission received numerous complaints that the federal government<br />

representatives – including the prime minister, members of his cabinet and the acting<br />

governor of Gilgit-Baltistan – tried to woo voters at government cost and with a string<br />

of financial incentives.<br />

The PML-N, PML-Q, MQM and the independent candidates expressed serious<br />

reservations about the role of the Gilgit-Baltistan Governor who actively campaigned<br />

<strong>for</strong> the PPP candidates. Reservations were also expressed about the Prime Minister’s<br />

speech at Skardu on November 10 in which he appealed to the people to vote <strong>for</strong> PPP.<br />

The manner in which the Benazir Income Support Programme and to some extent<br />

the Benazir Tractor Scheme were implemented was also criticised.<br />

The PPP refuted the allegation that the Governor campaigned <strong>for</strong> it and stated that<br />

the Governor had every right to hold meetings and announce development schemes.<br />

All political parties complained about the flawed voters’ list, one political party<br />

demanded the deployment of the army to oversee the polls.<br />

Objections were raised regarding the manner in which postal ballot papers had<br />

been issued.<br />

In the EC brochure giving the statistics <strong>for</strong> the region the number of the registered<br />

voters in the various constituencies of Diamer, Gilgit and Skardu is only marginally less<br />

than their entire population e.g. in GBLA-I (Gilgit) the population is cited as 56,641 and<br />

the number of voters is 48,574; in GBLA-VII (Skardu) the population is given as<br />

35,310 and the number of voters is 27,833; the population of GBLA-XV (Diamer) is<br />

mentioned as 40,680 and the number of voters is 39,249. Such incredible statistics by<br />

the EC could hardly inspire confidence in the fairness of elections.<br />

Polling day assessment<br />

HRCP observers monitored election activity on polling day in all seven districts of<br />

the region and noted:<br />

A heavy turnout despite harsh weather conditions was heartening but it was<br />

disappointing to find that a large number of voters could not cast their votes on account<br />

of flaws and deficiencies in the electoral rolls and inadequate polling and security<br />

arrangements.<br />

At most polling stations visited by HRCP observers, polling started at the<br />

scheduled time, but there were reports from some polling stations of a delayed start.<br />

<br />

At a number of polling stations even the voters who were present within the<br />

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polling stations’ compounds at the end of polling time were not allowed to vote.<br />

A few violent incidents were reported to HRCP, in which two people lost their<br />

lives and another 40 were injured in election-related violence. The security arrangement<br />

left a lot to be desired. The polling staff seemed to be intimidated and harassed at many<br />

polling stations.<br />

An almost complete absence of women police at polling stations <strong>for</strong> women<br />

resulted in disorder, which slowed down voting.<br />

At a number of polling stations arrangements <strong>for</strong> secrecy of ballot were either<br />

absent or inadequate.<br />

At many polling stations during suspension of electricity supply no proper<br />

arrangements were made <strong>for</strong> emergency lighting. At many polling stations <strong>for</strong> men,<br />

HRCP <strong>found</strong> old iron ballot boxes instead of the new transparent plastic ones.<br />

The Presiding Officers exercised a lot of discretion in allowing or disallowing<br />

voters on account of deficiencies in the electoral rolls, which led to quarrels and delays.<br />

There were reports of agreements among some of the candidates to bar women<br />

from voting. Worse, the Election Commission did not intervene.<br />

<br />

HRCP observers <strong>found</strong> that the ink claimed to be indelible was easily removable.<br />

The HRCP mission recommends:<br />

1. The CEC should be given independence and security of tenure.<br />

2. The CEC should have adequate power to stop government officials and the<br />

public office-holders from interfering in the electoral process.<br />

3. Voters’ lists should have the NIC number of each voter.<br />

4. The law should be amended to ensure that any elections where women are<br />

systematically excluded from voting shall be declared void.<br />

5. Adequate time must be provided to the CEC to update and finalise electoral<br />

rolls and make other polling arrangements.<br />

6. Elections in Gilgit-Baltistan must not be held later than the first week of October,<br />

in view of the harsh weather conditions later in the year.<br />

7. There should be more than one polling booth <strong>for</strong> every polling station where<br />

the number of voters exceeds 500.<br />

Militancy / sectarianism / extremism<br />

March 05: HRCP has condemned a bombing at the mausoleum of renowned poet<br />

Rehman Baba on the outskirts of Peshawar.<br />

In a statement, HRCP said: “The bombing at the mausoleum cannot be condemned<br />

strongly enough. Rehman Baba is the national poet not only of the Pashtun people, but<br />

328 State of Human Rights in 2009


of the whole of Pakistan. It is ironic that the mausoleum of a poet revered <strong>for</strong> opposing<br />

oppression and advocating peace and tolerance has been targeted by the militants. But<br />

then may be it is not that strange after all. The bombing demonstrates the kind of<br />

country Taliban fanatics want to turn Pakistan into.<br />

Militants had apparently asked people to stop women from visiting the shrine.<br />

Barring women from stepping out of their houses is apparently something that no<br />

agreement with the government can talk the militants out of. Today it was Rehman<br />

Baba’s mausoleum. Tomorrow it will be girls’ colleges. Girls’ schools are already a<br />

regular target.<br />

The deterioration of the security situation across the country is alarming. It is not<br />

a simple law and order issue any more, but needs much greater attention and urgency.”<br />

April 05: The people of Pakistan cannot accept peace at the cost of surrendering<br />

citizens’ rights to militant groups, a seminar organised by HRCP observed. It concluded<br />

that Pakistan and Taliban cannot co-exist.<br />

The speakers at the seminar, “Militancy in FATA and Swat: Impact and Remedies”,<br />

said that the militants in Swat and FATA were not all indigenous. Militants from other<br />

parts of the country and <strong>for</strong>eigners were imposed on them. They emphasised that in<br />

Swat conflict could be over soon if the government and the military were determined<br />

and sincere. However, they said that such determination and sincerity were not in<br />

evidence. They said the military operation in Swat had been a failure and had only<br />

caused large-scale suffering and displacement <strong>for</strong> the civilian population.<br />

They said that the government had failed in its primary responsibility of protecting<br />

the lives, liberty and property of citizens.<br />

Speakers hailing <strong>for</strong>m Swat and the tribal areas said that the militancy had spilled<br />

over from those areas and now the whole of NWFP was at its mercy.<br />

They said that alienation had grown among the residents of the affected areas,<br />

who think that there is a lack of care in addressing their suffering.<br />

They said militancy will spread to all parts where there was a lack of governance<br />

and failure to implement rule of law and constitutional guarantees. Pakistan’s Northern<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>eas could be the next target.<br />

All speakers vehemently criticised the so-called peace deal struck with militants in<br />

Swat and emphasised that it was regrettable that a government bargained with such<br />

elements who had no respect <strong>for</strong> basic rights. They highlighted that even though the<br />

residents of Swat have suffered the most at the hands of militants, not a single person<br />

from Swat had been consulted be<strong>for</strong>e striking a deal. They said the <strong>content</strong>s of the<br />

“peace deal” violated the constitution and law of Pakistan.<br />

Speakers from the tribal areas said the State had left the citizens and armed private<br />

lashkars to shoulder the responsibility of law and order and confront the militants. This<br />

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has also increased militarization of society, which will further disturb peace.<br />

They said even though the legal vacuum in their areas had not caused the militancy,<br />

it had certainly been used as a justification to give militants a foothold in the area. They<br />

added that laws allowing collective punishment in FATA had no precedent in the civilised<br />

world.<br />

The speakers unanimously agreed that the ideas of Taliban and the people of Pakistan<br />

were incompatible. They urged the government to ensure that Pakistan’s interest takes<br />

precedence in Islamabad’s dealings with other partners in the so-called war on terror<br />

and come up with a comprehensive policy to ensure that security is not achieved at the<br />

cost of sovereignty or human rights.<br />

The role of the media in glorifying militants was criticised and the importance of<br />

calling a militant a militant was emphasised.<br />

Speakers included Asma Jahangir, Iqbal Haider, Sher Muhammad Khan, Kamran<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>if, Waseem Shah, Zarteef Afridi, Ihsanullah Afridi, Shaukat Saleem and Zainul Abideen.<br />

Afzal Khan Lala addressed the seminar on phone from his native Swat, which he<br />

has refused to abandon in the face of extremist threats.<br />

June 02: The kidnapping of 500 students of the Razmak Cadet College by the<br />

Taliban is hair raising. It is yet another barbaric act, which shows, without any doubt<br />

that the Taliban and their allies are the greatest threat to peace within Pakistan. They<br />

have crossed all limits and there cannot be any reconciliation with militant <strong>for</strong>ces that<br />

terrorise and hurt innocent children. HRCP calls upon all educational institutions to<br />

express their solidarity with the missing children so that the Taliban and their supporters<br />

realise that their inhuman acts are revolting and repulsive.<br />

July 21: While welcoming the return of the Malakand IDPs to their homes as a<br />

positive development, HRCP has warned the government that no cosmetic shift in the<br />

security policies will solve the crisis of militancy and that ef<strong>for</strong>ts in a new direction will<br />

be needed to achieve that end.<br />

Based on the conclusions of a quick fact-finding mission to the Frontier province,<br />

led by Ms Asma Jahangir, the HRCP statement said:<br />

“HRCP is monitoring the gradual return of the IDPs from Malakand Division to<br />

their homes. This is a positive development and gives peace a chance. It also presents<br />

a brief window of opportunity <strong>for</strong> reversing the trend towards Talibanisation but this<br />

opportunity may be lost if a cohesive policy is not adopted and civilian infrastructure<br />

not put in place, an infrastructure that can sustain peace.<br />

It is important to recognise the collective role played by the humanitarian agencies<br />

as well as the civilian and military administration in making the early return of the IDPs<br />

possible. Even more crucial to this turn of events was the exemplary behaviour of the<br />

displaced people and their local hosts. The displaced people <strong>found</strong> their own way to<br />

330 State of Human Rights in 2009


safety under extremely tough conditions and are now making their way home on their<br />

own. They have little faith in the government and there is a serious deficit of trust<br />

between the local population and the military.<br />

In order to build trust as well as to sustain peace HRCP believes that the government<br />

must take a new direction. There was near unanimity amongst official and non-official<br />

interlocutors that met with HRCP during their missions to Pakhtoonkhwa (NWFP) that<br />

any cosmetic shift in the security policies of the government will not solve the crisis of<br />

militancy in Pakistan.<br />

HRCP believes:<br />

It is crucial that the policy of “bleeding India” and maintaining a strategic<br />

depth in Afghanistan be reviewed. In short, the national security paradigm must shift to<br />

the need to keep pace with the political realities of the region. There are indications that<br />

this has so far not happened.<br />

<br />

The government must distance itself from the ideology of pan-Islamism.<br />

The nucleus of the top militant leadership must be taken apart and their<br />

communication and financial infrastructure dismantled. There are no indications that<br />

this has happened either. On the contrary, there are well-<strong>found</strong>ed suspicions that certain<br />

elements known <strong>for</strong> their pro-Taliban policies continue to protect a number of top<br />

militant leaders.<br />

The operation in Malakand Division must not lose sight of the strong militant<br />

presence in FATA. Peace will not return to Swat unless militant networks in FATA are<br />

defeated.<br />

Simultaneous action must also be carried out against all militant networks in<br />

other parts of the country, particularly the Punjab, where militants operate with impunity.<br />

The civil and political administration must take command on the ground in<br />

Swat soon. There is a comprehensive plan of recruiting and equipping the police <strong>for</strong>ce<br />

in Pakhtoonkhwa. The number of police stations in the Malakand Division is to be<br />

doubled and the police <strong>for</strong>ce tripled. It appears that the civil administration is also<br />

preparing a comprehensive plan <strong>for</strong> better governance in the province. The resources<br />

provided to them will, however, be monitored by a serving army general on behalf of<br />

the Federation. The Awami National Party leaders plan to visit Swat on a regular basis<br />

now but almost all IDPs resented the bunkerisation of the political leadership while<br />

they faced all the risks and tragic deaths of their families.<br />

Access <strong>for</strong> independent journalists and observers to the area must be ensured.<br />

So far, the military has only encouraged embedded journalism to an embarrassing<br />

extent. At times local journalists have openly raised slogans in support of the military.<br />

Foreign journalists have accused the authorities of misleading them by giving false<br />

names of the places they were taken to <strong>for</strong> reporting. There are several reports of<br />

HRCP stands 331


eprisals against journalists by the militants as well as by the security <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

Human rights violations should be closely monitored both during and postconflict.<br />

HRCP was appalled at reports of extrajudicial killings carried out by security<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces. Militant leader Maulvi Misbahuddin was apprehended by the security <strong>for</strong>ces<br />

and later the bodies of Misbahuddin and his son were <strong>found</strong> in Bacha Bazar. The<br />

government claims that they were killed in an encounter while eyewitnesses hold that<br />

they were arrested by the police in Mardan. Amir Izzat, spokesperson of the Swat<br />

militants, was arrested from Amandara. Two days later the authorities claimed that<br />

Izzat was killed allegedly by militants trying to rescue him when they attacked the<br />

vehicle taking him to jail. Independent journalists claim that the targeted vehicle shown<br />

to them did not even have an engine. The most harrowing reports were of dead bodies<br />

strewn upside down by the military with notes attached to the bodies warning that<br />

anyone supporting the Taliban will meet the same fate. There must be a difference<br />

between the actions of agents of the State and those of fanatical non-state actors. Such<br />

tactics only terrorise and dehumanise society. HRCP urges the government to impart<br />

training to the security <strong>for</strong>ces and familiarise them with human rights and humanitarian<br />

law. HRCP has also received credible reports of the security <strong>for</strong>ces resorting to collective<br />

punishments, <strong>for</strong>cible occupation of orchards and the use of indiscriminate and excessive<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce.<br />

All human rights violations during the conflict must be investigated and those<br />

responsible brought to justice. There are reports of reprisals which can only be<br />

discouraged if the State fulfils its obligation of providing justice through due process.<br />

HRCP has received reports of children abandoned during the conflict being<br />

handed over to dubious NGOs. It is vital that the provincial government keep track of<br />

the adoption of every single child and ensure that children are reunited with their<br />

families or are looked after by well-intentioned groups.”<br />

September 18: HRCP has cautioned the government against adverse implications<br />

of depending on private militias, or lashkars, in the fight against Taliban militants in the<br />

Swat valley and other parts of Malakand division, and arbitrary detention of militants’<br />

families to <strong>for</strong>ce them to surrender.<br />

A statement issued by HRCP said: “The problems the government is facing in<br />

establishing law and order in the Swat region are enormous. While the Commission<br />

appreciates the ef<strong>for</strong>t that is being made, it would like to advise prudence on some<br />

tactics, especially the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ patronage of and reliance on lashkars to take on<br />

the militants. The strategy is fraught with hazards. It is difficult to control such private<br />

militias and neither the government nor the military can vouch <strong>for</strong> their conduct. Reprisal<br />

attacks and settling of scores have preoccupied many of these highly-armed lashkars.<br />

The government must not outsource the responsibility of ensuring security in the<br />

