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Video Report - Pervez Khattak's 'Revolt' | IHC Orders Saqib Nisar Audio Leak Audit | Imran Khan Trapped? Part 1-2

Part 2

HRW slams Pakistan over dissent crackdown, alleged rights abuses

 

By Asad Hashim

Imran Khan’s government has come under fire from rights groups within and outside the country since he came to power in 2018.

In a new annual report, international human rights organisation Human Rights Watch (HRW) has lambasted the Pakistani government for expanding a crackdown on dissent by citizens, journalists and opposition politicians.HRW, which is based in the United States, released its annual World Report 2022 on Thursday, with the chapter on Pakistan focusing on freedom of expression and religion, women’s rights and alleged abuses by Pakistan’s police and security forces.

“The authorities expanded their use of draconian sedition and counterterrorism laws to stifle dissent, and strictly regulated civil society groups critical of government actions or policies,” reads the opening of the Pakistan chapter.

“Authorities also cracked down on members and supporters of opposition political parties.”

Pakistan’s foreign ministry has not responded to the report’s allegations.

Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government has come under fire from rights groups within and outside the country since he came to power in 2018 general elections whose results were contested as being fraudulent by some opposition parties.

Since coming to power, Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led coalition government has gone after the opposition in a number of corruption cases, with the party saying it is carrying out an accountability drive to bring the corruption of past governments to justice.

Simultaneously, Pakistani journalists and news organisations have reported coming under stricter control from the government and the country’s powerful military, which has directly ruled Pakistan for roughly half of its 74-year history.

Journalists critical of the government have been abducted, assaulted, shot or charged with sedition and other alleged crimes under Khan’s government.Thursday’s HRW report notes “a climate of fear” amongst journalists when covering alleged rights abuses by the government.“Nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) reported intimidation, harassment, and surveillance of various by government authorities,” the report says.“The government used the ‘Regulation of INGOs in Pakistan’ policy to impede the registration and functioning of international humanitarian and human rights groups.”

The HRW report also focused on issues related to freedom of religion and belief in Pakistan, where strict blasphemy laws have increasingly been used against minorities and members of the majority Muslim faith alike.

Last year, at least three people were murdered in connection with blasphemy allegations, according to an Al Jazeera tally, including a Sri Lankan factory manager in the eastern city of Sialkot who was beaten to death by a mob in December.

Since 1990, at least 80 people have been murdered in connection with blasphemy allegations in Pakistan, according to the Al Jazeera tally.

HRW also documented allegations of widespread rights abuses against women and children in the South Asian country, which ranks 167 out of 170 countries on Georgetown University’s global Women, Peace and Security index.

“Violence against women and girls – including rape, murder, acid attacks, domestic violence, and forced marriage – is endemic throughout Pakistan. Human rights defenders estimate that roughly 1,000 women are killed in so-called honour killings every year,” the HRW report says.

The human rights organisation also noted continuing attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, al-Qaeda, the Baloch Liberation Army and other armed groups on civilians and security forces, while accusing security forces of “numerous human rights violations, including detention without charge and extrajudicial killings”.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/14/hrw-report-pakistan-dissent-crackdown-alleged-rights-abuses

Pakistani passport ranks lower than North Korea’s. Twitter says Thank you, Imran Khan

 PIA KRISHNANKUTTY

Some suggested that action taken against human rights activists is the reason for Pakistan's low ranking on the Henley Passport Index.

An “International embarrassment” — this is just one of the many phrases used by Pakistani social media users in response to their country’s passport ranking fourth worst for international travel, as per the Henley Passport Index. The Pakistani passport was ranked 108th.

The Henley Passport Index is a ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. It uses exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA) and includes 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations.

This is the third consecutive year when Pakistan’s passport has been ranked as the fourth worst in the world, with only Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan below it in the list.

“Inflation, poverty, unemployment, economy collapse, and now international embarrassment. Welcome to Naya Pakistan,” wrote Mir Sohrab Khan Mari, coordinator to Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

Meanwhile, Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan asked, “How much more will this government tarnish the image of Pakistan? (sic)”

 

According to the Index, the Maldives passport remains the strongest in South Asia at global 58th position. India, meanwhile, jumped from rank 90 to 84 compared to last year. Other countries in the region included Sri Lanka (102) and Bangladesh (103). Even the North Korean passport ranked higher than Pakistan’s, at 104th place.

 ‘Thanks Imran Khan’

Some Pakistani users sarcastically thanked their prime minister, noting that the country had also dropped four places in an annual corruption index released by Transparency International last January.

 

Amid the uproar, a 2018 clip of Pakistan actress Saba Qamar narrating her experience while travelling abroad for a film shoot is in circulation once again. She had claimed she was frisked at the airport because she held a Pakistani passport.

“The way we are checked, I feel so humiliated. I remember when I visited Tbilisi for a film shoot, the entire crew was allowed to go through except for me, because I carry a Pakistani passport,” Qamar had said.

 

Some suggested that action taken against human rights activists is the reason for Pakistan’s low ranking on the Henley Passport Index.

“It is very shameful that Idris Bacha, the coordinator of PTM, has been placed in Schedule IV of the Anti-Terrorism Act. Applying this act to HR activists instead of terrorists has made Pakistani Passport the fourth weakest passport in the international rankings,” said activist AlamZaib Khan Mahsud.

 Last December, minority rights activist Idris Khattak, also referred to as Idrees Bacha, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment following a trial by a military court in Pakistan. Under the Pakistan Army Act, he was charged with espionage and other acts “prejudicial to the safety or interests of the State”, including allegedly revealing information related to the military operations in 2009 in the region. UN human rights activists had condemned the conviction.

 https://theprint.in/go-to-pakistan/pakistani-passport-ranks-lower-than-north-koreas-twitter-says-thank-you-imran-khan/803421/

#Pakistan - Increasing power tarrif by Rs. 4.30 per unit is a shameful decision of #PTI’s Government

Central Information Secretary PPP-P & member of the National Assembly Shazia Atta Marri has said that the decision of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf led government regarding to increase in the power tarrif by 4.30 rupees per unit is a shameful and anti-people act and Pakistan Peoples Party strongly condemned dropping electricity bomb on the poor masses and demanded of the government to withdraw its decision.This she expressed in her reaction while slamming the government decision to rise the prices of electricity tarriff heron today.

Shazia Marri said that Imran Khan is looting the pockets of the people by increasing prices of the electricity tarriff and he has been implementing such decisions on the dictation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the country. She added that If Prime Minister Imran Khan would be remained in the power, people would have to sell their utensils in order to pay the electricity bills and even to light up a bulb in their houses. She claimed that the farmers march to be observed on 21st of January will shake the foundations of Imran Khan’s government.

She said that long march would be held against the worst economic policies of PTI-led government across the country on 27th of February under the leadership of chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Imran Khan would be held accountable for his policies by the people as they will reach at Islamabad. Current federal government has mortgaged the State Bank of Pakistan to the loan giant International Monetary Fund while the members of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government are being held accountable by the people of their constituencies. She added that people were hoping that Imran Khan would commit suicide instead of going to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for loans but he is dropping the inflation bombs on the people.