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ANNUAL REPORT

January 2022 – December 2022 & 2021 Timeline 

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​ASSAULTS | ARRESTS | HARASSMENT 

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  • May 9, 2023, and onwards: security forces arrested, kidnapped, and booked opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leadership, activists, and PTI-leaning media personalities, including You Tuber Imran Riaz Khan, columnist Orya Maqbool Jan and anchorperson Aftab Iqbal. The local courts released Orya Jan and anchorperson Aftab Iqbal, but Mr. Riaz and a YouTuber, Arqum Sheikh’s whereabouts remained unknown. The police manhandled Express News producer, Syed Mustajab Hassan, Suno TV producer Muhammad Faizan Ashraf, daily Intekhab cameraperson Alexander Kalwi, GNN News reporter Faizan Ali and cameraperson Shehbaz Ali, AFP reporter Banaras Khan, GTV News reporter Fateh Bugti. The police booked or arrested Azmat Khan, affiliated with Mashal Radio, Hassan Ali, affiliated with The Nation, Nasrullah Gadani, affiliated with daily Awami Awaz and Rafiq Sajid, affiliated with the channel City 49, mistaking them as PTI workers. PTI protesters attacked Ahtesham Khan, affiliated with Express-News, and Arif Hayat affiliated with DAWN News, and damaged Aaj TV and DAWN news DSNG vans in different parts of the country. May 20, 2023: The police raided journalist Shahid Aslam, affiliated with Bol News house in Lahore. May 24, 2023: Ali Raza, brother of the senior journalist Sami Abraham filed a police report of the abduction of Mr. Abraham in Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan. According to the report, unidentified men abducted the journalist on his way back home from Bol News, the news channel he was affiliated with. The police assured the family of full cooperation. Mr. Abraham is among the former PM Imran Khan’s leaning journalists. The arrests and protests ensued from a violent countrywide protest by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) after paramilitary forces arrested PTI Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case. The rioters damaged public property worth Rs. 2.49 Billion, exams were canceled, and commuters were stranded for hours in suffocating heat. The PTI leadership's irresponsible and hate speeches against all opponents instigated its activists to attack the national heritage buildings and property, including the former residence of the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah House, now Corps Commander’s House, General Head Quarter (GHQ), Radio Pakistan and destroyed the monuments of national pride. The arsonists set Audi dealership in Lahore. In the widely circulated videos, PTI leadership and activists are seen inciting violence and engaging in hate speeches. Mr. Khan has threatened political opponents and continuously labeled them as thieves, state institutions, the judiciary, and the media. However, the Islamabad High Court protected Mr. Khan with a “Blanket Relief” and granted him bail in over a hundred cases, and ordered the authorities not to arrest Mr. Khan. The tragic events led to intermittent internet and mobile data suspension, slow surfing, and the suspension of social media to encourage the dissemination of fake news and PTIs powerful media cell to instigate more violence. The internet suspension cost Pakistan telecom industry whopping losses of Rs1.6 billion. Daily wages workers, delivery services, and vendors were not able to feed their families. After countrywide violence and destruction, the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Umar Ata Bandiyal shocked the nation and faced fierce backlash by greeting former PM Imran Khan with “Good to see you” while granting him a quick bail. Mr. Khan who blamed US conspiracy behind his removal, reached back to the US for support.   https://twitter.com/murtazasolangi/status/1658321228472414208   https://twitter.com/DanMir_musings/status/1657291698878160896https://twitter.com/EPropoganda1/status/1656960342201860096   https://twitter.com/MurtazaViews/status/1659878276272095232?s=20   https://twitter.com/bilalfqi/status/1659683787071008771?s=20&fbclidhttps://pakistan24.tv/2023/05/25/53112  The National Security Committee (NSC), government, and the security forces declared May 9 a BALCK DAY, while PTI alleged the security forces behind riots. May 20, 2023: Pakistan announced the commencement of the legal process for military trials against “planners, instigators, abettors, and perpetrators” involved in the May 9 violence. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his cabinet agreed to the military courts for civilians.