332 State of Human Rights in 2009


egion to civilian armed bands.<br />

HRCP also cannot countenance the detention by the security <strong>for</strong>ces of families of<br />

militants, including women and children, where they have been unable to arrest the<br />

militants themselves. Such arbitrary detentions are in violation of individuals’ human<br />

rights and are not expected of a rights-respecting government. Any derogation of the<br />

human rights of the people will be counterproductive. The government must provide<br />

the International Committee of the Red Cross access to all those arrested during the<br />

operation and produce them in court.<br />

It must also ensure that the focus of the repatriation drive to the Swat region<br />

remains on making conditions in the conflict-hit zone conducive <strong>for</strong> the return of<br />

IDPs.<br />

HRCP is concerned about disturbing reports of mutilated dead bodies being <strong>found</strong><br />

in the region. The government must investigate the circumstances of each death with<br />

a view to prosecuting those responsible.<br />

HRCP also reiterates its concern about mass graves <strong>found</strong> in the region, and<br />

emphasises the need <strong>for</strong> a transparent inquiry to establish the identities of both the<br />

victims and the perpetrators. A failure to do so will not only create misgivings among<br />

the people but also cause erosion of trust in the government and fuel extremist<br />

tendencies.”<br />

Anti-terror measures, Swat and Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>eas<br />

February 18: Commenting on the Peshawar announcement of February 17,<br />

regarding the en<strong>for</strong>cement of the Shariah law in the Malakand Division, HRCP has<br />

expressed serious concern at the absence of any guarantees against transgression of<br />

the constitution and the people’s basic rights. “Both of these – the basic law and the<br />

fundamental rights – have apparently been exposed to a grave risk”, the commission<br />

has said.<br />

In a statement, it said: Even after making due allowance <strong>for</strong> the need <strong>for</strong> peace and<br />

appreciating the problems faced by the Frontier government and the security <strong>for</strong>ces, it<br />

is not possible to overlook the threat the Peshawar accord on the en<strong>for</strong>cement of<br />

Shariah in the Malakand Division poses to the constitution and the people’s fundamental<br />

rights. HRCP is convinced that the country’s basic law and the rights of the people<br />

both have been placed at a grave risk. The plan to en<strong>for</strong>ce what is described as Shariah<br />

without any assurance that all the local judges charged with en<strong>for</strong>cing it will be equal to<br />

the task or capable of arriving at a single interpretation of the scriptures could condemn<br />

the people, specially women, non-Muslims and smaller Muslim sects, to irremediable<br />

excesses.<br />

Since the Malakand Division consists of five districts besides Swat, the population<br />

HRCP stands 333


involved is by no means small and there is no guarantee that other territories in the<br />

Frontier province and beyond its boundaries will not be affected.<br />

HRCP acknowledges the principle and value of a dialogue but it is essential to be<br />

sure of the other party’s bona fides, credibility and capacity to honour its commitments.<br />

No dialogue is possible with a party that seeks to impose its fiat at gunpoint.<br />

The ordinary citizens’ desire <strong>for</strong> speedy and inexpensive justice is understandable<br />

but it is the state’s duty to save them from falling <strong>for</strong> a regime that may save them<br />

some time and a few pennies but all this at the cost of justice, particularly in an area<br />

where feudal / tribal norms are often equated with divine injunctions.<br />

HRCP shares the grief and anxieties of the people of Swat and other parts of the<br />

Malakand Division over their loss of life and property and the hardships caused to poor<br />

wage-earners and students. It should like to hope that under the proposed arrangement<br />

they will not be made to suffer more than what they have already undergone. The<br />

nation must find ways of demonstrating better solidarity with them than has so far<br />

been evident.<br />

Without doubting at the moment the motives of the Frontier government it seems<br />

necessary to point out the huge responsibility to protect democracy, the constitution<br />

and fundamental rights it has assumed and that its success or failure will determine the<br />

future not only of the province but the whole of Pakistan.<br />

April 14: The way the National Assembly resolved to back the Nizam-e-Adl<br />

Regulation <strong>for</strong> Malakand Division on Monday does no credit to the House, and the day<br />

will be remembered <strong>for</strong> the state’s humiliating submission to blind <strong>for</strong>ce, according to<br />

a statement by HRCP.<br />

The Commission said: “The reservations of HRCP on the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation<br />

<strong>for</strong> the Malakand Division apart, the manner the resolution relating to the subject was<br />

adopted in the National Assembly cannot bring any credit to the House.<br />

Making all allowances <strong>for</strong> the circumstances, in which a desperate government<br />

was seeking survival through surrender to militancy, no one except a lone member of<br />

the PML-N, noted journalist Ayaz Amir, had the courage to speak honestly and directly<br />

about the situation, while members of the MQM at least maintained consistency in<br />

resisting bigotry. What is amazing is that no reference was made to the impact of the<br />

measure on women, children, minorities and the prospects <strong>for</strong> rule of law in the<br />

embattled Malakand Division. Even if the party chief whip had ruled out the possibility<br />

of criticising the measure, expressing concern over the threat to fundamental rights<br />

should not have been an utterly hazardous undertaking. What use is increased<br />

representation of women in parliament if they cannot squeak even in matters of life and<br />

death to them? Whatever may happen to the repeatedly abandoned people of Pakistan,<br />

334 State of Human Rights in 2009


April 13, 2009 will only be remembered as a day of ignominious capitulation to brute<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce.”<br />

April 29: HRCP has expressed serious concern at reports of civilian casualties<br />

during operation by the security <strong>for</strong>ces in Lower Dir district.<br />

In a statement, the commission urged the government to ensure that the security<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces’ action against Taliban does not add to the woes of non-combatants stuck in the<br />

area.<br />

“HRCP is distressed at the unnecessary loss of lives and the continued suffering of<br />

innocent civilians in Dir despite, and at times because of, the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ operation.<br />

While the people of Dir had heaved a sigh of relief at the security <strong>for</strong>ces operation<br />

that the government had finally decided to reclaim the area from Taliban, the first few<br />

days of the offensive have heaped more suffering on the civilian population, including<br />

a number of casualties on account of the choice of tactics and weapons by the security<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

Reports from the area suggest that Taliban militants are hiding in and operating<br />

from areas with large civilian populations and the security <strong>for</strong>ces have sought to target<br />

them through the use of heavy weapons, including aerial bombardment and longdistance<br />

artillery shelling, putting the safety of civilians trapped in the conflict zone at<br />

even greater risk.<br />

Tens of thousands of civilians have already been displaced and those trying to flee<br />

the area find it increasingly difficult to reach safety. The government should have<br />

ensured protection of non-combatants be<strong>for</strong>e the launch of the operation. It must now<br />

meet civilians’ needs and facilitate their flight to safety. It must also meet their needs in<br />

line with international humanitarian obligations and the Guiding Principles on Internal<br />

Displacement.<br />

The security <strong>for</strong>ces in Dir must learn lessons from the numerous incidents of<br />

‘collateral damage’ in their operation in the Swat valley and immediately cease<br />

indiscriminate artillery and aerial attacks in Dir, which are not suited <strong>for</strong> ousting militants<br />

from residential areas with large concentrations of civilian population.<br />

We urge that the same precautions should be taken in the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ operation<br />

launched in Buner.<br />

The significance of public backing <strong>for</strong> such operations cannot be emphasised<br />

enough. Civilian casualties would only erode that support. The security <strong>for</strong>ces must<br />

ensure that the war against terror and Taliban does not become war against civilians.”<br />

May 07: HRCP has called upon the federal government to immediately set up a<br />

special task <strong>for</strong>ce to implement a crash plan <strong>for</strong> extending relief to the large number of<br />

people displaced in the ongoing conflict in the country’s northern part. In a statement<br />

HRCP stands 335


issued today, the commission said:<br />

The plight of the people displaced from their homes in Swat, Dir and Buner as a<br />

result of militants’ activities and the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ operations against them is getting<br />

more and more serious day by day. The number of these IDPs may soon touch one<br />

million. The circumstances in which these un<strong>for</strong>tunate people have been <strong>for</strong>ced to<br />

abandon their homes have made it impossible <strong>for</strong> them to find succour on their own.<br />

Many among them, from barbers and musicians to teachers and lawyers, lost their<br />

means of income weeks and months ago and are now in dire straits. Their needs <strong>for</strong><br />

relief are both urgent and substantial.<br />

HRCP believes the NWFP government’s plan to set up six camps in Swabi will not<br />

touch even a fringe of the problem. The matter is clearly beyond the provincial<br />

government’s means and capacity. The federal government must take matters into its<br />

hands and set up a special task <strong>for</strong>ce manned by people skilled in relief work. Since the<br />

number of IDPs is likely to grow it is necessary to draw up a master plan <strong>for</strong> looking<br />

after them in the days and weeks ahead. Civil society organisations also must rise to<br />

the occasion and convince the innocent victims of conflict that they are not going to be<br />

abandoned.<br />

June 03: HRCP is convinced that the cost of the insurgency in the Malakand<br />

Division has been increased manifold by the short-sightedness and indecisiveness of<br />

the non-representative institutions and their policy of appeasing the militants and cohorting<br />

with them. While the ongoing military operation had become unavoidable, it was not<br />

adopted as a measure of last resort. Further, the plight of the internally displaced people<br />

has been aggravated by lack of planning and coordination by the agencies concerned,<br />

and the methods of evacuation of towns/villages and the arrangements <strong>for</strong> the stranded<br />

people have left much to be desired.<br />

Based on reports by HRCP activists in the Malakand Division and other parts of<br />

NWFP/Pakhtoonkhwa, visits to IDP camps by its activists and senior board members,<br />

and talks with many displaced people and several Nazims and public figures, the<br />

Commission has released the following statement on the situation, its conclusions and<br />

recommendations:<br />

Background<br />

HRCP has reported, time and again over the last many years, on the rising exodus<br />

of IDPs from FATA and the Malakand Division, owing to deteriorating security situation,<br />

and warned the government of the consequences. IDPs in Balochistan have also been<br />

an issue of concern and separate statements on it have been issued by HRCP.<br />

For over two decades the government of Pakistan, in particular the military, tolerated,<br />

if it did not collude with, the religious militants and extended impunity to them as well<br />

336 State of Human Rights in 2009


as to all <strong>for</strong>ms of acts of religious intolerance. It was common knowledge that<br />

international as well as national religious militants had safe havens in the country. After<br />

9/11, militants of all shades were rein<strong>for</strong>ced and given a free hand to organise themselves<br />

at the cost of the freedom of the local population in FATA. Other parts of the country<br />

also continued to suffer but initially parts of FATA (Federally Administered Tribal <strong>Ar</strong>ea)<br />

became the central hub of all militant groups, local, national, regional and international.<br />

The Musharraf government did not simply turn a blind eye but by all accounts, (including<br />

those of IDPs), several incidents revealed a policy to protect certain leaders of militant<br />

groups. The government has never given a satisfactory explanation on the supply lines<br />

of finances, vehicles, arms/ammunition and petrol that the militants have never been<br />

short of. This is particularly questionable in the case of Swat, which is a settled area<br />

and surrounded by territory in control of the government.<br />

Amongst other reports, a number of credible sources (including official sources)<br />

confirmed that in December 2006, a vehicle was impounded by SHO Amir Zaman of<br />

police station Kabal, which was full of explosives. The destination of this pick-up was<br />

the Dera (house) of Fazalullah, popularly known as Maulana Radio. The SHO who<br />

impounded the vehicle was ordered by phone to stop all proceedings till higher police<br />

officials instructed him to proceed in the matter. As the DIG of the area was on leave,<br />

SP Qudratullah Marwat is said to have personally ordered that the van be released with<br />

the explosives as he had instructions from “higher authorities” to release the pick-up.<br />

In addition a number of other well placed sources confirmed that groups of militants<br />

from Waziristan were officially escorted to Swat in 2007.<br />

During the last few years nine military operations were carried out and nine<br />

compromises made with militants operating in FATA and Swat. None of these succeeded<br />

in brining peace. Almost all the IDPs and interlocutors interviewed by HRCP complained<br />

of having been let down by the government. They strongly felt that the government<br />

machinery lacked the will rather than capacity to dismantle the militant <strong>for</strong>ce in the<br />

Malakand Division. As regards FATA they were less sure of the capacity of the<br />

government to deal with the enormous challenge. They complained that the problem<br />

was deliberately ignored <strong>for</strong> many years and now the militant groups, criminal elements<br />

and drug traffickers had <strong>for</strong>med a <strong>for</strong>midable network.<br />

A number of IDPs from Swat had left their homes twice or thrice be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />

recent army operation of April 2009. They admitted that generally the local population<br />

of Swat took a positive view of the last peace deal negotiated by the ANP and Maulana<br />

Sufi Muhammad. They had hoped that peace would be restored but they <strong>found</strong> that<br />

some of the worst <strong>for</strong>ms of human rights abuses by the Taliban took place after the<br />

deal was struck. A large number of misled and tired youth joined the militants, who<br />

were seen as the ultimate victors and future administrators of the area. While a large<br />

number of people voluntarily joined the militants, the IDPs narrated incidents witnessed<br />

HRCP stands 337


in their own families where the Swat-based Taliban <strong>for</strong>ced young men to join them by<br />

threatening the families that came in their way. There were reports of summary<br />

executions through slaughter by the militants. At least, three cases of whipping of<br />

young girls were reported by IDPs living in three different camps. Hanging of bodies<br />

by trees and killings of those cooperating with government <strong>for</strong>ces were widely reported.<br />

Scores were killed including many political activists.<br />

Reports of the devious role played by a <strong>for</strong>mer commissioner of Malakand were<br />

common. Earlier Syed Muhammad Javed, <strong>for</strong>mer commissioner of Malakand, was<br />

posted as DCO Swat. It was common knowledge that he fully patronised Fazalullah,<br />

son-in-law of Sufi Muhammad. While posted as DCO he is reputed to have exhibited<br />

strong leanings towards the Al-Qaeda-style ideology. He would drive from Mingora to<br />

Pevchar where Fazalullah led Friday prayers. The presence of the highest official in<br />

Swat in the congregation of the faithful led in prayers by Fazalullah was a strong<br />

incentive <strong>for</strong> others to join. It is reported that there was vigorous recruitment of local<br />

people by the militants during that period. There are other allegations of abuse of<br />

human rights by the <strong>for</strong>mer commissioner.<br />

The government defended the appointment of Commissioner Syed Muhammad<br />

Javed on the ground that he had strong connections with the Taliban and could there<strong>for</strong>e<br />

be used <strong>for</strong> the purposes of brokering a genuine peace deal. However, it is now evident<br />

that the <strong>for</strong>mer commissioner advanced the cause of the Taliban and exposed the<br />

locals to their wrath. The IDPs from Buner were particularly disturbed by the destructive<br />

role played by the <strong>for</strong>mer commissioner. In April 2008, the Taliban tried to enter Buner.<br />

The local people resisted and hurriedly called <strong>for</strong> a jirga. They armed themselves and<br />

were supported by the DCO and the DPO of the area. Commissioner Javed, who was<br />

in Dir with Sufi Muhammad, heard of the resistance by the local armed groups. He<br />

called up the DCO and the DPO ordering them to halt the local resistance till he visited<br />

