HRCP | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s (HRCP) on Monday launched its annual report for 2025, observing a severe contraction of civic space, the erosion of judicial independence and deepening insecurity over the past year. The report, titled “State of Human Rights in 2025”, was launched in Islamabad, with HRCP Chairperson Asad Iqbal Butt, former chairperson Hina Jilani, co-chair Munizae Jahangir, vice-chair Nasreen Azhar and Secretary General Harris Khalique present. Butt, while speaking to reporters, said it was a fact that human rights in Pakistan were in their worst state. “It is not a report, it is a charge sheet. In 2025, as many as 273 persons faced enforced disappearance. Around 13 were traced from state agencies’ centres, but others are unknown,” he said. Butt added that thousands of people have been missing for years and that if anyone has committed a crime, they should be produced in a court of law. Khalique said that multiple constitutional and human rights-related violations were part...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, along with several civil society organisations, on Sunday called on authorities to immediately halt all planned and ongoing eviction operations in Islamabad’s low-income areas and katchi abadis (informal settlements). The call was made in a statement issued by the HRCP following a press conference at the National Press Club in Islamabad. “The All Party Alliance for Katchi Abadis, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, National Commission for Justice and Peace, Awami Workers Party, Aurat March Islamabad and allied civil society organisations strongly condemn the imminent threat of demolition and forced eviction facing residents of Allama Iqbal Colony, a 25-year-old, predominantly Christian working-class settlement reportedly slated for clearance in the coming week,” the statement read. It added: “We unequivocally reject the ongoing pattern of evictions carried out by the Capital Development Authority (CDA), Islamabad, without due process, adequate notice or lawful rehabil...

LAHORE: A fact-finding report by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called for an urgent high-level judicial inquiry into deaths resulting from operations conducted by Punjab’s Crime Control Department (CCD), alleging that the department has adopted a “deliberate policy of staged police encounters leading to extrajudicial killings”. Last year, the Punjab government formally approved the establishment of the CCD to curb organised crime and protect life and property in the province. However, human rights advocates and civil society members have been voicing their concerns about the alleged encounters and the number of casualties. According to the HRCP, based on press accounts, at least 670 CCD-led encounters were carried out across Punjab over eight months in 2025. These operations reportedly resulted in the deaths of 924 suspects, while only two police officials were killed during the same timeframe, it said. The HRCP noted that the sharp disparity in casualties — averaging more than two fatal ...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan on Friday expressed concern over the roughing up of YouTuber Rajab Butt during a court appearance in Karachi earlier this week. On Monday, Butt was physically assaulted at the Karachi City Court premises during the hearing of his bail plea in a case registered against him for allegedly hurting religious sentiments. Butt’s lawyer, Mian Ali Ashfaq, said on X that “a few lawyers launched a life-threatening attack on him within the court premises” and registered a case against them. A video of the incident in question had showed Butt, clad in a shirt with the neckline torn open, attempting to move through a crowd surrounding him. “The HRCP expresses grave concern over the reported physical assault on YouTuber Rajab Butt within the Karachi city court premises and the alleged involvement of members of the legal fraternity,” the HRCP said in a statement today on social media platform X. “Violence, intimidation and vigilantism — particularly inside courts — undermine the rule o...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) and the All Pakistan Newspaper Employees Confederation (Apnec) on Tuesday condemned the ban on government advertisements to the Dawn Media Group and its outlets and lamented the attack on freedom of expression. The HRCP expressed grave concern over the “rapidly shrinking space for independent and critical news reporting in the country”, including the ban on government advertisements to the Dawn Media Group and its outlets. The development comes as several media bodies have condemned the government’s unannounced restriction on advertisements to Dawn Media Group’s TV and radio outlets — imposed after curtailing ads to its flagship newspaper — and called on the authorities to immediately rescind the ban. “The HRCP expresses grave concern over the rapidly shrinking space for independent and critical news reporting in the country, including the reported 13-month ban on government advertisements to the Dawn Media Group, which has recently been extended to Dawn News and...

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...