  • May 9, 2023: Pakistan largest Jang and Geo TV Network Media Group abruptly terminated the employment of Faheem Siddiqui, who worked as Bureau Chief and also the General Secretary of Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ), and Mudassar Saeed, former Senior Executive Producer North Geo News. Mr. Siddique alleged his terminations are the aftermath of organizing the protests for unpaid wages, dues, and stagnant salaries for years. https://twitter.com/geofahmigeo/status/1655853894378090497 



  • April 19, 2023: unidentified kidnappers kidnapped journalist Gohar Wazir, president of the Bannu Press Club and affiliated with KhyberNews247. The kidnappers released Mr. Wazir after 30 hours. Mr. Wazir told police that his kidnappers took him to an undisclosed and tortured him. In 2019, the security agencies picked Mr. Wazir for covering Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) protest. Mr. Wazir primarily covers human rights issues. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists - CPJ, the captors gave Mr. Wazir electric shocks. Motive and Kidnappers UNKNOWN    


  • April 11, 2023: an individual from the Punjab Excise and Taxation Department harassed journalist Sadia Mazhar after she filed a Right to Information request in compliance with the Right to Information laws. According to Ms. Mazhar, the individual is an officer with the Punjab Excise and Taxation Department, Lahore. Ms. Mazhar had filed RTIs at the Sahiwal Club and the Punjab Excise and Taxation Department. The Secretary of Sahiwal Club responded to the RTI with a counterattack by threatening Ms. Mazhar that her RTI is punishable under Section 182 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and a formal complaint against her.https://twitter.com/SaddiaMazhar/status/1645882492833112064 May 15, 2023: Sahiwal Club Apologized to Journalist Saddia Mazhar for Inappropriate Statement.
    https://twitter.com/SaddiaMazhar/status/1658187504539820053?s=20


  • April 11, 2023: unidentified kidnappers kidnapped privately-owned channel Bol News Marketing Head Akash Ram from outside the Bol News office in Karachi. Bol News staff called the disappearance an “abduction.” BOL News Bureau Chief Islamabad Siddique Jan and Sami Ibrahim said that “all proof of Akash’s abduction has been presented to the Supreme Court (SC), and Akash abducted as Bol decided not to air the voice of those who were abusing the judiciary.” Developing Story – Motive Unknown 


  • March 26, 2023: unidentified people attacked cameraman Daniyal, affiliated with Bol News while covering historical inflation in the busy Saddar market of Karachi. In video footage, Mr. Dniyal alleged that the "fruit vendors were attacking a woman; after noticing the media, they attacked the media crew, assaulted the driver, tried to kill him (Mr. Daniyal), and damaged the camera, and the people rescued the crew from the attackers.” Mr. Daniyal was seen with a bloody face in the footage, the blood oozing from his left brow.https://twitter.com/sanjaysadhwani2/status/1639988938688299011?s=20  . The police arrested four fruit vendors for assault.    


  • March 23, 2023: Azhar Mashwani, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan's focal person and social media activist, went missing and was later found in police custody. The PTI leadership told the media that Mr. Mashwani was arrested from Lahore and later shifted to Islamabad. March 31, 2023: Mr. Mashwani announced his safe return home on his Twitter feed.https://twitter.com/MashwaniAzhar/status/1641752230247165953


  • ​March 21, 2023: daily The NEWS reported that “Unidentified terrorists attacked the house of a journalist, damaging the abode partially,” in Kohat, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. The NEWS quoted the police, “unknown terrorists carried out a blast on the main gate and then opened fire with automatic weapons on the house of Syed Yasir Shah, district correspondent for The News International and Geo.” ​


  • March 20, 2023: Islamabad Capital Police arrested Siddique Jan, a YouTuber, journalist, and Islamabad Bureau Chief affiliated with Bol News. According to the police, Siddique Jan has been arrested in the case 03/23 that ensued from the rioting at the Federal Judicial Complex (FJC)https://twitter.com/ICT_Police/status/1638067800206987264.Violent clashes erupted between the riot police and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters at the time of opposition leader Imran Khan's court appearance. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has increased arrests, censorships, and cases targeting PTI supporters. PTI Chief and ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan continue to defy court summons and use human shields to avoid arrest.  March 22, 2023: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) repealed the charges and released Mr. Jan.