Buner the next day. According to eyewitnesses, the commissioner arrived escorted by<br />

the Taliban and gave a dressing down to the DCO and the DPO. He ordered the local<br />

jirga to come to the Karakar <strong>for</strong>est rest house on the Swat-Buner border <strong>for</strong> talks with<br />

the Taliban. The jirga members refused to go to the rest house and were then invited to<br />

the Commissioner House in Swat.<br />

The jirga (after a day) went to the Commissioner House as instructed. They were<br />

shocked to see Muslim Khan there. Maulana Faqir Muhammad was awaited; he was<br />

arriving from Bajaur. When Maulana Faqir Muhammad finally arrived, he threatened<br />

the jirga members and the Commissioner <strong>for</strong>ced the jirga members to apologise to the<br />

Taliban <strong>for</strong> raising an armed lashkar against them. A sham compromise was made to<br />

assure the Buneris that the Taliban would not enter the area if they disarmed. However,<br />

the Taliban, despite the compromise, entered Buner the next day. They burnt down and<br />

destroyed the houses of active jirga members, including the Sultanwas houses of<br />

338 State of Human Rights in 2009


Afsar Khan (ANP leader) and Col. Sultanzeb. Within a few days the Taliban had complete<br />

control of the district.<br />

Commissioner Syed Muhammad Javed is also alleged to have pressurised the family<br />

of Chand Bibi, the video of whose flogging was telecast by national television channels,<br />

to deny that the incident had ever taken place. According to some government sources<br />

the commissioner played the lead role in providing a doctored report regarding the<br />

incident to the Supreme Court.<br />

The Nizam-e-Adl compromise<br />

It is now obvious that the ANP government fell into a trap in the hope that a<br />

compromise with Maulana Sufi Muhammad would bring peace. It had been widely<br />

publicised that the local population wanted en<strong>for</strong>cement of the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation<br />

which was being supported by the militants and that its en<strong>for</strong>cement would bring<br />

peace to the Malakand Division. Only a few though believed that the campaign of the<br />

militants was motivated by a desire to bring in any <strong>for</strong>m of justice. Their past record<br />

offered strong evidence against their interest in justice. Girls’ schools were bombed,<br />

women were restricted from leaving their homes without a mehram, video shops were<br />

destroyed, barbers were punished <strong>for</strong> shaving men and throats of suspects were slit<br />

without trial. Quite obviously the militants were making a bid <strong>for</strong> power. The Nizam-e-<br />

Adl Regulation was to be used as a tool to keep the local population in a state of fear<br />

while power would be wielded through Taliban appointed judges and law en<strong>for</strong>cement<br />

personnel.<br />

Sufi Muhammad<br />

Now in his mid-seventies, Sufi Muhammad belongs to Kumbar, near Maidan in<br />

Lower Dir district of the Malakand Division. As a young man he was associated with<br />

Jamaat-e-Islami and was elected a BD councillor during the Ayub era. In the early<br />

nineties he joined the alliance of feudals and political agents who did not want Frontier<br />

Crimes Regulation (FCR) to be replaced with the Pakistan Penal Code and raised the<br />

demand <strong>for</strong> the en<strong>for</strong>cement of the Shariah law. He gained prominence when his<br />

supporters in the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM) blockaded the<br />

Malakand Pass and made a violent bid to capture Saidu Sharif, capital of Swat, in<br />

which several lives were lost. The government reached an understanding with TNSM<br />

and the result was Nizam-e-Adl Regulation of 1994. After 9/11 Sufi Muhammad led<br />

thousands of ill-equipped tribesmen into Afghanistan to fight by the side of the Taliban.<br />

Many of his companions were killed and those who survived blamed him <strong>for</strong> their<br />

plight. He himself was arrested when he returned to Pakistan in 2001. Many thought<br />

the administrations thus saved him from his frenzied followers that were out to harm<br />

him. He stayed in prison till November 2007 when he was transferred by the caretaker<br />

regime to a hospital in Peshawar. In 2008 he was released and the provincial government<br />

HRCP stands 339


signed an agreement in April 2008 with his party in the hope that he would succeed in<br />

persuading the militants, commanded by his son-in-law, Maulvi Fazalullah, to honour<br />

the peace accord. These hopes did not materialise and Sufi Muhammad himself kept<br />

raising new demands.<br />

The militants had to rely on intimidation as in the 2008 General Election the people<br />

of the Malakand Division overwhelmingly voted in favour of the ANP and the PPP and<br />

rejected the candidates backed by clerics. As a result of excesses committed by the<br />

militants, 95,953 families (577,167 people) were internally displaced in the NWFP/<br />

Pakhtoonkhwa province be<strong>for</strong>e the May 2009 military operation commenced. A large<br />

number of IDPs were from Swat where the Taliban were virtually in control, There<strong>for</strong>e<br />

it was pretty evident that the people felt insecure and wanted peace – at any cost.<br />

As was expected, the Taliban took control but soon their ambition had the better of<br />

discretion. Addressing a big public gathering in Mingora (Swat) on April 19, 2009 Sufi<br />

Muhammad rejected western-style democracy and called it “a system of infidels”. He<br />

asserted that there was no room <strong>for</strong> democracy in Islam. Similarly he denounced the<br />

judicial system including the High Court and the Supreme Court as un-Islamic. He gave<br />

an ultimatum of four days to the government to pack up their judicial system in Malakand<br />

Division and appoint Qazis selected by himself. Lawyers, Sufi Muhammad said, had<br />

no business in his scheme of things. The public throughout the country was alarmed.<br />

The Parliament reacted strongly against his outburst and his painting of all those who<br />

disagreed with him as infidels.<br />

The military operation<br />

A number of sources claim that at least 80% of the Malakand Division was already<br />

under the control of the Taliban, who nominally owed allegiance to Sufi Muhammad<br />

and his Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi, be<strong>for</strong>e the army operation started on<br />

April 26, 2009. Most political parties supported the military operation. A large section<br />

of civil society was also convinced that it had become unavoidable to take some military<br />

action, particularly as police officials in the Malakand Division were killed and leaders<br />

and workers of the ruling provincial party (ANP) were liquidated. A large number of<br />

police functionaries serving in the Malakand Division had deserted or were virtually<br />

confined to their police stations. Representatives of the provincial government admit<br />

that the situation was grim enough <strong>for</strong> them to experiment with any available recipe, as<br />

long as the people of their province had some breathing space. They disclosed that<br />

they had received no support from the federal government to their ef<strong>for</strong>ts to raise the<br />

capacity of their law-en<strong>for</strong>cement personnel. The military merely smiled at their request<br />

<strong>for</strong> assistance while the federal government dragged its feet and remained clueless<br />

about dealing with rising violence, tensions and internal displacement.<br />

Regrettably, the intensity of a full fledged military operation could have been avoided<br />

if the militants had been confronted, discouraged, deported and captured earlier, after<br />

340 State of Human Rights in 2009


several emphatic public denials of support to them. It took a number of years after 9/<br />

11 <strong>for</strong> the Musharraf government to acknowledge that militant groups had taken refuge<br />

in FATA. The military operation was an un<strong>for</strong>tunate option also because no effective<br />

measures had been taken in the past to meet the challenge. As one interlocutor commented<br />

the country is a patient whose ailment has been ignored too long and who is even now<br />

being treated without a complete diagnosis, while his ailment has travelled to all parts<br />

of his body. There are several public statements on record where chief of ISI and<br />

military leaders have praised the “patriotism” of jehadi groups. Sufi Muhammad was<br />

touted out as a saviour and champion of peace and justice. It confuses the population<br />

that is consistently misled by those in authority.<br />

The urgency of a military action cannot be discounted but any armed action by the<br />

state must, under all circumstances, follow the principles of humanitarian law and in<br />

particular <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 51 of the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August<br />

1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International <strong>Ar</strong>med Conflicts (Protocol<br />

1). It must be a measure of last resort rather than a measure that becomes unavoidable<br />

because of sustained inaction in the past. Use of <strong>for</strong>ce must be proportionate and noncombatants<br />

should, at all costs, be assured of safety. Those trapped in the cross<br />

fighting should be provided with food and all ef<strong>for</strong>ts made to bring them to safety.<br />

Tales of suffering<br />

The IDPs from Swat unanimously complained that they were given a scandalously<br />

brief notice to evacuate. Curfew was relaxed <strong>for</strong> a few hours and thousands of families<br />

walked <strong>for</strong> miles to reach safety. A large number of them were caught in the armed<br />

conflict between the Taliban and government <strong>for</strong>ces. Those <strong>for</strong>tunate enough to find<br />

transport had to pay a <strong>for</strong>tune. There are reports of loss of life and limbs caused by<br />

mines laid by the Taliban. A number of women were traumatised because the Taliban<br />

had <strong>for</strong>ced the men in the family to stay back. Many others had been separated from<br />

their families. A particularly distressing story was of a woman who carried her son’s<br />

slaughtered head <strong>for</strong> burial because she was <strong>for</strong>ced to leave the corpse on the wayside<br />

by the Taliban who had beheaded him.<br />

Another woman narrated how she had left her special child behind because he<br />

could not walk. She was beside herself and told the HRCP team that she had left some<br />

water and food by the side of her disabled child and had had no news since. Families<br />

reluctantly admitted that in a panic to save their lives in very difficult circumstances<br />

they were unable to carry the very old ones and disabled children with them.<br />

A woman gave birth on the way amidst the exchange of fire and hurriedly-wrapped<br />

her newborn and it slipped through the wraps during her journey.<br />

IDPs also alleged that they saw dead human and animal bodies lying by the wayside.<br />

The stink was unbearable. They mostly corroborated the allegation that both the Taliban<br />

HRCP stands 341


and the military did not allow families to pick up the dead bodies and that a high level of<br />

fatalities had occurred in the area. They disclosed that the Taliban as well as the military<br />

operation were responsible <strong>for</strong> the loss of life of hundreds of non-combatants.<br />

There were credible testimonies that the Taliban had made desperate last-minute<br />

ef<strong>for</strong>ts to <strong>for</strong>cibly recruit children and very young men to fight <strong>for</strong> them. Others were<br />

taken to be used as human shields.<br />

On the other hand, the IDPs confirmed that the use of long-range artillery by the<br />

military was indiscriminate. Besides militants, civilians also became targets of<br />

bombardment. Reports indicate that the scale and intensity of fighting has been severe<br />

and in many cases it has been undertaken in heavily populated areas.<br />

It is feared that several hundred people have been unable to flee to safety due to the<br />

intensity of the fighting and imposition of constant curfews. The stranded civilian<br />

population is without electricity and they have no means of communication. Medical<br />

assistance is not available while food and water are scarce. According to UNHCR, the<br />

affected area has a population of over six million. The estimates of the people displaced<br />

have risen to nearly three million. This is a strong indication that large numbers are<br />

either trapped or missing. It is reported by the incoming IDPs that fatalities and casualties<br />

amongst civilians are significant. The infrastructure has also been massively damaged<br />

by government <strong>for</strong>ces as well as the Taliban. An unconfirmed report doing the rounds<br />

in the IDP camps and in urban centres of NWFP/Pakhtoonkhwa says that some seven<br />

Taliban were captured after three commandos had been brutally butchered by the<br />

Taliban. They were thrown out of a helicopter at a high altitude. Such stories must be<br />

thoroughly probed and strongly refuted if <strong>found</strong> exaggerated. Reports of slaughter of<br />

military personnel and relatives of off duty police by the Taliban are circulating in the<br />

camps and have been confirmed by many IDPs. The loss of soldiers and police officers<br />

is a heavy blow to the country and especially demoralising <strong>for</strong> the security <strong>for</strong>ces.<br />

HRCP deeply regrets it but must continue to stress that the distinction between the<br />

behaviour of non-State and State actors must be fully comprehended.<br />

IDP camps<br />

It is estimated that by May 24 1,206,213 people had fled from Swat Valley, Lower<br />

Dir, Buner and Shangla districts. According to available data, the total number of IDPs<br />

on that date was estimated at 1,783,380. Some 80% have taken shelter with local host<br />

families or in rented accommodation. As the number of IDPs keeps increasing, the<br />

capacities of host families and communities are being overstretched.<br />

When HRCP teams visited the area there were 23 official camp sites; 11 old and 12<br />

new ones set up after the late April/May influx. The largest camp, Jalozai II was set up<br />

be<strong>for</strong>e April 2009. Its population is 71,344. Of the new camps, the Dargai camp at<br />

Malakand has 96,148 people. Other camps are smaller in size, mostly housing fewer<br />

342 State of Human Rights in 2009


than 10,000 people.<br />

The task of organising IDP camps is gigantic and poses a huge challenge. Even<br />

more difficult it is <strong>for</strong> host families to sustain their hospitality beyond a certain period.<br />

It is absolutely remarkable the way the people, particularly in Swabi and Mardan, have<br />

opened their houses to those fleeing conflict. Had the citizens not acted in a prompt and<br />

generous way protection <strong>for</strong> the IDPs would have become virtually impossible. It also<br />

appears that <strong>for</strong>eign agencies like UNHCR, ICRC and UNICEF had <strong>for</strong>eseen such an<br />

eventuality. The government, federal as well as the provincial, were totally at a loss in<br />

the first few weeks. The provincial government is beginning to stir but the federal<br />

government remains clueless and has no <strong>for</strong>ward looking strategy. More worrying is<br />

the revelation that neither the federal nor the provincial government could explain the<br />

overall objective of the military operation. Short-term and long-term tasks have so far<br />

not been comprehended, neither was anyone certain of the next phase of the operation.<br />

The military sees it as a “jump in and out” operation, the provincial government has<br />

expressed concerns over it. They point out that holding the areas that are cleared of the<br />

Taliban till civil administration is put in place is crucial. The federal government is<br />

solely concentrated on fund raising and has so far not looked ahead.<br />

A few families (mostly men) returned to Buner after announcements were made at<br />

camp sites that people could return <strong>for</strong> 10 days to harvest their crops. Others took up<br />

courage to return to Buner after the Interior Minister announced that Buner was safe<br />

and people could return. Families at IDP camps reported that some of their family<br />

members were stopped by the military from proceeding ahead but some went through<br />

to find that many parts of Buner were not safe and fighting was continuing. At least<br />

two families interviewed by HRCP teams lost family members, who had returned on<br />

the advice of the government.<br />

There are serious concerns regarding security. There is no checking on arms<br />

inside the camps. IDPs admitted that some low level Taliban had also taken refuge in<br />

the camps. Foreign aid agencies point out that security has to be taken care of by the<br />

government but no ef<strong>for</strong>t was being made to this end. However, when VVIPs visit<br />

camps a large number of police <strong>for</strong>ce is seen on the spot with the entire administration<br />

hanging around waiting <strong>for</strong> endless hours <strong>for</strong> the VVIP to turn up. HRCP monitors saw<br />

red carpets rolled out in camps and huge tents with public address system being set up<br />

<strong>for</strong> a visiting VVIP. Such show of pomp can hardly please the destitute.<br />

