Pakistan NGO: More deaths in encounters than in terror attacks
NEW DELHI: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said on Monday that more Pakistanis had died in incidents described as “encounters” than in terror attacks last year.
The independent NGO’S annual report for 2017 said: “More Pakistanis died in incidents described by law enforcement agencies as encounters than in gun violence or in suicide attacks in 2017, according to the findings of research conducted by the Centre for Research and Security Studies.”
HRCP noted that last year, Pakistan was elected to the UN Human Rights Council and called it a “diplomatic success”, but questioned whether the country’s commitment to rights can be fulfilled.
The report further raised concerns about the growing number of blasphemy cases. The report said: “In an environment where ‘innocent until proven guilty’ carries no weight, an accusation of blasphemy leads to a lynching by a zealous mob.
“Journalists and bloggers continue to sustain threats, attacks and abductions, and the blasphemy law serves to coerce people into silence.”
The report added that “there was no abatement in violence against religious minorities”, noting the Christian, Ahmadi, Hazara, Hindu and Sikh communities had all been targeted.
HRCP raised concerns over the number of murders, rapes, acid attacks, kidnappings, incidents of domestic violence, and honour killings, adding that most such crimes “in the main, go unreported”.