  • ​​March 14 & 15, 2023: the powerful and politically connected land-grabbers attacked the media crew, injured Shahadat Baloch, a senior Cameraman affiliated with AajNews, Kashif Mushtaq, Geo News reporter and Zeeshan Iqbal, Geo News cameraman. The attackers damaged Aaj News Digital Satellite News Gathering (DSNG) van and equipment and snatched an Apple watch and smartphone from the Geo crew in Gulistan-e-Johar, Karachi. The journalists sustained non-life-threatening injuries.. The media teams were on the spot for the coverage of the authorities’ action to vacate the land from allegedly illegal occupants. Over the years, the land mafia has emerged as an invincible force backed by politicians, influential, dominant individuals, and groups. Among many people who lost their lives resisting and blowing whistles against the land mafia, author, director of Orangi Pilot Project (OPP), and social activist Perween Rahman was murdered in 2013 for her activism. Another motive for the murder was intolerance towards other ethnicities. The court freed all four accused, citing a lack of evidence. However, the main suspect was handed a much lighter punishment than what was fitting to the crime. 


  • March 1, 2023: Dawn newspaper reported Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) “activists tortured some reporters and cameramen and damaged the equipment” in Toba Tek Singh, the Punjab province. A former PTI minister Farrukh Habib had invited the local media to celebrate a court order for the elections within 90 days. Journalists boycott the event after the assault. Sourcehttps://www.dawn.com/news/1739797


  • February 28, 2023: police assaulted journalists Saqib Bashir Express-News, Zeeshan Syed Neo TV, Shah Khalid ARY News, Abbas Shabbir Bol News, and Idrees Abbasi GNN in the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC). The journalists alleged a deputy inspector general of police and an Assistant Commissioner were present and witnessed the assault. The Ramna precinct police refused to register a police report (known as the first information report – FIR), even though the police assault was captured by IHC surveillance cameras. The Press Association of Supreme Court (PAS), Islamabad High Court Journalists Association, and other journalist organizations appealed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, but the government took no action. The reason for the police assault remained unclear, and no injuries have been reported. Eventually, after six days, the police registered a case. https://twitter.com/asifbashirch/status/1631300660049199104   https://twitter.com/MAZAMGILL5/status/1631991191645437953​


  • February 27, 2023: authorities arrested Amjad Shoaib, an octogenarian retired lieutenant general, You tuber, and analyst, under sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups, etc) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), in Islamabad. Mr. Shoaib was booked after expressing his opinions in a TV show. On March 2, 2023, a court ordered Mr. Shoaib's release.


  • February 20, 2023: a journalist Liaqat Hussain affiliated with the daily Qoum, filed a police report (first information report – FIR) against five known and 20 unidentified men for assault, robbery of Rs.27,300, a watch, his cell phone, and held him hostage, in Rahim Yar Khan, the Punjab province. Mr. Hussain sustained eye injuries. According to Mr. Hussain, the motive for the attack was his coverage of the land-grabbing.Source https://www.dawn.com/news/1738372/two-dozen-booked-for-torture-of-journalist


  • February 18, 2023: senior journalist and anchorperson Hamid Mir reported via his verified Twitter account @HamidMirPAK the arrest of four journalists Ghulamullah Sial, Pervez Gopang, Ahmad Ali Rind, and Dost Ali in Khairpur, Sindh province. He also quoted the journalists' allegations that they were arrested for crime reporting and the police refusal to provide a copy of the police report (first information report – FIR) to their lawyer https://twitter.com/HamidMirPAK/status/1626900889524137984 . The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mir Rohal Khoso denied the claims of torture https://twitter.com/MirRohalPSP/status/1626937623020199938 and Tweeted the accused have been booked for extortion. However, the journalists were released upon the intervention of the provincial leadership. Later, journalist Ghulamullah Sial reiterated the torture claims and said the arrests were made purely because they reported on police and criminals collusion.   https://twitter.com/HamidMirPAK/status/1626915281460420609 


  • February 17, 2023: police arrested Ahmed Abbas Orakzai, a founding member of the National Democratic Movement (NDM), a movement that claims to fight for the rights of Pashtuns in Kohat, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. Mr. Orakzai's party and friends called him a peace activist and said he has been arrested for welcoming Ali Wazir, a lawmaker who was released from jail after almost two years.