The IDP camps are by no means perfect. There is a dearth of all kinds of essential<br />

commodities and the infrastructure is very make-shift. Medical facilities are inadequate<br />

and heat is a main problem. The distribution system is being improved but not sufficiently<br />

fast enough. The registration system is very slow and cumbersome. It is especially<br />

difficult <strong>for</strong> IDPs living outside the camp facilities to secure registration. The IDPs<br />

were given a bag of wheat each by a <strong>for</strong>eign donor. They had no facilities to cook or to<br />

HRCP stands 343


get the wheat ground. Most used the bags to sit on. The IDPs were nervous because<br />

they had no access to news on a regular basis. They hoped that the camp sites could<br />

have radios <strong>for</strong> those interested in getting in<strong>for</strong>mation. Aid agencies complained that a<br />

number of individuals and VIPs were an obstacle to their delivery work. They gave<br />

examples of how humanitarian aid was kept undistributed because two political parties<br />

laid claim to it and could not decide who should distribute the goods. In the meanwhile,<br />

the desperate IDPs looted the goods and the most vulnerable amongst them went<br />

empty-handed.<br />

HRCP is especially concerned that the IDPs have been virtually barred from entering<br />

Sindh. In Punjab they are not being registered but are not barred. However, the federal<br />

government has announced that all rental deeds must be executed in police stations so<br />

that the police can “keep an eye” on the IDPs from leaving NWFP/Pakhtoonkhwa. The<br />

Punjab government has issued instructions that property cannot be sold to anyone<br />

from outside the province without a no-objection certificate. This is demoralising <strong>for</strong><br />

IDPs who are the worst victims of the Taliban’s wrath and the government’s utterly<br />

indefensible policies.<br />

The effects of Talibanisation are not confined to the NWFP/Pakhtoonkhwa province<br />

alone. That part is directly affected but bomb blasts, threats and rise in crime across<br />

the country is a major fallout of Talibanisation and the fighting. The Taliban openly<br />

threaten the people even today. Very recently, medical representatives in Peshawar<br />

were warned not to wear pants. They were beaten because they took no notice of the<br />

warning. Male students have been instructed through a government notification, after<br />

threats from the Taliban, to wear shalwar kameez. Women in Islamabad, Lahore and<br />

Karachi have been stopped by men and told not to drive by themselves and to cover<br />

their heads.<br />

Journalists, particularly, of electronic media told HRCP of the heavy censorship on<br />

news. There can be no discussion on the number of civilian fatalities or casualties.<br />

Independent media and international or national humanitarian groups have no access to<br />

the conflict area. This is worrying and HRCP remains concerned about the lack of<br />

independent in<strong>for</strong>mation from the conflict area. Telephone lines are disconnected,<br />

there<strong>for</strong>e those trapped or who stayed back cannot reach anyone when in distress.<br />

HRCP believes that the challenge faced by the country goes beyond Swat. The<br />

government of Pakistan is under great strain in dealing with this complex issue, which<br />

is mostly a legacy of the Zia-Musharraf regimes. The victims of the Taliban’s militancy<br />

have mostly been Pakistanis – civilians, law en<strong>for</strong>cement people and the military. Over<br />

the years, Pakistani jehadi groups have <strong>for</strong>med a network of supporters that are<br />

entrenched in all institutions of the country. Their close links to <strong>for</strong>eign militant groups<br />

have put more resources at their disposal and they now operate in a strategic manner.<br />

Pakistan’s government has to draw a comprehensive policy – taking the military and<br />

344 State of Human Rights in 2009


other political parties on board – so that a long-term strategy is developed to confront<br />

the <strong>for</strong>ces of militancy and intolerance. The government should seek partnership with<br />

international entities and other countries to effectively challenge militant groups and<br />

their supporters.<br />

Conclusions and recommendations<br />

1. The spread of the Taliban influence in the Malakand Division and the suffering<br />

of the internally displaced people (IDPs) are the result of arbitrary policy-making by<br />

non-representative institutions. There has been no evidence of the transparent policies<br />

and reference to the people that were vitally needed. The situation though has improved<br />

under the democratic government – despite the system being fragile and lacking in<br />

many ways. Those criticising the Taliban and religious fanaticism are not snubbed and<br />

most political <strong>for</strong>ces recognise the enormous challenge they face from militant Islamic<br />

groups.<br />

2. A white paper should be issued on the official patronage extended to the militants<br />

in the Malakand Division. Government officials and other individuals who helped the<br />

militants in their unlawful pursuits, exploited the situation <strong>for</strong> narrow personal gain,<br />

and played with the lives of innocent citizens must be made to account <strong>for</strong> their misdeeds.<br />

3. The implications of the use of <strong>for</strong>ce, even when unavoidable, were not taken<br />

into consideration, particularly in relation to the principle of proportionality and the<br />

need <strong>for</strong> due regard to the safety of non-combatants, specially children, women and<br />

the disabled. The measures needed to protect life through an early warning system and<br />

to minimise suffering by mobilising resources at the earliest to help the civilians fleeing<br />

the conflict zone were either inadequate or not there at all. According to in<strong>for</strong>mation<br />

available to HRCP, not enough time was given to people who were required to flee to<br />

safety, no transport was arranged by the government and the people had to walk <strong>for</strong><br />

miles without help or guidance. The safety of passage was not guaranteed. Not even a<br />

warning of landmines was issued in some sectors.<br />

4. No proper count of civilian casualties has been issued. They appear to be<br />

significantly higher than the figures mentioned by the ISPR.<br />

5. The displaced people have suffered in the camps because of quite a few<br />

problems that could have been managed. These include: lack of coordination among<br />

the various administrative services, shortage of trained personnel, flawed staff orientation,<br />

and lack of transport. The supply of goods to these camps often does not match the<br />

displaced people’s needs (<strong>for</strong> instance, supply of wheat instead of flour). The various<br />

agencies have no institutional framework <strong>for</strong> consultation and problems are addressed<br />

on an ad hoc basis.<br />

6. The camps do not have oversight mechanisms to check corruption,<br />

misappropriation of relief supplies, and exploitation of the vulnerable. It is necessary to<br />

HRCP stands 345


provide <strong>for</strong> processes <strong>for</strong> redress of grievances and complaints.<br />

7. There are gaps in services provided at the camps. There is need <strong>for</strong> efficient<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation centres at all camps and effective procedures <strong>for</strong> the search and recovery<br />

of separated or missing members of the displaced families.<br />

8. The plight of families stranded in towns/villagers must be seriously addressed.<br />

Ways should be <strong>found</strong> to establish communication with them, to ensure supply of food<br />

to them and to guarantee their safety.<br />

9. The large population of displaced people outside the camps should immediately<br />

be brought within the support network so that they are not driven by circumstances to<br />

rush towards the camps where resources are already stretched and the threat of adverse<br />

weather looms large.<br />

10. The policy of censoring reports about the military operation and its impact on<br />

the citizens’ life and matters is manifestly counter-productive. The people will better<br />

face the situation if they are taken into confidence and trusted with the truth.<br />

11. The authorities must have a sound exit strategy – how the civilian administration<br />

will be restored once the operation is over. Who will guarantee the people’s security<br />

and how? Who will ensure that the law en<strong>for</strong>cement staff is adequately trained and<br />

equipped?<br />

12. Finally, the government must develop a well considered plan as to how FATA<br />

and the Malakand Division will be administered after peace is restored. In particular it<br />

is necessary to decide what kind of judicial system will be followed in these territories<br />

and what arrangements will be needed to protect women, children and the minorities<br />

that have borne the brunt of the militants’ atrocities.<br />

June 24: The repatriation of registered Afghan refugees from Pakistan does not<br />

meet the required standard of voluntarism deemed mandatory by international refugee<br />

law, a report by HRCP has said.<br />

The report entitled ‘Push Comes to Shove’ – whose publication coincided with the<br />

World Refugee Day, June 20 – studies the trends and patterns of repatriation of Afghan<br />

refugees through 2007 and 2008 to determine whether the process was voluntary.<br />

The study conducted by HRCP’s Peshawar chapter says that even though many<br />

Afghan refugees in Pakistan signed up <strong>for</strong> repatriation, large numbers did so not because<br />

they thought that it was safe to return, but because they believed they had no choice in<br />

the matter.<br />

Refugees interviewed from camps slated <strong>for</strong> closure spoke of harassment by police,<br />

lack of security, basic infrastructure, education, health and livelihood opportunities in<br />

Afghanistan as the main reasons <strong>for</strong> their hesitation to return.<br />

All Afghan refugees registered in Pakistan were required to leave by the end of<br />

2009. Those living in camps marked <strong>for</strong> closure could opt to relocate to another camp.<br />

346 State of Human Rights in 2009


An overwhelming majority of refugees declined relocation to another camp, not because<br />

they were keen to return to Afghanistan but said they would not want to be uprooted<br />

again when the December 2009 deadline arrived. That deadline has now been extended<br />

to 2012.<br />

According to the report, outside the camps slated <strong>for</strong> closure, “an environment of<br />

persecution and intimidation was created by checking movement of refugees and<br />

harassment at the hands of police. In camps, houses were razed and businesses locked,<br />

often resulting in confrontation between the authorities and the refugees.”<br />

Repatriation may be the preferred solution <strong>for</strong> all concerned but adhering to the<br />

principle of voluntarism must not be ignored and the needs of refugees with additional<br />

vulnerabilities must be considered, the report said.<br />

“Any attempt to repatriate Afghan refugees must take into account their willingness<br />

to return and the conditions back home, especially security and shelter,” it added.<br />

August 12: A fact-finding mission of HRCP to Swat has documented accounts of<br />

extrajudicial killings by the security <strong>for</strong>ces, discovery of mass graves in the conflict-hit<br />

region, and the continued suffering of the civilian population.<br />

A number of Swat residents have reported sighting mass graves in the area, including<br />

at least one in Kookarai village in Babozai tehsil of Swat district and another in an area<br />

between Dewlai and Shah Dheri in Kabal tehsil, according to the three-day mission’s<br />

report. Witnesses who have seen mass burials said that at least in some cases the<br />

bodies appeared to be those of Taliban militants, it added.<br />

The mission expressed HRCP’s grave concern over the “worrying development”<br />

and also over credible reports of numerous extrajudicial killings and reprisals carried<br />

out by security <strong>for</strong>ces. The mission said: “It is vital <strong>for</strong> the success of the military<br />

operation against terrorists that the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ actions are distinguishable from<br />

the atrocities committed by the Taliban. ‘Taliban justice’ has been rightly condemned<br />

<strong>for</strong> its brutal and arbitrary nature and was crucial in helping turn the public opinion<br />

against the extremists. Treatment of individuals by government must aspire to a higher<br />

standard.<br />

Human rights violations by security <strong>for</strong>ces can only be discouraged if the State<br />

puts in place a transparent mechanism to monitor violations both during and postconflict<br />

and fulfils its obligation of providing justice through due process.”<br />

The HRCP mission also noted serious difficulties faced by the local population and<br />

IDPs on returning to Swat. “The IDPs have returned to find a number of houses in the<br />

area damaged in the military operation. Shops in most areas are yet to reopen and the<br />

ones that are open have scarce supplies. The local people demand that the government<br />

ensure the supply of essentials to the returning population, including subsidised edibles<br />

<strong>for</strong> the families that cannot af<strong>for</strong>d to buy them on account of financial losses suffered<br />

HRCP stands 347


during and prior to the military operation. Restoration of the devastated infrastructure<br />

and provision of safe drinking water must be given top priority to prevent the spread of<br />

disease.”<br />

While a massive security operation in Swat seems to have dented the Taliban<br />

network in the area <strong>for</strong> now, but the threat of Taliban exists. Lack of safety and<br />

security remain <strong>for</strong> the people being sent back to the valley from IDP camps, the<br />

mission report added. That the law and order situation is still not completely under<br />

control is testified by the continued curfew in the area. Even military officials in the<br />

area acknowledge that parts of Swat are yet to be purged of the militants. The beheading<br />

of a police official in Sangota, Mingora, on July 28 triggered fear among local residents,<br />

who had returned to their homes after being assured that the militants have been flushed<br />

out of the area.<br />

None of the national and provincial assembly members or district or tehsil nazims<br />

have so far returned to the conflict-hit area. Their absence itself is a reflection of the<br />

apprehension of lack of security in the region. The government should provide the<br />

elected representatives of the area appropriate security to encourage their return, which<br />

would also boost public morale. The mission urges a campaign to apprehend locallevel<br />

Taliban operatives and other terrorists.<br />

The returns from the IDP camps must be voluntary and the people should be given<br />

accurate assessment of the situation on ground to enable them to make an in<strong>for</strong>med<br />

decision. HRCP emphasises that security of the displaced population must be the guiding<br />

principles in any decision on repatriation. “The shifting of IDPs from camps in NWFP<br />

cities to safe places in Swat, and not hurried repatriation or closure of camps <strong>for</strong> the<br />

IDPs, must be the main consideration <strong>for</strong> the government,” the mission said.<br />

The government must not send the returning IDPs to areas yet to be cleared of<br />

Taliban presence and should instead move IDP camps to those areas of Swat that have<br />

been secured and are accessible to national and international humanitarian aid agencies.<br />

It will make the displaced population feel more at home in a climate they are accustomed<br />

to, the mission said.<br />

It said the IDPs should be expeditiously compensated <strong>for</strong> the damage caused to<br />

their houses and other property during the military operation to allow them to rebuild<br />

their lives at the earliest.<br />

The civil society must also come <strong>for</strong>ward to assist the traumatised population of<br />

the conflict-hit region as well as demand provision of justice through due process and<br />

an end to human rights violations in security operations.<br />

August 17: HRCP has rebutted the denial of extrajudicial killings by security agencies<br />

in Swat operation by ISPR’s Swat Media Centre and has demanded of the government<br />

that it must hold a transparent and impartial inquiry into this issue by a multi-party<br />

348 State of Human Rights in 2009


parliamentary committee in collaboration with the representatives of the civil society.<br />

In response to ISPR’s statement published in a section of the press on August 16,<br />

a statement issued by HRCP said: “The Commission reiterates that it has come across<br />

credible accounts of extrajudicial killings and complaints of reprisal attacks by the<br />

security <strong>for</strong>ces during the operation in Swat.<br />

Some of the better known instances include the death of militant leader Maulvi<br />

Misbahuddin. Credible evidence shows he had been apprehended by the security <strong>for</strong>ces<br />

and later the bodies of Misbahuddin and his son were <strong>found</strong> in Bacha Bazar. The<br />

government claims that they were killed in an encounter while eyewitnesses hold that<br />

they were arrested by the police in Mardan. Amir Izzat, spokesperson <strong>for</strong> the Swat<br />

militants, was arrested from Amandara. Two days later the authorities claimed that<br />

Izzat was killed allegedly by militants trying to rescue him when they attacked the<br />

vehicle taking him to jail. Independent journalists claim that the targeted vehicle shown<br />

to them did not even have an engine. The most harrowing reports were of dead bodies<br />

strewn upside down by the military with notes attached to the bodies warning that<br />

anyone supporting the Taliban will meet the same fate.<br />

In its statement the ISPR has conceded the presence of mass graves in the conflicthit<br />

area. However, HRCP believes that this is not enough and the government must<br />

conduct a transparent inquiry into this issue to ascertain the circumstances under<br />

which the bodies were buried. The military cannot simply explain the existence of<br />

these mass graves by alleging that the bodies were of militants buried by other militants.<br />

