Tag: HRCP

Peshawar, June 23, 2021 (PPI-OT):The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)’s annual report on the state of human rights in 2020 details the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), which recorded 58,702 cases and 1,649 deaths. This was aggravated by low testing levels – less than half a million of KP’s 35 million residents had been tested by the end of the year. Freedom of movement and association were also affected significantly by Covid-related restrictions.

Over 30 laws were passed by the KP Assembly, of which at least 17 were directly related to human rights. Despite being long overdue, local government elections were not held in 2020. This adversely affected local development as the provincial government failed to utilise PKR 43 billion of the PKR 46 billion allocated to local governments for 2019/20. The promise of mainstreaming the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas into KP also remained largely unfulfilled, given the inadequate implementation of the Tribal Decade Strategy (2020-30) only PKR 37 billion of the promised PKR 74 billion in development funds was released.

Jails in KP remained overcrowded in 2020, with nearly 8,000 of more than 11,000 inmates classified as under-trial prisoners. Little progress was made in tackling the backlog of court cases, with 41,042 cases pending in the Peshawar High Court and 230,869 in the District Judiciary KP by end-2020. In welcome news, the Peshawar High Court ordered the release of nearly 200 men convicted by military courts for alleged terrorism in a verdict that included a scathing indictment of the miscarriage of justice. Additionally, no executions were carried out during the year, although the death penalty was awarded to at least one person.

Law and order remained unstable in the province, with terrorist attacks, violence against religious minorities and transgender persons, the harassment of women, and child rape reported through the year. Very few perpetrators were brought to justice, reflecting a high tolerance for criminal impunity. The Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances traced 1,335 missing persons from KP as of end-2020. Overall, since its inception in 2011, the commission has traced 713 persons to internment centres and 93 to prisons, but these figures likely underreport the scale of enforced disappearances in the province.

For more information, contact:
Chairperson
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)
Aiwan-i-Jamhoor, 107-Tipu Block,
New Garden Town, Lahore-54600
Tel: +92-42-35864994
Fax: +92-42-35883582
Email: hrcp@hrcp-web.org
Website: www.hrcp-web.org

Hyderabad, June 21, 2021 (PPI-OT): The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s (HRCP) annual report on the state of human rights in 2020 indicates that, by the end of last year, Sindh presented the highest number of Covid-19 infections and deaths in the country, with a death toll of 3,560. The provincial government took a proactive approach to controlling the spread of the virus in the initial phase of the pandemic by closing down schools and imposing a temporary ban on public gatherings ahead of the national lockdown.

The passage of the Sindh Covid-19 Emergency Relief Ordinance 2020 was a welcome development in that it provided some relief to workers, students and tenants. However, these measures were marred by weak implementation, with labour organisations complaining of widespread retrenchments, especially in the private sector. Pakistan Steel Mills also dismissed over 4,500 workers, seeking to retrench about the same number.

HRCP notes that, while the four-year term of local governments in Sindh expired on 30 August, the provincial government had not announced a new date for the next local elections as of end-2020. The report also indicates that 121 prisoners were awarded death sentences in the province in 2020. In a promising sign, no executions were, however, carried out.

Law enforcement remained unstable, with prolonged wrangling between the federal and provincial government over the appointment of a new police chief, creating uncertainty in the police department. The abduction of the Sindh inspector general of police in October by security agencies raised serious concerns over undue political pressure imposed on the police to arrest an opposition leader.

In violation of the right to freedom of association, the federal government formally banned the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (Arisar), a Sindhi nationalist political party, in May. There was also an alarming uptick in enforced disappearances in the province. According to one estimate, a total of 127 persons went missing in Sindh during 2020, of which 112 resurfaced while 15 were still missing at the end of the year. A prominent case was that of political activist Sarang Joyo, who was allegedly subjected to torture during his disappearance.

Children’s access to education remained poor, with Sindh education minister Saeed Ghani stating that around 3.5 million children in the province remained out of school. Honour killings continued unabated: HRCP recorded 197 honour crimes in 2020 for Sindh alone, involving 79 male and 136 female victims. At least six cases of forced conversion of Hindu girls were also reported in the province.

For more information, contact:
Chairperson
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)
Aiwan-i-Jamhoor, 107-Tipu Block,
New Garden Town, Lahore-54600
Tel: +92-42-35864994
Fax: +92-42-35883582
Email: hrcp@hrcp-web.org
Website: www.hrcp-web.org