In a statement issued on Sunday after its 39th annual general meeting, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expressed concern over the 27th Constitutional Amendment, noting that lifetime immunity for public 0ffice holders had “concentrated unchecked power in the hands of a few”. The contentious tweak was passed by Parliament on November 13 after days of heated debate, opposition protests, and last-minute revisions, and received the president’s assent the same day. The amendment made significant changes to the judicial system and the military’s chain of command, and granted sweeping immunities to government officials. Under the Amendment, lifetime immunity from arrest and all criminal and civil proceedings has been granted to the president and anyone holding the ranks of Field Marshal, Admiral of the Fleet and Marshal of the Air Force. Referring to the Amendment, the HRCP drew attention to “escalating threats to constitutional democracy, civic freedoms, and the safety of vulnerable communities across...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan expressed concern and called for an inquiry into the alleged mistreatment of PTI founder Imran Khan’s sisters by police as the former were camped outside Adiala Jail. In a post on X today, HRCP expressed concerns over the reports of Imran’s sisters being “manhandled” and noted that the rights of prisoners’ families to meet their relatives and the right to peaceful assembly are protected under national and international human rights law. “Witness and media accounts indicate that family members and party representatives were engaged in a peaceful protest when police intervened, allegedly using physical force,” the statement read. “HRCP calls for a transparent inquiry and urges authorities to ensure the rights, safety and dignity of all involved are fully respected,” it added. The PTI had held a protest outside the jail on Tuesday, where Imran is currently incarcerated, but the jail administration did not allow party leaders and the PTI founder’s family to meet him. Subseq...

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari on Wednesday rejected the claims made by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) regarding the government “concealing information” about the Muridke operation carried out to disperse Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) march they claimed was in solidarity for Palestinians. The TLP began protests in Lahore on Oct 9, announcing a march to the US embassy in Islamabad to oppose the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas after two years of conflict in Gaza. The demonstrations quickly turned violent, with police using baton charges and tear gas against stone-pelting protesters. The following day, clashes in Lahore’s Shahdara area left at least 40 officers injured, while the TLP claimed over 10 workers were killed. As the group attempted to move towards Islamabad, Punjab Rangers and police from five districts were deployed to Muridke, where trenches were dug and an operation launched to disperse them. Regarding the Mudrike Operation and the violence that broke o...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) issued a condemnation on Sunday after it was reported that an 11-member committee of elders had declared that all transgender persons would be expelled from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swabi district. “The HRCP strongly condemns the reported decision by community elders in Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to form a committee aimed at expelling transgender persons from the district. Such actions are unconstitutional, discriminatory and amount to incitement to violence against an already marginalised community,” the HRCP said in a statement on X. It added that “no citizen can be deprived of the right to reside, work or earn a livelihood anywhere in Pakistan on the basis of gender identity”. The human rights body called on the provincial and district authorities to “immediately ensure the safety and dignity of transgender persons in Swabi and uphold their fundamental rights under the Constitution and the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2018”. The committee of elder...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Wednesday revealed that enforced disappearances and other issues were fuelling public alienation and political instability in Balochistan following a fact-finding mission to the province. According to the report, titled Balochistan’s Crisis of Trust, the HRCP undertook the mission from July 9-12 to respond to the “escalating concerns over the deteriorating state of fundamental rights and civic freedoms in the province”. The mission aimed to examine the state of fundamental freedoms in the province and the broader impact of conflict and militarisation on civilian life, the report said in its terms of reference. In a press release issued today, the HRCP said: “The mission’s findings reveal a disturbing pattern of continued enforced disappearances, shrinking civic space, erosion of provincial autonomy and unchecked impunity — conditions that continue to fuel public alienation and political instability.” The mission observed that the state’s framing of the issue “...