HRCP has knowledge of other versions to the contrary. HRCP suggests that a multiparty<br />

parliamentary committee should be <strong>for</strong>med to conduct an inquiry into this issue<br />

as well as into the reports of extrajudicial killings to which HRCP will extend its<br />

cooperation.<br />

HRCP also demanded of the government to clarify whether the government<br />

considers it as an internal law and order situation on which human rights are applied or<br />

does it treat it as an armed conflict that comes under humanitarian law.<br />

HRCP will be happy if an impartial inquiry proves that extrajudicial killings did not<br />

take place in Swat but this sensitive matter cannot be disposed of through off-the-cuff<br />

statements by intelligence agency’s denial-writers.<br />

Freedom of belief and religion<br />

February 11: The recent string of target-killing of Shias in Balochistan and the<br />

government’s failure to bring any of the perpetrators to justice is a cause <strong>for</strong> growing<br />

alarm, HRCP has said.<br />

A statement issued by the Commission said: “The killing of Shia notables in Quetta<br />

has sadly become a frequent occurrence. Some of the killings have been owned by an<br />

extremist organisation flying a religious standard. The number of the Shia community<br />

HRCP stands 349


members killed there in recent years has exceeded 300. The government’s failure to<br />

track down the culprits has understandably enraged the targeted community, and it has<br />

also emboldened the perpetrators to kill with impunity. Besides religious figures, liberal<br />

politicians, businessmen and government officials have been targeted.<br />

The government must surely now know that the community is exasperated with<br />

the government’s inability to per<strong>for</strong>m one of its basic functions, that of ensuring that<br />

the lives of the people are protected. The Sunni population also fears that unhindered<br />

killings of the Shias might cause sectarian strife in an area where the sects have generally<br />

coexisted peacefully <strong>for</strong> centuries.<br />

HRCP fears that the state agencies’ consistent failure to track down the killers may<br />

prompt the targeted community to retaliate against members of other sects, which is<br />

perhaps the sort of violence those behind the target-killings want to trigger.<br />

The province, which has been in the grip of an insurgency <strong>for</strong> many years and<br />

now faces a growing threat from the Taliban, cannot af<strong>for</strong>d that. The government<br />

must act decisively to investigate the killings in an efficient manner be<strong>for</strong>e the situation<br />

slips into further chaos.”<br />

February 12: Five Ahmadis detained on charges of blasphemy in Layyah district<br />

have been held virtually without any proof or witnesses, HRCP has said.<br />

The commission, which had sent a fact-finding team to Layyah district last week,<br />

said its findings concluded that an investigation, mandated by law prior to the registration<br />

of a blasphemy case, was also not held.<br />

The HRCP team learned that a prayer leader in the village had allowed Ahmadi<br />

students from a nearby tuition centre to offer prayers in his mosque. The students<br />

were later threatened by a government schoolteacher and never went to the mosque<br />

again. <strong>Ar</strong>ound 10 days later, some villagers claimed finding blasphemous writings in<br />

the mosque’s toilet.<br />

In the First In<strong>for</strong>mation Report (FIR), the complainant said: “Since these Ahmadis<br />

are the only non-Muslims coming to the mosque, there<strong>for</strong>e they must have committed<br />

the offence.” The ‘argument’ was heard time and again during the HRCP team’s<br />

interviews with the mosque administration, some villagers and the local police.<br />

The police and villagers conceded that there were no witnesses or evidence of the<br />

Ahmadis’ involvement. The HRCP team <strong>found</strong> elements belonging to banned extremist<br />

organisations and a relative of the National Assembly member from the area had<br />

pressurised the police to register a case. “It is clear that a local politician has also used<br />

his influence” to book the Ahmadis, the Commission’s report said.<br />

HRCP said the complainant and his extremist supporters are adamant that the<br />

Ahmadis should be punished on the basis of presumption.<br />

HRCP has demanded a prompt and transparent investigation into the matter to<br />

350 State of Human Rights in 2009


ensure that innocent people are not victimised. It has also demanded the government<br />

ensure that the Ahmadiyya community in the village is not harassed or ostracised. The<br />

Commission has also asked the government to take prompt measures to rule out misuse<br />

of the blasphemy law.<br />

August 01: The religious riots in Korian village and Gojra are frightening, where<br />

Islamic religious zealots have taken the law into their own hands. According to<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation of HRCP, some local Muslims accused Talib Masih, Mukhtar Masih and<br />

Imran Masih of burning the Holy Quran. The accused vehemently denied the charge<br />

and yet an angry mob of Muslims led by religious preachers torched several Christian<br />

houses on July 30 th , 2009, the day a wedding was to take place between the children of<br />

the two accused. Islamic militants from outside the village have created an atmosphere<br />

of fear and torched and otherwise destroyed property using firearms and explosives.<br />

Six people have reportedly been killed and several wounded or burnt. The situation<br />

remains tense.<br />

HRCP urges the Punjab chief minister to intervene and save the lives of Christians<br />

living in Gojra, Korian and villages nearby. Those who violated the law must be arrested<br />

and an independent investigation conducted. Anyone who has given rise to an atmosphere<br />

of hostility against a minority community should be apprehended and tried.<br />

August 04: Last week’s attacks targeting the Christian community in Gojra were<br />

not a spontaneous reaction to allegations of blasphemy but were planned in advance, a<br />

fact-finding mission of HRCP has <strong>found</strong>.<br />

The mission’s report said announcements made from mosques in Gojra on July 31<br />

urged the Muslims to gather and “make mincemeat of the Christians”. Witnesses told<br />

HRCP that when they in<strong>for</strong>med the police about the announcements, the police officials<br />

had also confirmed hearing the announcements.<br />

On the following day, August 1, around 1,000 people gathered in the town and<br />

marched towards Christian Colony. A police contingent present in the neighbourhood<br />

did not try to stop the mob, which included a number of masked men.<br />

Witnesses said the attackers went about destroying Christians’ houses in a very<br />

professional manner, and seemed to be trained <strong>for</strong> carrying out such activities. They<br />

had brought along petrol and other inflammable substances and torched over 40 houses<br />

of Christian families in less than half an hour. Many of these houses were looted be<strong>for</strong>e<br />

being torched. Muslims’ houses adjacent to the Christians’ houses were spared.<br />

Witnesses said a number of attackers were from the banned Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan<br />

and other militant organisations. The Regional Police Officer (RPO) told HRCP that<br />

many of the attackers had come from outside the district, possibly from Jhang.<br />

Amid the brutal killings and destruction in Gojra, the Commission also noted that<br />

some Muslims in the neighbourhood provided shelter to Christian women fleeing the<br />

HRCP stands 351


violence.<br />

The barbaric attacks are an embarrassment <strong>for</strong> any society or people who call<br />

themselves civilised.<br />

HRCP believes that the local administration’s inaction ahead of the riots was<br />

intriguing.<br />

HRCP said the tragic incidents of Gojra are a comprehensive failure by the<br />

government to protect minorities either through administrative measures or legislative<br />

ones. The culprits, including the local administration, must be brought to justice in an<br />

expeditious and transparent manner, HRCP said.<br />

The government must act to prevent any attack based on a person’s faith, instead<br />

of belatedly reacting through award of compensation. It must also ensure that its vows<br />

of ensuring interfaith harmony move beyond rhetoric, the HRCP report concluded.<br />

September 14: HRCP has expressed concern over increasing frequency of violent<br />

attacks on religious minorities and demanded that the government take proactive<br />

measures to prevent such violence.<br />

Reacting to the recent torching of a church in Sambarial, Sialkot district, HRCP<br />

said in a press statement: “The Commission has been warning the government of the<br />

growing intolerance of religious minorities’ rights and pointing towards the increasing<br />

frequency of vigilante actions against them. It has repeatedly expressed concern at<br />

attacks on non-Muslims over allegations of blasphemy and desecration of religious<br />

scriptures. It is un<strong>for</strong>tunate that our fears of recurrence of such violence again proved<br />

to be true in Sambarial last week.<br />

The government response in the face of a recent spurt in incidents of violence<br />

against minorities – mainly belated announcements of financial compensation and some<br />

attempts at encouraging reconciliation at the local level – has clearly been insufficient<br />

and exclusively reactive.<br />

The Commission would emphasise that another attack targeting the minorities is a<br />

question of when, not if, unless the government acknowledges in a meaningful manner<br />

the threat extremism and intolerance pose to society, understands the dynamics fuelling<br />

the phenomenon and takes urgent and effective remedial measures.<br />

The allegations of blasphemy or defiling of religious scriptures, irrespective of<br />

their veracity, do not warrant vigilante attacks. Nor do they absolve the government of<br />

its primary duty to protect all citizens. Effective prosecution would serve as a deterrent<br />

to future attacks, while a lack thereof would encourage impunity.”<br />

State excesses<br />

April 9: The killings, allegedly by the security <strong>for</strong>ces, of Baloch nationalists are a<br />

dangerous provocation and a grave violation of human rights. HRCP has credible<br />

352 State of Human Rights in 2009


in<strong>for</strong>mation that Ghulam Muhammad Baloch, Lala Munir and Sher Muhammad, officeholders<br />

of Baloch Republican Party and Balochistan National Party, were picked up on<br />

April 3, 2009 by people in plain clothes, who were accompanied by two vehicles of<br />

Frontier Corps that stood at a distance. It is reported by credible sources that the three<br />

victims were sitting in the office of their lawyer after having attended a court hearing<br />

when they were <strong>for</strong>cibly picked up, blindfolded and taken in cars, closely followed by<br />

vehicles belonging to the Frontier Corps. A number of people witnessed the abduction.<br />

Mutilated bodies of the three men were <strong>found</strong> in an isolated place near Turbat.<br />

The facts strongly suggest that members of state security picked up the three<br />

victims, tortured and killed them be<strong>for</strong>e dumping their dead bodies, which were<br />

discovered in a mutilated and decayed <strong>for</strong>m. HRCP is aghast at this brazen violation of<br />

human rights and calls upon the government to get this incident thoroughly investigated<br />

so that the perpetrators are brought to justice. It is crucial that the authorities condemn<br />

this act and warn the security <strong>for</strong>ces from taking the law into their own hands.<br />

Persecution of Baloch nationalists must be stopped and the policy of hounding or<br />

maligning them through illegal means be abandoned by the authorities. Those involved<br />

in any criminal activity must be dealt with according to the law rather than through<br />

arbitrary and illegal means. It is imperative that the government set up a high level<br />

commission to identify those who indulged in involuntary disappearances, torture and<br />

extrajudicial killings of hundreds of Baloch activists during and after the Musharraf<br />

regime. Victims must be compensated and offenders identified and brought to trial.<br />

HRCP warns that the free hand given to the security <strong>for</strong>ces in Balochistan in violating<br />

the rights of Baloch nationalists will alienate the people of the province and escalate the<br />

level of violence there. Political demands must be met with political solutions and not<br />

through brute <strong>for</strong>ce.<br />

December 3: HRCP has expressed concern over injuries to a seven-year-old girl in<br />

firing by Frontier Corps personnel on a car in Peshawar, and demanded a credible<br />

probe into the incident.<br />

A statement issued by the Commission said: “The girl was apparently injured when<br />

her family’s car approached a security <strong>for</strong>ces’ convoy. Amid a heightened threat of<br />

terrorism, it is all the more important that the security <strong>for</strong>ces take every possible<br />

precaution to ensure that civilians are not affected by their actions. The government<br />

must immediately hold a transparent inquiry to ascertain what led to the tragic incident<br />

and how it could have been avoided. It must also ensure that the child is provided the<br />

best medical facilities and the family is compensated. The incident highlights the need<br />

<strong>for</strong> improved procedure <strong>for</strong> the security <strong>for</strong>ces to distinguish between civilians and<br />

terrorists.”<br />

Education<br />

October 21: HRCP has called upon the government to take steps to open the<br />

HRCP stands 353


country’s educational institutions at the earliest to defeat terrorists’ foul designs of<br />

paralysing normal life in the country.<br />

The statement reads as following:<br />

In the wake of military operation in South Waziristan, the nightmarish apprehensions<br />

of possible terrorist attacks on academic institutions were proved correct with the two<br />

blasts at the International Islamic University Islamabad. These dastardly and utterly<br />

outrageous attacks once again prove that the terrorists respect neither mosques nor<br />

places of learning and that their objective is to paralyse normal life. As a result, the<br />

education institutions all over the country have been closed down indefinitely on the<br />

government’s orders. Obviously, the students stand to lose their precious education<br />

time. Already, our children are suffering from the effects of terrorism on their minds<br />

with their exposure to gruesome scenes of bloodshed that are being beamed into homes<br />

through pervasive media and the talk of terrorism that has become an essential part of<br />

our daily conversation.<br />

While the closure of educational institutions as an immediate measure is<br />

understandable given the panic among parents and students, it cannot be a permanent<br />

solution to the menace of terrorism. The terrorists can bide their time till the educational<br />

centres re-open and meanwhile strike elsewhere. The government may not keep<br />

educational institutions shut down indefinitely without risking the career of students<br />

and future of Pakistani nation. The educational scene is already quite depressing in<br />

Pakistan and a long suspension of educational activity would make it bleaker. Besides,<br />

such closure will convince the terrorists of the success of their foul design.<br />

Ironically, while the mainstream public and private educational institutions have<br />

stopped working, thousands of religious seminaries, many of which provide ideological<br />

support and in some cases board and lodging to militant and terrorist organisations are<br />

working normally. This fulfils the objective of the fundamentalists to stop from working<br />

the moderate educational institutions not adhering to their brand of Islam. Thus, the<br />

situation is much more complex than meets the eye.<br />

The current state of affairs calls <strong>for</strong> medium- and to long-term steps in order to<br />

resume and continue the education. First of all, it must be recognised that schools and<br />

colleges need to be re-opened sooner rather than later after taking necessary precautionary<br />

safety measures.<br />

The role of the media in this situation is also a crucial factor. Terrorists seem to<br />

have so far benefited from the competition-driven electronic media’s way breaking<br />

news and showing live coverage of terrorist attacks. The media needs to strictly follow<br />

the universal broadcast ethics while showing the terror images. Following a voluntary<br />

code of ethics in this regards would not only spare the viewers from gory scenes and<br />

354 State of Human Rights in 2009


panic but also help the media maintain its independence and freedom.<br />

Judicial crisis<br />

March 16: HRCP has welcomed the restoration of judiciary as a first step towards<br />

strengthening democracy and rule of law and said the people of Pakistan have sent a<br />

clear message that they will not settle <strong>for</strong> a sham democratic process.<br />

A statement issued by the Commission said: “HRCP welcomes the restoration of<br />

superior court judges and congratulates lawyers, the civil society, political parties –<br />

including the Pakistan People’s Party – and above all the people of Pakistan, who again<br />

demonstrated their ability <strong>for</strong> a worthy cause whenever they <strong>found</strong> one. We wish<br />

Monday morning’s decision had been taken earlier. Still the announcement revealed the<br />

difference of approach between a military regime and a civilian democracy. This is a<br />

clear message from the people to leaders of all political parties that they will not settle<br />