  •  February 16, 2023: a local court sentenced Sikander Zaman (@imsikanderzaman), a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporter, for tweeting against the Pakistan army and its leadership. Mr. Zaman has been sentenced to three years with huge fines under sections 20 (Malicious code), 24(c) (Legal recognition of offenses committed to information system) of PECA (Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act) act 2016, sections 500 and 505 (Punishment for defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code. According to the court, Zaman was part of a “highly obnoxious and intimidating campaign.” Six army officers were martyred in a helicopter crash while performing flood relief duties on August 1, 2022.​


  • February 2, 2023: the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested BOL News anchorperson and YouTuber Imran Riaz Khan at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore. According to the police report (first information report – FIR), partly shared on social media verified accounts, Mr. Khan has been booked under the 2016 Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) and the penal code. On January 30, 2023, Mr. Khan criticized retired army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa for his alleged involvement in politics while addressing a seminar titled “violence against journalists in Pakistan.” February 3, 2023: a court ordered the release of Mr. Khan. Chronology of Arrests and Harassment:July 15, 2022: authorities barred Imran Riaz Khan, from flying to Dubai for medical tests. Mr. Khan alleged that something was harmful in the food given to him during his detention. He had a return ticket to Pakistan. July 5, 2022: provincial Punjab police arrested Imran Riaz Khan from Islamabad Toll Plaza. His arrest violated his pre-arrest bail by the court. More than a dozen police reports (FIRs) have been filed against Mr. Riaz across the country with charges from sedition to insulting the state institutions and inciting violence. Mr. Khan was released after the Lahore High Court (LHC) granted bail on July 9, 2022. Journalist Khan has been reporting intermittent police built-ups and drone surveillance around his house.


  • January 2023: authorities arrested journalist Shahid Aslam, affiliated with Bol News, over his alleged involvement in the tax data leak and publishing a story of the retired army chief, Qamar Javed Bajwa, in Lahore. Mr. Aslam had reported that the former army chief and his family embezzled over Rs12.7 billion during Mr. Bajwa's tenure as army chief. The Pakistani government called the leak a breach of personal information. The counsel representing Mr. Aslam denied his client's involvement in the leakage of the information. High-ranking officers of the Pakistan armed forces are elites and considered above the law. January 19, 2023: a court granted bail to journalist Aslam.


  • January 11, 2023: unknown attackers attacked, threw a grenade, and attempted to set ablaze the house of a senior journalist Muhammad Ali Turi in Kurram district, the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Journalist Turi's mother and daughter were home at the time of the attack but did not report injuries. Mr. Turi is the vice president of the Kurram press club, affiliated with the Suno (listen) radio station and Public TV. The police were investigating the motive of the attack.


MINORITIES | BLASPHEMY 

  • May 22, 2023: Muhammad Naeem, affiliated with the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a party based on religious extremism, filed a police report under blasphemy sections 295-B / 295-C against his relative in Rahim-Yar-Khan, the Punjab province. Naeem alleged his close relative Rafique Ahmad for desecrating Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his daughter and recording a video. 295C carries the death penalty.https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FwzxT5OaYAAWMXx?format=jpg&name=large  RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION


  • May 19, 2023: The Federal Shariat Court (FSC) ruled that the change of gender is against the Islamic (Shariat) laws, and a person cannot choose to do it. The ruling also declared sections of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018 Un-Islamic. The court ruled Sections 2(f) (definition of ‘gender identity), 2(n)(iii) (definition of ‘Transgender Person), and Sections 3 (recognition of the identity of the transgender person) and 7 (right to inherit) of the Transgender un-Islamic. The vulnerability and plight of LGBTQ go beyond segregation, abandonment, violence, body shaming, gender-based violence, and gender-biased laws in Pakistan. The clerics are hesitant to do their religious rituals after their deaths, and now the graveyards are refusing the funerals – They are killed, hated, isolated, and mocked just for what they are. Motive: RELIGIOUS BELIEFS / HOMOPHOBIA  https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fwhi6glaEAA6uK0?format=jpg&name=large  https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fwhi4iJaUAAU8p3?format=jpg&name=large


  • May 18, 2023: police arrested two Christian males, 18-year-old Adil Babar and 14-year-old Simon Masih and booked them under Section 295-C (punishable by death) of blasphemy laws. Babar and Masih had a heated argument with a police constable Zahid Sohail in the neighborhood over some issues. Blasphemy allegations are widely and arbitrarily used in Pakistan against political opponents, petty issues, and minorities in particular. BLASPHEMY / MINORITIES  


