Aurat March | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Aurat March organisers, civil society members, and rights groups accused the authorities on Monday of manhandling and threatening women’s rights activists who had been detained the previous day in Islamabad. The assertions were made at a press conference after police released all 44 activists detained ahead of an International Women’s Day rally on Sunday. Police cited the imposition of Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code and the district administration not issuing a no-objection certificate (NoC) to the Aurat March for the rally as reasons for the arrests. After the activists were released, they held a press conference at the National Press Club, demanding an investigation into the incident. Aurat March’s Dr Farzana Bari said the organisers of the rally were aware that Section 144 was imposed in the federal capital, but “civil society does not accept any law that is in violation of basic rights”. “You cannot take our right to protest. Similar protests were held across the globe, but we were ...

ISLAMABAD: Several women’s rights activists, including Aurat March members, were detained by police in Islamabad ahead of a rally they planned to hold on the occasion of International Women’s Day on Sunday. Police sources told Dawn that they were detained near Super Market in Sector F-6. They had planned to reach the National Press Club, but a huge contingent of police was already present there, which arrested the marchers and took them to the Women’s Police Station. The Women’s Police Station released a list of 19 women activists of Aurat March. Those detained include prominent activist Dr Farzana Bari, two of her daughters, and human rights defender Tahira Abdullah, along with other Aurat March organisers and participants, police sources confirmed. Aside from women activists, several participants, including men, were also detained by the police for participating in the march. Zoya Rehman, a participant of the march, wrote on X that her husband, along with 20 other men, was taken into custody by police. “No ...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Friday condemned police action against Aurat March activists in Karachi a day earlier, calling on authorities to respect people’s access to civic spaces. On Thursday, a rights activist was ‘briefly detained’ from outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC), ahead of a press conference by Aurat March over the alleged abduction of two Baloch girls. The organisers said classical dancer and human rights activist Sheema Kermani was also manhandled by police, while other women participants were also “mistreated” by female officers on their way to the press club. Journalist Zofeen Ebrahim was also barred from attending the press conference, which was eventually held at the KPC. In a post on social media platform X today, the HRCP said it condemned the police obstruction of Aurat March’s scheduled press conference and the brief detention and manhandling of activists and reporters, including Kermani. “We are also alarmed that journalist Ebrahim was barred from entering the pr...

Police on Thursday blocked routes leading to the Karachi Press Club ahead of a press conference by Aurat March over the alleged “abduction” of two Baloch girls and briefly detained an activist, with organisers claiming that other members were also manhandled. Aurat March, a women’s rights group, was set to hold a press conference at 3pm over the alleged “abduction” of two Baloch girls — 15-year-old Nasreen Baloch and 24-year-old Mahjabeen Baloch. Authorities closed off roads leading to KPC ahead of the press conference, which eventually began with a delay of approximately 20 minutes as the organisers said they were “stopped by the police” at the gate of the press club. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) member Qazi Khizar said an activist named Sara was taken by the police from outside the KPC. Within a few hours, Aurat March confirmed to Dawn that she had been released. Dawn has reached out to the police for a comment on the detention. Senior journalist Dodal Chandio said in a post on Facebook that “...