<strong>for</strong> a sham democracy.<br />

However, this is merely the first step. Real challenges now begin and the people<br />

expect that they will get not only an independent judiciary but also justice. This will not<br />

come about automatically but will require some doing. The people also expect that the<br />

restoration of judges will ensure the rule of law and independence of judiciary and also<br />

that the parliament will make earnest ef<strong>for</strong>ts to save the judiciary from the harmful<br />

effects of politicisation.<br />

The HRCP has all along been concerned about the lack of independence of the<br />

Election Commission and of a satisfactory mechanism <strong>for</strong> the appointment, tenure and<br />

terms of service of members of the superior judiciary. An independent Election<br />

Commission is crucial <strong>for</strong> the democratic system to go <strong>for</strong>ward in a smooth and non<strong>content</strong>ious<br />

manner. Similarly, mechanisms <strong>for</strong> appointment and accountability of judges<br />

must enjoy the confidence of the legal fraternity and the people.<br />

The people expect speedy progress on federation-making, guarantees of provincial<br />

autonomy and priority to economic concerns of the people, specially their need <strong>for</strong><br />

relief from unemployment and poverty.<br />

In addition, just as people from all schools of thought had come together <strong>for</strong> the<br />

cause of the judiciary and democracy, the people expect all political parties to get<br />

together to promote democratic governance and improve the level of social justice in<br />

the country.”<br />

Prisoners and prisons<br />

August 5: As the Pakistani and Indian governments exhibit a welcome resolve to<br />

resume dialogue, HRCP urges them to also reconsider the plight of each other’s nationals<br />

incarcerated in prisons across the border, institute long-term policies to de-criminalise<br />

minor visa or border-crossing violations and stop violating <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 73 of the UN<br />

HRCP stands 355


Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that prohibits the arrest of fishermen crossing<br />

a maritime border.<br />

HRCP urges an early resumption of the process of reciprocal exchange of prisoners,<br />

halted since the Mumbai attacks.<br />

HRCP endorses the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum’s demand <strong>for</strong> a permanent solution<br />

that includes a policy in which Pakistan and India stop arresting each other’s fishermen<br />

<strong>for</strong> maritime boundary violations. Such detentions routinely violate <strong>Ar</strong>ticle 73 of UNCLOS,<br />

according to which penalties <strong>for</strong> violations “may not include imprisonment, in the<br />

absence of agreements to the contrary by the States concerned, or any other <strong>for</strong>m of<br />

corporal punishment”.<br />

When making such arrests, the security agencies also seize boats, equipment and<br />

catch worth lakhs of rupees. Dozens of such boats, representing the hard work and<br />

sweat of the poor, lie rotting in harbours on either side.<br />

Pakistan and India allow each other’s arrested citizens no access to consular services<br />

until after they have served their prison terms. Many languish <strong>for</strong> years in brutal<br />

conditions. They have no legal rights or the ability to challenge their arrest or engage a<br />

lawyer. Normally their families remain oblivious of their arrests, location of prisons<br />

and the conditions there.<br />

Cases come to public notice when prisoners’ families or friends are lucky to acquire<br />

in<strong>for</strong>mation, take up the issue and notify the media. Engaging lawyers across the divide<br />

also adds to the woes of the incarcerated prisoners and their families. Such families<br />

often remain long ignorant of the arrest and whereabouts of their loved ones. Sometimes,<br />

even after prisoners are returned, they have nowhere to go if they have lost track of<br />

their families, or their families have disowned them.<br />

Use of torture as well as negligence is rampant in prisons in both countries. This<br />

has resulted in the loss of lives as well as leaving many prisoners on both sides physically<br />

and mentally scarred <strong>for</strong> life.<br />

The two States must ensure that each other’s nationals are repatriated at the earliest<br />

and that they are not denied basic human rights in prisons merely on account of their<br />

nationality.<br />

Law & order<br />

February 10: At least 138 people committed suicide in the country in one month<br />

ending January 25, 2009, according to statistics available with HRCP and published in<br />

its monthly journal, Jehd-e-Haq.<br />

Of those committing suicide between 26 th December 2008 and 25 th January 2009,<br />

98 individuals were male and 40 female. Twenty-nine people committed suicide over<br />

their failure to find employment or on account of poverty. Thirty-two people shot<br />

356 State of Human Rights in 2009


themselves, indicating the access to firearms. Fifty-four people took their own lives by<br />

consuming poison, insecticide or various chemicals.<br />

The youngest person to commit suicide was 13-year-old and the oldest was 65.<br />

The age of the victims could not be ascertained in many cases.<br />

Between 26 th December 2008 and 25 th January 2009, there were also 78 incidents<br />

of attempted suicide. The registration of a First In<strong>for</strong>mation Report (FIR) by the police<br />

<strong>for</strong> attempted suicides could only be confirmed in six cases.<br />

In the previous month – from 26 th November to 25 th December 2008 – at least 117<br />

people had committed suicide and 80 others had attempted to take their own lives.<br />

March 02: The manner in which the federal government has decided to launch<br />

mobile courts will lead to disruption of judicial order and widespread resentment, HRCP<br />

has said.<br />

A statement issued by HRCP said: “Both the timing and manner of promulgating an<br />

ordinance to establish mobile courts raise grave concerns. There is no valid reason<br />

why the government chose to introduce the measure through a presidential ordinance<br />

a day ahead of the current National Assembly session. Such brazen-faced tricks to<br />

bypass the parliament always invite doubts on government’s bona fides. It is impossible<br />

to ignore the timing of the measure, amid protests by the PML-N against the court<br />

verdict disqualifying its leaders and ahead of the lawyers’ long march. If it is meant to<br />

pre-empt protests and demonstrations it will only fuel more. Such short-sighted measures<br />

would achieve little other than further undermining public faith in the judicial order and<br />

increasing credibility gap between the public and the government and it is all the more<br />

important to avoid them amid the prevailing confidence deficit and political turmoil.”<br />

March 09: At least 141 people committed suicide in the country in one month<br />

ending February 25 according to statistics available with HRCP and published in its<br />

monthly journal, Jehd-e-Haq<br />

Of those committing suicide between 26 th January and 25 th February, 104 individuals<br />

were male and the rest female.<br />

Thirty-five people, including a 12-year-old boy, committed suicide over their failure<br />

to find employment or on account of poverty. Fifty-five people took their own lives by<br />

consuming poison, insecticide or various chemicals, 29 used firearms, while 28 hanged<br />

themselves.<br />

Two unidentified men died on February 19 after they had set themselves on fire in<br />

protest against excessive utility bills.<br />

The youngest person to commit suicide was a 10-year-old and the oldest was 70.<br />

HRCP stands 357


At least 59 incidents of attempted suicide were reported during the same period.<br />

Over the corresponding period the previous month, at least 138 people – 98 men<br />

and 40 women – had committed and 78 had attempted suicide.<br />

June 09: HRCP Vice-chairperson (Sindh) Ghazi Salahuddin has expressed deep<br />

concern over the alarming rise of violence in Sindh that is highlighted by the latest<br />

spate of targeted killings in Karachi. In a statement, Mr Salahuddin said:<br />

At a time when the nation’s attention is focused on the counter-insurgency operation<br />

of the armed <strong>for</strong>ces in northern areas and on the massive humanitarian crisis that it has<br />

spawned, a virtual breakdown of law or order in Sindh, particularly in Karachi, is a<br />

matter of deep concern <strong>for</strong> all law-abiding citizens. An environment of fear and insecurity<br />

that this situation has caused is generating lack of respect <strong>for</strong> basic human and democratic<br />

rights of the people.<br />

Karachi has always had a potential <strong>for</strong> violence and disorder, a potential that has<br />

been expanded by poor governance and political expediencies. The present situation<br />

has been in the making <strong>for</strong> some time and it is disquieting to see that parties that are<br />

together in the ruling coalition have also been engaged in bitter rivalries that have<br />

exacerbated tensions and emboldened armed political/criminal factions.<br />

The inability of the provincial administration to en<strong>for</strong>ce rule of law and protect life<br />

and property of the citizens has raised the level of anxiety and uncertainty to an extent<br />

that the entire social equilibrium of the society is threatened. As <strong>for</strong> targeted killings in<br />

Karachi, apparently old rivalries and some new developments are involved. The<br />

complexity of this situation demands a combined ef<strong>for</strong>t on the part of all political,<br />

ethnic and linguistic factions to protect peace and social harmony in the city.<br />

One measure of the gravity of the law and order situation in Karachi is that the<br />

number of political activists killed in the first week of this month has exceeded 35. It is<br />

extremely worrying that the killers, who tend to appear suddenly, riding motorbikes,<br />

often in congested localities, are not apprehended by law en<strong>for</strong>cement agencies. This<br />

failure calls <strong>for</strong> a new strategy to reverse the rising tide of violence, with the sincere<br />

involvement of the political as well as the administrative arms of the provincial government.<br />

June 12: HRCP Chairperson Ms Asma Jahangir has expressed deep concern and<br />

anguish over the continuing suicide bombings that have taken a heavy toll on human<br />

lives.<br />

The latest incident of target bombing took the life of noted religions scholar Dr<br />

Sarfaraz Naeemi, head of the Jamia Naeemia, in Lahore and several faithfuls in a<br />

Nowshera mosque besides injuring several persons who came to offer Friday prayers.<br />

The HRCP chairperson has urged the federal and provincial governments and the<br />

law en<strong>for</strong>cement bodies to take strong preventive measures to halt further loss of<br />

358 State of Human Rights in 2009


human life. She urged the political leadership of the country, members of the legislative<br />

bodies and social activists to undertake the task of mobilising the public against the<br />

elements who desire to en<strong>for</strong>ce their agenda through use of <strong>for</strong>ce.<br />

She urged the followers of Dr Naeemi to remain peaceful while expressing their<br />

grief over the cowardly assassination of the religious scholar in the suicide bombing<br />

that killed and injured other persons who had participated in Friday prayers at the Jamia<br />

Naeemia mosque<br />

August 7: The recent killing of a factory-owner in Sheikhupura at the hands of an<br />

angry mob took place in the presence of unarmed policemen, which reflects on poor<br />

professional capacity of the Punjab Police in handling such sensitive and volatile<br />

situations, says the Human Rights Commission which conducted a fact-finding probe<br />

into the incident.<br />

The HRCP team <strong>found</strong> out that on August 4 the police had arrived at the scene of<br />

the incident at Eastern Leather Factory Muridke when the factory owner Mr Najib<br />

Zafar was in his office and he was wounded in a scuffle with some angry factory<br />

workers. Eyewitnesses told HRCP that the police hid Mr Najib in a store-room so as to<br />

keep him away from some violent workers.<br />

The policemen who arrived at the factory were unarmed and could not prevent the<br />

violent crowd of villagers outside the factory from entering the premises of the factory.<br />

When the provoked villagers and the factory workers teamed up to storm the storeroom,<br />

the policemen looked the other way to save their own skin. The mob was free to<br />

beat the owner to death. A labourer, Muzammil, was also killed by a stray bullet.<br />

HRCP <strong>found</strong> that a factory clerk, Qasim Ali, exaggerated the fall of a calendar<br />

inscribed with Quranic verses as a desecration of Quran to instigate fellow factory<br />

workers against the owner. Soon after this, extremist elements in Muridke area made<br />

provocative announcements of the alleged desecration of Quran from the mosques of<br />

nearby villages without confirming the facts and incited the common people to attack<br />

the factory owner and kill him.<br />

HRCP observed that after the incident, a widespread fear exists among factory<br />

owners in the region that the spread of such baseless rumours by disgruntled factory<br />

workers against an owner may result in similar incidents in the future.<br />

The family of the victim, Najib Zafar, told the HRCP team that they wanted the<br />

repeal of the blasphemy law <strong>for</strong> it has been abused by the extremists such as the<br />

factory clerk, Qasim Ali, to achieve their own nefarious objectives and spread violence.<br />

HRCP also demands of the Punjab government to hold special refresher courses<br />

<strong>for</strong> the police staff to handle such delicate situations and act professionally on such<br />

occasions.<br />

HRCP was told that there are more than 500 workers in the factory but there exists<br />

no trade union. It believes had there been a trade union there, it would have worked to<br />

HRCP stands 359


esolve the grievances of the workers and to prevent such a violent incident.<br />

HRCP is of the view that the government must ensure the implementation of Amplifier<br />

Act so that the loud-speakers of mosques could not be used by extremist elements to<br />

spread hostility and violence as had happened recently in Gojra and now in Sheikhupura.<br />

Freedom of expression<br />

July 17: HRCP condemns the government’s move intended to use state power to<br />

prosecute and punish certain kind of messaging through cellular phone networks and<br />

<strong>content</strong> on the websites and calls upon the government to withdraw such measures<br />

and desist from introducing any law to this effect.<br />

The HRCP statement said:<br />

In recent days, federal government representatives have expressed the government’s<br />

intention to introduce a law to prosecute and punish people who indulge in certain kind<br />

of messaging (SMS) through cellular phone networks.<br />

The government has announced that messages containing any <strong>content</strong> against the<br />

state or immoral material would be punishable under the law. HRCP views the proposed<br />

measures with concern and as an intrusion into the personal liberties of citizens. The<br />

government seems to be embarrassed by criticism of certain government officials and<br />

policies and actions in the messaging of the people on cell phones and blogs on websites<br />

and intends to muzzle the people’s voice by curtailing their freedom of expression.<br />

The Commission is of the view that this is not the way to persuade people to<br />

respect a government which does not earn this status by its deeds. The Commission<br />

also believes that the recent modification in the government’s stance that the law would<br />

be directed against those who speak against the state and not against those who only<br />

attack the government is meaningless because in Pakistan the government has often<br />

been treated as the state.<br />

The Commission demands of the government to stay away from en<strong>for</strong>cing any<br />

legislation to this effect which will not only amount to violation of people’s human<br />

rights but hamper the nascent democratic process in the country. The HRCP is of view<br />

that the new means of electronic communication pose a challenge to all governments<br />

and societies and a way will have to be <strong>found</strong> to deal with the explosion of communication<br />

without encroaching upon personal freedoms.<br />

August 28: HRCP has called upon the government to respect press freedom in<br />

Balochistan and end the practice of laying virtual siege of independent newspapers’<br />

offices in the province.<br />

A statement issued by HRCP said: “The Commission is alarmed at reports of Frontier<br />

Constabulary (FC) personnel laying siege of Quetta offices of at least two newspapers.<br />

360 State of Human Rights in 2009


On August 18, Urdu daily Asaap announced suspension of its publication after the<br />

security <strong>for</strong>ces cordoned its Quetta office <strong>for</strong> two weeks and all visitors and employees<br />

were frisked, questioned and humiliated.<br />

FC personnel have now been deployed outside the offices of Urdu daily Aazdi and<br />

nobody is allowed in without submitting to a search and questioning.<br />

Journalists and the media in Balochistan face numerous security threats and this<br />

makes their work even harder.<br />

Even prior to the security <strong>for</strong>ces’ clampdown, these newspapers were being<br />

victimised and Asaap – one of the widely-circulated Urdu newspaper in Balochistan –<br />

had been denied government advertisements <strong>for</strong> a number of years.<br />