  • May 12, 2023: Mission Net Work News reported a man broke both arms of a Christian missionary for preaching and distributing Bibles. “He was coming out of a prayer meeting and was going to take a motorcycle cab ride. He began to minister to the fellow Pakistani and said, ‘We distribute Bibles and I want to give you a Bible. I’m a Christian, and Jesus Christ is the only way to our Father in Heaven.’ [The driver] seemed to be receptive of that. Then [the driver] drove him out off the path and severely broke both of his arms, his wrists, and his hands, and told our Mission Cry missionary that ‘you’ll never distribute Bibles again.” Motive: HATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION


  • May 4, 2023: religious fundamentalists and arsonists attacked and set a Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community mosque on fire and destroyed the minarets and properties, causing worth millions of rupees in damages to the property, in Dholanabad, Mirpurkhas, part of Sindh province. The intruders used ladders to enter the mosque. The police were reluctant to register the case till filing this report. Motive: HATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION The Sunni majority makes up 76-80% of the total population of Pakistan and vehemently refuses to call Ahmadis (Ahmadiyya or Qadyani) Muslims. The Sunni forced Ahmadis not to bury their dead bodies in the Sunni cemeteries. The Ahmadis are subjected to prolonged persecution in Pakistan. A former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, declared Ahmadiyya or Qadyani “non-Muslim,” in 1974. Since then, hundreds of the members of the Ahmadiyya community have been killed, thrown in jails, and deprived of employment opportunities. Tens of thousands have left Pakistan. Since the declaration, the Ahmadiyya community has been subjected to continuous persecution and discrimination by the succeeding governments and vigilantes. Ahmadiyya community is not allowed to call their worship place a masjid (mosque) like the rest of the Muslims. It is also a punishable offense for Ahmadis to call themselves Muslim or refer to their faith as Islam or use references from Muslim books. Under Sections 298-B & C of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC)." Section 298-C of the PPC prohibits the Ahmadiyya community to identify themselves as Muslims. Under Section 298-C of PPC, "Any person of the Qadiani group or the Lahori group (who call themselves "Ahmadis" or by any other name), who directly or indirectly poses himself as a Muslim, or calls, or refers to, his faith as Islam, or preaches or propagates his faith, or invites others to accept his faith, by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representations, or in any manner whatsoever outrages the religious feelings of Muslims, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine." ​


  • May 5, 2023: a mob lynched a 40-year-old Maulana Nigar Alam over blasphemy allegations in a public meeting called in by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) in Mardan, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. The victim had said in his speech to the PTI workers, ‘I respect him (referring to one of the leaders of PTI) like a prophet.’ The victim was affiliated with PTI, a cleric and an activist calling for the toughest, blasphemy laws. According to the reports, the killers were participants in the PTI meeting, but no one attempted to protect the victim. https://twitter.com/ASY53/status/1654943718896549889


  • May 4, 2023: unidentified shooters killed seven teachers, belonging to the Muslim minority Shiite (Shia) community in a school in an examination hall of the Government High School of Teri Mangal area, the Kurram district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). The killing of seven teachers, followed immediately after unknown shooters had killed a Sunni Muslim, a rival sect teacher in the area. According to the Police, "a land dispute dating back to 1950 between Gedu and Pewar villages has been claiming the lives of the villagers." In 2021, sixteen villagers were been killed over a land dispute. The crime scene is located in a remote area bordering Afghanistan and is largely inaccessible for journalists and human rights activists to verify the police or administration account. Motive: the Police called it LAND DISPUTE however Human Rights activists call for more investigation fearing a sectarian or HATE CRIME.


  • April 27, 2023: Muslimabad mosque and graveyard refused the rituals and burial of an elderly transgender person, Noor, in Karachi, Sindh province. According to Aaj News, “Hina then called Shahzadi Rai for help, as she is the transgender representative for the Sindh Police and has contacts with senior police officers. The police cooperated after Shahzadi made a few calls. They issued Hina the permission letter and a forensics team was sent to Noor’s house. The body was then finally taken by Edhi’s ambulance for a burial.”https://www.aajenglish.tv/news/30319369/muslimabad-mosque-graveyard-refuse-transgender-body-funeral  Motive: RELIGIOUS BELIEFS / HOMOPHOBIA 


  • April 27, 2023: the police booked a lawyer Syed Ali Ahmad Tariq, belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community, under blasphemy sections 298-B and 298-C for using the surname 'Syed.' The plaintiff Muhammad Azhar Khan, a lawyer, filed a police report (known as the first information report – FIR), alleging that Mr. Ali Ahmad Tariq intentionally recognized himself in the court as Syed Ali Ahmad Tariq (Syed is the sacred name for Muslims with the links to the lineage of the Holy Prophet). Mr. Tariq is a Supreme Court of Pakistan Lawyer.https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FuuGYkTX0AEz3aL?format=jpg&name=900x900Motive: HATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION May 22, 2023:  a court granted bail to Syed Ali Ahmad Tariq.



