Human rights report critical of government

Human rights activists in Pakistan gathered in the capital Islamabad on Wednesday to launch this year's annual human rights report for 2001. Published by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), the report was particularly critical of the government's lack of resolve in addressing human rights issues. "The government has not fulfilled its responsibilities and indeed is the main violator of human rights in Pakistan," HRCP chairman Afrasiab Khattak told IRIN. "Human rights norms have been violated on a very large scale," he explained, adding draconian laws had been freed and the fight against terrorism had been used as a pretext for violating rights. Echoing this view, Asma Jahangir, a prominent human rights advocate, told IRIN that if you look at the whole picture, there had been a deterioration. "There are certain parts of human rights that have slipped and other areas that have improved," she said. "But the fact remains that when people are denied freedom of association, when people don't know whether they will get justice if they are tortured, when the mechanisms that are supposed to be there to protect people's rights, for example the judiciary, have become completely subservient, and therefore demoralised, then you cannot expect them [the government] to be vigilant and a watchdog body of people's rights." Highlighting the report, Khattak cited abuses still prevalent in the country including areas of law, health, education, children, housing, the judiciary, law and order, prisoners, freedom of movement, thought, religion, expression, assembly, association and political participation, as well a growing number of sectarian deaths. The government had made a lot of noise about dealing with religious extremism, but lacked the political will to deal with the problem, the activist said. The issue of women received particular mention. According to Khattak, while the rate of crime against women fell, the target in some of the most gruesome instances of crime remained women. Approximately two women were killed in the name of 'honour' every day in the South Asian country. Indeed, honour killings seemed to be spreading to areas where they had not previously been known. The number of such killings increased with reports suggesting those responsible for them frequently escaped punishment, he explained. Additional concern was raised in the area of political participation. Despite governments reassurances that elections would soon be held in Pakistan, democracy was harshly curbed in 2001 and political leaders and activists faced arrest as a means to prevent them from organising or addressing public meetings, with thousands taken into custody during the year, the report said. Asked whether the situation had improved over last year, HRCP director, IA Rehmen said there were areas in which people would say there were less external killings than last year, but there were other areas where there were greater losses. "What is important is the instruments required for the control of human rights violations and restoring the spectrum of human rights are not functioning well....It is more or less the same and this is a matter of concern," adding the situation of human rights in the old understanding had not improved. In terms of prognosis, Khattak noted: "We do not believe the current military rule can come up with viable solutions for human rights. This cannot be a military endeavour, but rather one for civil society, he explained. "Only democracy and democratic institutions can create can create conditions in which people can enjoy rights," he noted. Jahangir was more candid. "People have no recourse. When you have various centres of power, you can go and actually get your voice heard somewhere or the possibilities are greater," she said. "Now there are no centres of power. You have a mess - a complete mess," she said. [For more information on human rights in Pakistan: see: www.hrcp-web.org]