To say that the government agents’ actions are illegal and in clear violation of<br />

domestic and international guarantees <strong>for</strong> freedom of expression is to state the obvious,<br />

but HRCP must remind the government that curbing freedom of the media, stifling<br />

newspapers or denying them advertisements will only add to the problems it faces in<br />

Balochistan.”<br />

December 02: HRCP has condemned the attack on the house of renowned columnist<br />

Kamran Shafi and described it as a cowardly bid to stifle the country’s media.<br />

An HRCP statement reads as following: The attack on journalist Kamran Shafi’s<br />

house in Wah on the eve of Eid cannot be dismissed as an ordinary crime, it constitutes<br />

a cowardly attack on the country’s media, and a threat to all independent-minded<br />

journalists. Shafi, himself a retired major of the army, is a vocal critic of defence<br />

services’ role in affairs of the state and had suggested in a recent column that the<br />

country’s premier intelligence agency, the ISI, should be headed by a civilian. The<br />

columnist said he received abusive e-mails on this point of view soon after he had<br />

expressed it. Then on November 27, a gunman fired six times at his house late at night.<br />

In his complaint to the police, Shafi said the attackers were linked to unidentified<br />

‘agency.’<br />

The attack on Shafi is not the first of its kind. Several other noted journalists have<br />

faced similar threats and abuses in the past and amazingly the culprits always remain<br />

unidentified and go unpunished. Besides, the targets happen to be journalists whose<br />

views disagree with those of the security establishment. Not a single perpetrator of<br />

such crimes has been apprehended, which strengthens the belief that some rogue<br />

elements within the establishment are involved.<br />

Whatever freedom Pakistani media enjoys today has been gained after an arduous<br />

struggle and it should now <strong>for</strong>ge unity to safeguard that freedom. HRCP demands the<br />

authorities must hold a credible and independent inquiry into the attack and severely<br />

punish those <strong>found</strong> guilty. Needless to say, that in the age of in<strong>for</strong>mation technology<br />

HRCP stands 361


attempts to muzzle the media are self-defeating.<br />

Rights of individuals<br />

July 20: The government has been urged to take expeditious measures to ensure<br />

en<strong>for</strong>cement of the people’s economic, social and cultural rights, especially their rights<br />

to work, a decent standard of life, equality of opportunity and social security and the<br />

right to food, land and housing.<br />

The call was made at a day-long workshop HRCP organised, which was attended<br />

by civil society organisations, trade union representatives and economic experts.<br />

The workshop was organised to discuss implementation of the International<br />

Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) which was ratified by<br />

the Pakistan government in April last year.<br />

The participants called upon the government to immediately draw up an action<br />

plan <strong>for</strong> the fulfilment of its obligations under the covenant in partnership with civil<br />

society organisations. A similar procedure should be adopted at the time of drawing up<br />

a report on legislative, administrative and policy measures taken by Pakistan to implement<br />

the provisions of the ICESCR, they stated. Since this report is to be submitted to the<br />

UN by April 2010, the participants urged the government to launch its action plan<br />

without delay and start creating a reporting mechanism <strong>for</strong>thwith.<br />

The workshop participants unanimously held that it is necessary to transfer the<br />

economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to education, health and social<br />

security, from the constitution’s chapter on principles of policy to the fundamental<br />

rights chapter, so as to make them en<strong>for</strong>ceable and justiceable.<br />

Besides indicating the priority tasks <strong>for</strong> the government the workshop participants<br />

called upon the civil society organisations, the media and human rights activists to<br />

spread awareness of economic, social and cultural rights, put pressure on the government<br />

<strong>for</strong> their en<strong>for</strong>cement and monitor the progress towards this end or the lack of it.<br />

The main recommendations made at the workshop are:<br />

The civil society welcomes the ratification of the ICESCR but this step will be<br />

meaningless until the government takes the legislative, executive and policy measures<br />

required to implement the rights recognised in the treaty.<br />

The ef<strong>for</strong>ts <strong>for</strong> constitutional re<strong>for</strong>m should include the transfer of economic,<br />

social, and cultural rights from the chapter on principles of policy to the fundamental<br />

rights chapter.<br />

All state policies should be transparent. The pledges made at the international<br />

<strong>for</strong>ums and the reports filed with them must be made public.<br />

<br />

<br />

Every Pakistani citizen’s right to adequate food must be guaranteed.<br />

The people’s right to land should be fully respected. The land utilisation pattern<br />

362 State of Human Rights in 2009


should be determined not only with an eye on economic benefit but also to eliminate<br />

land hunger and meet the cultivators’ entitlement to own farmland. The agriculture<br />

workers should be enabled and encouraged to <strong>for</strong>m unions.<br />

The right to shelter/ housing should be adequately respected as a lack of selfowned<br />

housing <strong>for</strong>ces a large number of people to live at the sufferance of powerful<br />

groups/ individuals.<br />

Everybody’s right to work must be recognised. This right includes freedom to<br />

choose work, the right to join unions and collective bargaining.<br />

In order to ensure that no one is paid less than the minimum wage, the necessary<br />

mechanism should be put in place and the state should accept the responsibility <strong>for</strong><br />

monitoring compliance.<br />

The entire population should be brought under social security cover. Old age<br />

benefits and the rights of pensioners should be effectively guaranteed.<br />

All <strong>for</strong>ms of discrimination against the minorities in the constitution, in laws<br />

and in social practices must be eliminated.<br />

The right of the special persons to education and employment and in social<br />

equality should be duly recognised.<br />

Trade and investment policies must not involve surrender of ownership of<br />

national resources or the rights of workers and consumers. Corporate farming by<br />

MNCs <strong>for</strong> producing food <strong>for</strong> other countries must not be allowed.<br />

All ILO conventions ratified by Pakistan must be en<strong>for</strong>ced in letter and spirit,<br />

Safety at workplace and zero tolerance <strong>for</strong> sexual harassment must be fully ensured.<br />

The state should guarantee compliance with labour laws and the system of factory<br />

inspection ought to be revived. The system of third party contract labour must be<br />

abolished.<br />

Primary education must be made compulsory and free and a timeframe given<br />

to make secondary education free and universal. Corporal punishment, hate preaching<br />

and training in use of weapons and violent methods must not be allowed in educational<br />

institutions.<br />

All communities’ rights to their demographic status, ownership and control of<br />

their resources, and political and cultural autonomy must be guaranteed<br />

<br />

cover.<br />

The entire population must be guaranteed an effective and af<strong>for</strong>dable health<br />

Prominent among the participants were economists Dr Asad Saeed, Harris Gwadar<br />

and Ali Erelelan; trade union leaders Farid Awan, Shafiq Ghori, Habib Junedi, Majid<br />

Shaiekh and Latif Mughal; educationists Dr Tallat Wizarat, Saleha Athar and Tauseef<br />

Ahmad Khan; civil society representatives Rahat Saeed (Taraqi Pasand Musanafeen),<br />

HRCP stands 363


Rahima Panhwar (SPO), Sadia Baloch (SPARC), Sharafat Ali (PILER), Madad Ali<br />

(Peasant), Zahid Farooq (URC); and Asad Iqbal Butt, Amarnath Motumal, I.A. Rehman,<br />

Syed Shamsuddin, Abdul Hai and Adnan Adil (all from HRCP).<br />

September 02: There was a consensus among the participants of a consultation<br />

organised by HRCP that the local government system should not be wound up or made<br />

a mere administrative appendage of the provincial government set-up and the present<br />

system should be continued with necessary amendments to increase transparency,<br />

accountability and service delivery.<br />

According to a statement issued by HRCP, the participants of the consultation said<br />

some changes in the present order might be considered but the local government<br />

system must be retained because it gives representation and a share in public affairs to<br />

the common citizen at the grassroots.<br />

They said any re<strong>for</strong>m that reduced the financial and administrative authority of the<br />

local government institutions would effect service delivery at the grassroots and go<br />

against the very rationale of decentralisation of power. “Deficiencies in any one area<br />

must not be cited as a justification <strong>for</strong> wrapping up a system crucial <strong>for</strong> the devolution<br />

of democratic governance to the lowest tier,” the consultation concluded.<br />

The centrality of commitment to the principle of devolution of power and<br />

decentralisation to any re<strong>for</strong>m was highlighted and concern raised that the changes<br />

were being considered without any ef<strong>for</strong>t to solicit or consider public opinion. It was<br />

argued that any attempt at re<strong>for</strong>m must be based on sound reasoning and widest<br />

possible consultation.<br />

Retaining representation <strong>for</strong> women, minorities, and working classes was<br />

emphasised. There were also demands <strong>for</strong> increasing their representation.<br />

The participants opposed any delay in holding local government elections. They<br />

argued that the provincial governments that advocated increased autonomy <strong>for</strong> themselves<br />

must follow the same principle when it came to devolving powers to the local government.<br />

Those taking part in the consultation included academia, political activists and<br />

members of local bodies.<br />

December 09: International Human Rights Day of 2009 falls amidst the cruel<br />

realities being faced by Pakistanis.<br />

HRCP is extremely perturbed at the huge suffering of people in Pakistan owing to<br />

the lethal brutality unleashed by Islamist militants as well as the destruction caused by<br />

internal conflicts in many parts of the country.<br />

A series of bomb attacks carried out by Islamist militants killing thousands of<br />

civilians as well as members of the security <strong>for</strong>ces has been devastating. Children and<br />

women have been most vulnerable to the accesses of militants. Schools have not been<br />

spared and women living in the conflict zones are totally immobilized. Pakistan is<br />

364 State of Human Rights in 2009


facing one of its worst challenges to protect the rights of its citizens.<br />

HRCP recognises that it is the primary obligation of the government to protect the<br />

lives of civilians against the inhuman accesses of militant groups, yet, it calls <strong>for</strong><br />

respect <strong>for</strong> human dignity during any armed operation carried out by government<br />

<strong>for</strong>ces. Regrettably, credible reports indicate that the security <strong>for</strong>ces too have committed<br />

human rights violations during army operations. The so-called counter-insurgency<br />

operations carried out by the military and paramilitary <strong>for</strong>ces have used heavy artillery,<br />

killing an unknown number of civilians. Access to independent observers and the press<br />

is denied by the security <strong>for</strong>ces. According to government sources themselves, several<br />

hundred people have involuntarily disappeared and a large number of families of the<br />

missing individuals accuse the security <strong>for</strong>ces and intelligence agencies of perpetrating<br />

the crime. Torture is used by the security <strong>for</strong>ces as a matter of routine. Reports received<br />

by HRCP reveal extremely inhuman methods of torture employed by the security<br />

establishment in Balochistan. People are blindfolded, hung upside down, burnt, given<br />

electric shocks, whipped, beaten with iron rods; kept under extreme glare of lights and<br />

their heads doused in water. Despite several reports issued by the press, accounts by<br />

the victims in courts and to the media, incidents reported by national and international<br />

human rights bodies, the government has never responded to these allegations in any<br />

constructive or coherent manner. A bland denial is no response – on the contrary it only<br />

adds salt to the wounds of the victims.<br />

HRCP is equally concerned about army operations being carried out in areas of<br />

FATA and the Malakand Division. Independent sources have complained about reprisals<br />

from armed militias operating under the patronage of security <strong>for</strong>ces. There are verified<br />

reports of extrajudicial killings of suspected militants and their family members and<br />

arbitrary arrests of several individuals. Mass graves have been identified but the<br />

government has failed to investigate these allegations and has not been able to establish<br />

the identity of the dead bodies.<br />

It is imperative that in these trying times human rights concerns be expressed in an<br />

unambiguous and impartial manner and watchdog bodies orient themselves with the<br />

international humanitarian and human rights law during armed conflicts. It is essential<br />

that everyone remains entitled to assert and enjoy all human rights, whether in time of<br />

peace or armed conflicts. It is important to give particular attention to the education of<br />

all members of security and other armed <strong>for</strong>ces, and of all law en<strong>for</strong>cement agencies,<br />

in the international law of human rights and international humanitarian law applicable in<br />

armed conflicts. There are limitation on the use of <strong>for</strong>ce even during conflict and on<br />

opposing <strong>for</strong>ces too. It is prohibited to launch attacks on civilian populations and the<br />

use of weapons which cause unnecessary suffering to combatants or which endanger<br />

civilian populations in the area of conflict is restricted and in some cases even prohibited.<br />

Finally, HRCP would like to draw the attention of the government that they are<br />

HRCP stands 365


obliged, as soon as circumstances permit, to report the number of those killed, injured<br />

or missing owing to the conflict. It is also essential that the International Committee of<br />

the Red Cross (ICRC) be given access to prisoners of the conflict, the UNHCR and<br />

relief workers get free and unimpeded access to those in need of humanitarian assistance<br />

and that independent journalists be allowed to visit areas of conflict without being<br />

followed or directed by government agents.<br />

December 19: HRCP is of the view that while legal course should be taken against<br />

those who plundered national wealth, the authorities should not commit excesses in<br />

their misplaced zeal <strong>for</strong> what they perceive as justice.<br />

A statement issued by the Commission said: HRCP expresses serious concern at<br />

the restrictions placed on certain people denying them the right to travel abroad by<br />

placing their names on the Exit Control List (ECL). The Commission is perturbed that<br />

the authorities have invoked the Exit Control List Ordinance which has never been<br />

accepted as a just measure.<br />

HRCP is of the view that the practice of restraining people from travelling abroad<br />

without issuing them prior notice and adequately explaining the reasons why this extreme<br />

measure is required amounts to a breach of the fundamental right of freedom of<br />

movement guaranteed by the Constitution. HRCP believes that even those facing trial in<br />

the court cannot necessarily be barred from travelling to other countries and to prevent<br />

their escape the court may seek lawful assurance. The ECL has been used as a tool of<br />

political harassment in the past and has not served any purpose in bringing perpetrators<br />

of crime to justice.<br />

Condolences<br />

April 24: Council Members of HRCP express their deep sadness at the passing<br />

away of Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed on 18 April. He was a <strong>found</strong>er member of HRCP<br />

and its first Vice Chairperson <strong>for</strong> Sindh. As a Council Member, Justice Ahmed remained<br />

deeply committed to HRCP and contributed greatly to the causes and issues addressed<br />

by the Commission. He resigned from HRCP after being appointed as a judge of the<br />

Sindh High Court in 1997. Justice Ahmed was elevated to the position of Chief Justice<br />

of Sindh and was recently made a judge of the Supreme Court. He was among the<br />

judges who refused to take oath under the PCO in 2007.<br />

Justice Ahmed gave several judgements strengthening the principles of human<br />

rights and bringing relief to the aggrieved. In a landmark judgement in 1997, <strong>for</strong> the<br />

first time in Pakistan’s judicial history, he ordered the payment of monetary compensation<br />

to a detainee in a habeas corpus petition. As a noted lawyer, he was always available to<br />

advise various NGOs working <strong>for</strong> the promotion of fundamental rights of citizens. In<br />

his death, the country has lost a compassionate human being and a firm believer in the<br />

