Press release HRCP denied permission to hold demonstration for Cholistanis’ land rights Lahore, 11 September 2023. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has been denied permission by the local civil administration in Bahawalpur to hold a peaceful demonstration and press conference to express its concerns over the allotment of land to nonresidents in Cholistan—one

Press release Dire need for better governance and accountability HRCP launches fact-finding report on rights violations in northern Sindh Karachi, 8 September 2023. In its fact-finding report titled Northern Sindh: In Search of Solutions launched in Karachi today, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed deep concern over the human rights situation

Press release Uncertainty around elections must end immediately Lahore, 3 September 2023. The governing Council of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), on concluding a meeting earlier today, has expressed immense concern over the uncertainty surrounding the general elections. HRCP insists that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announce an election schedule promptly

Press release HRCP calls for extensive electoral reforms Lahore, 2 September 2023. At a seminar held earlier today, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) presented the findings of a discussion paper calling for extensive electoral reforms. Titled Making Elections Credible: The Need for Electoral Reforms, the paper argues that such reforms are critical

Press release Next elected government must not procrastinate on enforced disappearances Lahore, 30 August 2023. Marking International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expresses grave concern over the lack of progress not only in tracing victims but also holding perpetrators accountable. Despite repeated calls for action from civil society, including victims’ families,

Press release HRCP conference takes stock of the 1973 Constitution at 50 Islamabad, 28 August 2023. At a conference organised to mark 50 years of the 1973 Constitution, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)’s secretary-general Harris Khalique said that this was an opportunity to take stock of the Constitution as a social contract

Press release HRCP fact-finding mission to Jaranwala finds local Muslim religious leaders complicit in attacks Lahore, 25 August 2023. According to a fact-finding mission initiated by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), at least 24 churches and several dozen smaller chapels as well as scores of houses in Jaranwala were torched and looted

Press release HRCP concerned by lack of transparency in detaining PTI women, Imran Khan’s prison conditions Lahore, 22 August 2023. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is deeply concerned by the lack of transparency surrounding the continued detention of women associated with the PTI, who were arrested following the 9 May riots. It

Press release Government must cease attempts to control civil liberties Lahore, 2 August 2023. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) strongly opposes the recent slew of hastily passed legislation, none of which has undergone critical deliberation even at the parliamentary level, much less public debate. Most recently, the amended Official Secrets Act 1923,

Press release Criminalise employment of minor domestic workers Lahore, 30 July 2023. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) demands that the employment of minor domestic workers be criminalised, following the case of 13-year-old Rizwana Bibi, who was brutally tortured over a sustained period, allegedly at the hands of her employers. That such cases