LAHORE: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Monday raised alarm over political dysfunction and rising injustices in Punjab. The HRCP held a press conference to highlight the human rights situation in Punjab as recorded in its report, State of Human Rights in 2024, launched earlier. While voter registration and total votes cast was reportedly increased in the 2024 general elections, the turnout declined. Women’s representation in the assemblies more than doubled, but the Punjab Assembly remained plagued by disruptions, a tendency to ignore input from the opposition, and hurried legislation. Assembly proceedings in 2024 were dominated by chaos. Women MPAs staged a walkout over inappropriate gestures in the House and the allocation of reserved seats for women and minorities faced legal setbacks. The Punjab Defamation Act 2024, hurriedly approved in June, was widely criticised by human rights networks for stifling free speech. The law was subsequently challenged in the Lahore High Court as unconstit...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Wednesday expressed concern over the recent court decision banning 27 YouTube channels as the government said the owners were expected to face criminal action. It emerged a day ago that an Islamabad court last month ordered YouTube to block 27 channels for disseminating “fake, misleading, and defamatory” content against the government and armed forces. Among the 27 sanctioned accounts — run by journalists, political commentators and social media in­­fluencers in Pakistan and overseas — are those of the PTI, Matiuallah Jan, Wajahat Khan, Ahmad Noorani and Asad Ali Toor, Imran Riaz, Orya Maqbool, Sabir Shakir, and Moeed Pirzada. In a statement on X, HRCP said that it was “greatly concerned” by the court’s directive. “The wholesale blocking of entire channels — rather than addressing specific instances of unlawful or hateful speech in accordance with due process — conflates dissent with criminal activity,” the statement said. “The constitutional right to freedom ...

HYDERABAD: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called for an immediate and independent judicial inquiry into events surrounding May 20 protest in Moro, Naushahro Feroze district. Given the incident occurred in the constituency of provincial home minister and political rivals had been named in FIRs as the police-protester confrontation had reportedly resulted in multiple injuries on both sides and fatalities among protesters, the commission questioned impartiality of the police-led investigation announced by Sindh IGP, said a press release issued by HRCP on Saturday. “We therefore urge the Sindh government to announce an independent judicial inquiry without delay to establish the facts, ensure accountability and uphold rights of all citizens involved,” it said. It said that an HRCP fact-finding mission had visited Moro to investigate the events that unfolded after the demonstrations erupted along National Highway against proposed construction of canals on Indus River and allocation of land for c...

LAHORE: A monthly income of over Rs75,000 is now required to support a family of six with basic necessities such as food, housing, utilities, healthcare and education, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP). As the government prepares to announce the federal budget, the HRCP has urged that wages must reflect the principle that “full-time workers should be able to live with security, health and hope.” In its latest report titled ‘From Survival to Dignity: The Case for a Living Wage’, the HRCP argues for the implementation of a living wage rather than a minimum wage. It noted that millions of workers across the country earn far below the living wage threshold, which forces them to make impossible choices between feeding their families and paying for essentials like electricity and medicine. “The implementation of a living wage can be justified on many grou­n­­ds,” the report said. “From a human rights perspective, a living wage becomes a fundamental right to ensure that workers not only mee...

Human rights defenders Tahira Abdullah and Samina Omar were released following a short detention in Islamabad on Friday, a Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) activist told Dawn.com. The HRCP earlier condemned the “arbitrary arrest of human rights defenders Tahira Abdullah and Samina Omar in Islamabad” in a post on X. According to the post, the pair was taken into custody outside the National Press Club ahead of a protest in solidarity with the people of Gaza. “Given that neither of them was part of any public gathering at the time, their actions in no way constitute a violation of Section 144 as the police have alleged,” the statement said. Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code is a legal provision that empowers district administrations to prohibit an assembly of four or more people in an area for a limited period. The statement said the commission was “concerned to learn that [the women] are allegedly not being given access to their legal counsel”. “Both Ms Abdullah and Ms Omar must be released ...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Sunday strongly condemned the “murder of three individuals” in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bajaur district in a “suspected honour-related attack” earlier this week. Last week, War Mamond Police Station House Officer Niaz Mohammad said that a suspect allegedly shot dead a 28-year-old married woman, and then killed a 33-year-old man. He added the suspect’s gunfire also hit a 70-year-old woman, who was pronounced dead at the District Headquarters Hospital, Khar, after suffering serious injuries. The police officer, who visited the site of the incident, said that the suspect fled after committing the crime, saying the 28-year-old was said to be the relative of the killer. However, he had said that efforts were underway to arrest the suspected killer after registering a case against him. According to a statement issued today by the HRCP, the organisation strongly condemned the murder of three individuals in the Bajaur district. “Such acts of violence are a gross violation...