Islamabad, May 11 (IANS) Over 100 civil society organisations, lawyers, journalists, academics and human rights defenders have called on Pakistan’s federal government to refrain from opposing the bail of human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha ahead of a scheduled hearing in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.In a joint statement, the signatories expressed grave concern over their continued incarceration in a case related to online expression under the Prevention of Elect…
Latest Human Rights Defenders News & Updates
Geneva, May 2 (IANS) The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) expressed grave concerns over Pakistan’s mass deportation of Afghan refugees, including children, following the adoption of the 2023 Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan, citing the absence of individual assessment of protection needs and risks of refoulement. In its recent findings on Pakistan’s implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Committee rai…
Dublin, April 30 (IANS) A leading international human rights organisation has called on the Bangladeshi government to immediately withdraw the cautionary letter issued to a woman human rights defender, Rani Yan Yan, and to provide a clear explanation of the legal basis for its issuance and dissemination to multiple government offices. Ireland-based rights group Front Line Defenders urged the authorities to cease all forms of harassment and intimidation against Rani and to take all necessary meas…
Islamabad, March 28 (IANS) The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expressed concern over the continued shrinking of civic space and restrictions on rights-based non-governmental organisations (NGOs) across Punjab province, describing it as a symptom of the democratic backsliding that the country is currently experiencing.In its report titled ‘Regulation or Restriction?’, the HRCP documented that civil society organisations — particularly NGOs, which constitute a vital component of Pakis…
London, March 12 (IANS) The pursuit of justice for murdered transgender women remains symbolic in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. As the numbers continues to rise, accountability remains absent and response of authorities is defined more due to inertia than intervention, a report has revealed. “In the narrow streets of Peshawar, the valleys of Swat, and the market towns stretching from Chitral to Dera Ismail Khan, violence against transgender people has become grimly routine in north…
Quetta, Jan 30 (IANS) Baloch National Movement (BNM) Chairman Naseem Baloch has written an open letter to the global community over the recent “unlawful” arrest of Pakistani human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chatta, describing it as an attack on truth, the legal profession, and all those who dare to speak against state crimes in Pakistan.This came after a Pakistani court last week reportedly sentenced Imaan and her husband, Hadi, to a combined 17 years in prison on …
Ottawa, Jan 11 (IANS) US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to make the human rights issue a key focus of his visit to China from January 13-17, asking him to press the Chinese government to end its repression in Xinjiang and ensure full compliance with international labour rights conventions. HRW has stated that Carney, during his visit to China, should raise key issues, including links between the Chinese government’s forced labour and imports to Can…