366 State of Human Rights in 2009


principles of justice and rule of law.<br />

June 08: HRCP has condoled the death of Ms Lourdes Joseph, who passed away<br />

in Dubai today. Ms. Joseph served <strong>for</strong> many years at HRCP’s Karachi office and was<br />

one of the earliest members of the HRCP Secretariat. She had suffered a stroke a few<br />

years ago, but recovered sufficiently to continue working and retired last year. Her<br />

contribution toward the cause of human rights will be remembered.<br />

December 16: Ch. Khadim Hussain, Manager Administration at HRCP, has passed<br />

away. One of the earliest members of the staff to join HRCP, he served the Commission<br />

<strong>for</strong> over 20 years (1986-2009). Known <strong>for</strong> his devotion to duty and excellent manners<br />

he was a model worker in a human rights organisation. He was 85. Born at Jalundhur,<br />

India in July 1924, he served in the <strong>Ar</strong>my EME Directorate be<strong>for</strong>e Partition. He leaves<br />

behind two sons and two daughters.<br />

HRCP Chairperson Asma Jahangir, board members and the staff at the HRCP<br />

secretariat have condoled the passing of an “old friend and colleague”.<br />

HRCP stands 367


Appendix - III<br />

Pakistani prisoners in <strong>for</strong>eign jails (2009)<br />

Sr. # Country Total Sr. # Country Total<br />

1. Afghanistan 204 32. Nepal 1<br />

2. Austria 2 33. New Zealand 1<br />

3, Azerbaijan 18 34. Norway 13<br />

4. Bahrain 46 35. Oman 76<br />

5. Bangladesh 7 36. Philippines 2<br />

6. Belgium 24 37. Poland 19<br />

7. Cambodia 2 38. Qatar 54<br />

8. Canada 11 39. Republic of Korea 11<br />

9. China 147 40. Romania 1<br />

10. Cuba 1 41. Russia 236<br />

11. Cyprus 5 42. Saudi <strong>Ar</strong>abia 1,102<br />

12. Egypt 2 43. Senegal 1<br />

13. France 58 44. Serbia 3<br />

14. Germany 108 45. Singapore 3<br />

15. Greece 85 46. South Africa 38<br />

16. India 785 47. Spain (Barcelona) 77<br />

17. Indonesia 28 48. Sri Lanka 45<br />

18. Iran 86 49. Sweden (Latvia, 1<br />

Finland)<br />

19. Ireland 1 50. Switzerland 1<br />

20. Italy 266 51. Tajikistan 4<br />

21. Japan 72 52. Thailand 100<br />

22. Jordan 1 53. Turkey 14<br />

23. Kenya 2 54. UAE 1,228<br />

24. Kuwait 366 55. UK 457<br />

25. Lebanon 1 56. USA 167<br />

26. Libya 8 57. Uzbekistan 2<br />

27. Maldives 9 58. Vietnam 2<br />

28. Malaysia 117 59. Yemen 47<br />

29. Mauritius 1 60. Zambia 17<br />

30. Mexico 2 61. Zimbabwe 1<br />

31. Morocco 2 Grand Total 6,191<br />

368 State of Human Rights in 2009


Appendix - IV<br />

Status of signature / ratification / succession of various<br />

International treaties / conversation by Pakistan<br />

Convention / treaty<br />

Entry into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

Status<br />

Signatories<br />

Parties<br />

Signature by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Ratification/<br />

accession/<br />

succession by<br />

Pakistan<br />

1 International Covenant on<br />

Economic, Social and<br />

Cultural Rights (1966),<br />

United Nations,<br />

3/1/1976<br />

69<br />

160<br />

3/11/2004 <br />

<br />

17/4/2008<br />

General instruments<br />

1 International Convention<br />

on the Elimination of All<br />

Forms of Racial<br />

Discrimination (1966<br />

4 /1/1996<br />

85<br />

173<br />

19/9/1966 21/9/1966<br />

2 International Convention<br />

on the Suppression and<br />

Punishment of the Crime<br />

of Apartheid (1973)<br />

18/7/1976<br />

31<br />

107<br />

----------<br />

27/2/1986<br />

(accession)<br />

Genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity<br />

1 Convention on the<br />

Prevention and<br />

Punishment of the<br />

Crime of Genocide<br />

(1948)<br />

12/1/51<br />

41<br />

141<br />

11/12/1948 12/10/1957<br />

Slavery, traffic in persons, <strong>for</strong>ced labour.<br />

1 Slavery Convention<br />

signed at Geneva on 25<br />

September 1926 and<br />

amended by the Protocol<br />

done at the Headquarters<br />

of the United Nations, New<br />

York, on 7 December<br />

1953<br />

7/7/1955 99 -------------<br />

30 Sep 1955<br />

(accession)<br />

Status of signature / ratification ..... 369


Convention / treaty<br />

2 Supplementary<br />

Convention on the<br />

Abolition of Slavery; the<br />

Slave Trade, and<br />

Institutions and Practices<br />

Similar to Slavery (1956)<br />

3 Convention <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Suppression of the<br />

Traffic in Persons and of<br />

the Exploitation of the<br />

Prostitution of Others<br />

(1950)<br />

B – Conventions signed but not ratified/acceded to Pakistan<br />

Convention/<br />

treaty<br />

Entry<br />

into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

1 International<br />

Covenant on<br />

Civil and<br />

Political<br />

Rights (1966) 23/3/197<br />

6<br />

Entry into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

30/4/1957<br />

25/7/1951<br />

Status<br />

72<br />

165<br />

Women<br />

1 Convention on the Political<br />

Rights of Women (1953) 11/8/ 1958<br />

2 Convention on the<br />

Elimination of All Forms of<br />

Discrimination against<br />

Women (1979), United<br />

Nations<br />

Convention on the Rights of<br />

the Child (1989), United<br />

Nations<br />

3/9/1981<br />

Children<br />

2/9/1990<br />

Status<br />

Signatori<br />

es<br />

Parties<br />

35<br />

123<br />

25.<br />

81<br />

47<br />

121<br />

98<br />

186<br />

140<br />

193<br />

Signature<br />

by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Signature by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Ratification<br />

/accession<br />

by Pakistan<br />

17/4/2008 Not ratified<br />

Ratification/<br />

accession/<br />

succession by<br />

Pakistan<br />

7/9/1956 20/3 1958<br />

21/3/1950 11 7/1952<br />

18/5/1954 7/12/1954<br />

------------- 12/3/1996<br />

(accession)<br />

20/9/1990 12/11/1990<br />

Remarks by<br />

Ministry of<br />

Foreign Affairs<br />

MOFA supports<br />

ratification with<br />

reservations; Text<br />

of reservations has<br />

already been<br />

shared with M/o<br />

Commerce which is<br />

coordinating the<br />

ratification process<br />

as per PM's<br />

directives<br />

370 State of Human Rights in 2009


Convention/<br />

treaty<br />

2 Convention<br />

against<br />

Torture and<br />

Other Cruel,<br />

Inhuman or<br />

Degrading<br />

Treatment or<br />

Punishment<br />

(1984)<br />

3 Convention<br />

on the<br />

Nationality of<br />

Married<br />

Women<br />

(1957)<br />

4 Optional<br />

Protocol to<br />

the<br />

Convention<br />

on the Rights<br />

of the Child<br />

on the<br />

involvement<br />

of children in<br />

armed<br />

conflict<br />

(2000)<br />

Entry<br />

into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

26/6/87<br />

11/8/58<br />

12/2/02<br />

Status<br />

76<br />

146<br />

29<br />

74<br />

125<br />

132<br />

Signature<br />

by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Ratification<br />

/ accession<br />

by Pakistan<br />

17/4/08 Not ratified<br />

10/4/58 Not ratified<br />

26/9/2001 Not ratified<br />

Remarks by<br />

Ministry of<br />

Foreign Affairs<br />

MOFA supports the<br />

ratification which<br />

will require either<br />

changes in the<br />

domestic laws or a<br />

stand-alone<br />

legislation on<br />

torture; M/o<br />

Commerce is<br />

coordinating the<br />

ratification process<br />

as per PM's<br />

directives; M/o<br />

Interior is the<br />

implementing<br />

Ministry<br />

This Convention<br />

safeguards the<br />

nationality of<br />

married women, in<br />

the event she<br />

marries a <strong>for</strong>eigner,<br />

her husband<br />

changes his<br />

nationality and<br />

provides <strong>for</strong> right<br />

of naturalization of<br />

<strong>for</strong>eign wives; the<br />

subject falls under<br />

the purview of M/o<br />

Interior<br />

M/o Social Welfare<br />

is the focal point;<br />

ratification requires<br />

careful analysis<br />

particularly in the<br />

light of the current<br />

situation, where<br />

the issue of the use<br />

of children by<br />

terrorists can be<br />

exploited to the<br />

detriment of<br />

Pakistan.<br />

Status of signature / ratification ..... 371


Convention/<br />

treaty<br />

5 Optional<br />

Protocol to<br />

the<br />

Convention<br />

on the Rights<br />

of the Child<br />

on the sale<br />

of children,<br />

child<br />

prostitution<br />

and child<br />

pornography<br />

(2000)<br />

6 Convention<br />

on the Rights<br />

of Persons<br />

with<br />

Disabilities<br />

(2006)<br />

Entry<br />

into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

18/1/02<br />

3/5/2008<br />

Status<br />

117<br />

136<br />

144<br />

80<br />

Signature<br />

by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Ratification<br />

/ accession<br />

by Pakistan<br />

26/9/2001 Not ratified<br />

25/9/2008 Not ratified<br />

Remarks by<br />

Ministry of<br />

Foreign Affairs<br />

M/o Social Welfare<br />

is the focal point on<br />

the issue<br />

M/o Social Welfare<br />

is the focal point on<br />

the issue<br />

C – Conventions/treaties yet to be signed by Pakistan<br />

general instruments<br />

Convention/treaty<br />

1 Optional Protocol to the<br />

International Covenant on<br />

Economic, Social and Cultural<br />

Rights (2008) United Nations.<br />

2 Optional Protocol to the<br />

International Covenant on<br />

Civil and Political Rights<br />

(1966), United Nations<br />

3 Second Optional Protocol to<br />

the International Covenant on<br />

Civil and Political Rights<br />

aiming at the abolition of the<br />

death penalty (1989.<br />

Entry into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

Not yet into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

23/3/1976<br />

11/7/1991<br />

Status<br />

Signature by<br />

Pakistan<br />

Ratification<br />

/ accession/<br />

succession<br />

by Pakistan<br />

32 Not signed ----------<br />

35<br />

113<br />

35<br />

72<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

372 State of Human Rights in 2009


Instruments concerning specific issues prevention of<br />

discrimination<br />

1 International Convention<br />

against Apartheid in Sports<br />

(1985)<br />

3/4/1988<br />

72<br />

60<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity<br />

1 Convention on the Non-<br />

Applicability of Statutory<br />

Limitations to War Crimes and<br />

Crimes against Humanity<br />

(1968)<br />

11/11/1970<br />

9<br />

53<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

2 Rome Statute of the<br />

International Criminal Court<br />

(1998)<br />

1/7/2002<br />

139<br />

110<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or<br />

punishment<br />

1 Optional Protocol to the<br />

Convention against Torture<br />

and Other Cruel, Inhuman or<br />

Degrading Treatment or<br />

Punishment (2002)<br />

22/6/2006<br />

64<br />

50<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

2 International Convention <strong>for</strong><br />

the Protection of All Persons<br />

from En<strong>for</strong>ced Disappearance<br />

(2006)<br />

Not yet into<br />

<strong>for</strong>ce<br />

81<br />

18 Not signed ----------<br />

Slavery, traffic in persons, <strong>for</strong>ced labour<br />

1 Protocol amending the Slavery<br />

Convention signed at Geneva<br />

on 25 September 1926 (1953)<br />

7/12/1953<br />

11<br />

61<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Freedom of in<strong>for</strong>mation and expression<br />

1 Convention on the<br />

International Right of<br />

Correction (1953)<br />

24/8/1962<br />

12<br />

17<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Status of signature / ratification ..... 373


Instruments relating to the protection of particular groups<br />

aliens, refugees, stateless persons<br />

1 Convention relating to the<br />

Status of Refugees (1951),<br />

United Nations<br />

2 Protocol relating to the Status<br />

of Refugees (1967), United<br />

Nations<br />

3 Convention relating to the<br />

Status of Stateless Persons<br />

(1954), United Nations<br />

4 Convention on the Reduction<br />

of Statelessness (1961),<br />

United Nations<br />

22/4/1954<br />

19<br />

144<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

4/10/1967 144 Not signed ----------<br />

6/6/1960<br />

13/12/1975<br />

Workers<br />

23<br />

65<br />

5<br />

37<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

1 International Convention on<br />

the Protection of the Rights of<br />

all Migrant Workers and<br />

Members of their Families<br />

(1990)<br />

1/7/2003<br />

31<br />

42<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Women<br />

1 Convention on Consent to<br />

Marriage, Minimum Age <strong>for</strong><br />

Marriage and Registration of<br />

Marriages (1962)<br />

2 Optional Protocol to the<br />

Convention on the Elimination<br />

of Discrimination against<br />

Women (1999), United<br />

Nations<br />

1 Optional Protocol to the<br />

9/12/1964<br />

22/12/2000<br />

16<br />

54<br />

79<br />

99<br />

Persons with disabilities<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Convention on the Rights of<br />

Persons with Disabilities,<br />

(2006), United Nations<br />

3/5/2008<br />

88<br />

51<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

374 State of Human Rights in 2009


International humanitarian law related instruments<br />

1 Geneva Convention <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Amelioration of the Condition<br />

of the Wounded and Sick in<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>med Forces in the Field<br />

(1949)<br />

2 Geneva Convention <strong>for</strong> the<br />

Amelioration of the Condition<br />

of Wounded, Sick and<br />

Shipwrecked Members of<br />

<strong>Ar</strong>med Forces at Sea (1949)<br />

3 Geneva Convention relative to<br />

the Treatment of Prisoners of<br />

War (1949)<br />

4 Geneva Convention relative to<br />

the Protection of Civilian<br />

Persons in Time of War (1949)<br />

21/10/1950 191 12/8/1949 12/6/1951<br />

21/10/1950 191 12/8/1949 12/6/1951<br />

21/10/1950 191 12/8/1949 12/6/1951<br />

21/10/1950 191 12/8/1949 12/6/1951<br />

5 Additional Protocol to the<br />

Geneva Conventions of 12<br />

August 1949 relating to the<br />

Protection of Victims of<br />

International <strong>Ar</strong>med Conflicts<br />

(Protocol I) (1977)<br />

6 Additional Protocol to the<br />

Geneva Conventions of 12<br />

August 1949 relating to the<br />

Protection of Victims of Non-<br />

International <strong>Ar</strong>med Conflicts<br />

(Protocol II) (1977)<br />

7 Protocol Additional to the<br />

Geneva Conventions of 12<br />

August 1949, and relating to<br />

the Adoption of an Additional<br />

Distinctive Emblem (Protocol<br />

HI), 8 December 2005.<br />

7/12/1978 161 Not signed ----------<br />

7/12/1978<br />

14/1/2007<br />

<br />

156<br />

57<br />

28<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Not signed ----------<br />

Status of signature / ratification ..... 375


376 State of Human Rights in 2009


Status of signature / ratification ..... 377

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