Pakistan watchdog says country failing on human rights
ISLAMABAD — An independent rights group in Pakistan said Monday that the country has failed to make progress on several issues over the past year, ranging from forced disappearances to women’s rights and protection of religious minorities.
The damning report card issued by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says people continue to disappear, sometimes because they criticize the military or advocate better relations with neighbouring India.
It said a controversial blasphemy law continues to be misused, especially against dissidents, with cases in which mere accusations that someone committed blasphemy against Islam led to deadly mob violence. While deaths directly linked to acts of terrorism declined in 2017, the report says attacks against minorities were on the rise.
The 296-page report was dedicated to one of the commission’s founders, Asma Jahangir, whose death in February generated a worldwide outpouring of grief and accolades for the 66-year-old activist.