  • April 25, 2023: the police arrested a man Muhammad Ismail for assaulting a man Sikandar William for his Christian faith in Sialkot, the Punjab province. The police identified the attacker Ismail in a viral video where he was heard abusing and torturing Mr. William for his faith. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FukERJkaEAITWDa?format=jpg&name=largeMotiveHATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION


  • April 19, 2023: police arrested a Muslim man Muhammad Sarmad, and Musarrat Bibi, a Christian widow and mother of three young daughters, for blasphemy allegations in Arifwala, the Punjab province. Ms. Bibi and Mr. Sarmad work for a local school. The supervisors asked them to clean the storeroom. They complied and burnt the old papers (a common practice in Pakistan). Later, people claimed to find the sacred pages and alleged Ms. Bibi and Mr. Sarmad for blasphemy. SourceMorning Star News  May 12, 2023: Muhammad Sarmad, and Musarrat Bibi released on bail.



  • April 16 & 17, 2023: religious fundamentalists armed with hammers and iron rods attacked and demolished the minarets and dome of a mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community in Sargodha, the Punjab province. The mosque was built in 1905. The Ahmadiyya community said, “The police were also present at the time of the attack, and the police know about the attackers.”https://twitter.com/SaleemudDinAA/status/1647986794347261952?s=20 Motive: HATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION 


  • April 16, 2023: Pastor Younis Jawaid Masih, Church Incharge Khokar Town Islamabad, filed a police report Number 330/23 (known as the first information report – FIR), police Station Khanna, about “sexual harassment on his daughter when she was coming to the Church with her brother. He further reported that the same day, at least forty assailants fired shots, attacked and desecrated the Church during congregation," and fled before the police arrived.” The pastor has named some accused in the FIR. 


  • April 15, 2023: the local police took a Chinese engineer in protective custody to protect him from mob lynching over blasphemy allegations at the site of the Dasu hydropower project in Kohistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. According to some reports, the engineer disciplined a worker related to the job. The worker interpreted that as blasphemy and attacked the engineer's office with workers. Mr. Tian is the head of heavy transport at the China Gezhouba Group Company constructing the Dasu hydropower and denied blasphemy allegations. However, the police charged him with blasphemy, and Mr. Tian was in jail even after 24 hours. Blasphemy has been widely and arbitrarily used in Pakistan to settle personal enmity and frighten minorities. During Ramadan, the labor and production output dropped significantly in Pakistan. People take longer breaks for prayers, and most government employees do not report back to work after 1 pm. April 26, 2023: An anti-Terrorism Court granted bail to Mr. Tian.


  • April 14, 2023: furious mob tried to lynch a woman over blasphemy allegations in Faisalabad, the Punjab province. The local police reached in time and took the woman into protective custody. The mod dispersed after the police assurance of punishing the suspect with a fitting punishment. However, the police arrested the suspect, identified as Sana, her sister, and brother-in-law, for blasphemy. The incident ensued from a video of a lady claiming her sister a prophet and endorsing her.   


  • April 13, 2023: a man identified as Zubair Anwar attacked and injured a lawyer Amir Munir, belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community and known to defend the blasphemy accused, in his chamber in Chiniot, the Punjab province. Mr. Anwar used a cleaver in the attack and loudly threatened to kill the victim. Mr. Munir sustained injuries to the head. The attacker is affiliated with a seminary Khatam e Nabuwwat Madrassa, which promotes Jihad and death to the other faiths. The attacker has attacked the members of the Ahmadi community in the past. The victim has filed a police report Serial No. CHT-LAL-003485.https://twitter.com/shezanmango/status/1647219097267044353  Motive of the attack:  HATE CRIME / RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION   


  • April 6, 2023: the Lahore High Court Bar Association issued a Press Release alleging that blasphemy against the sacred personalities of Islam continues on social media. The Press Release arrogantly claimed that it had 119 people locked up behind bars and eleven suspects for blasphemy sentenced to death. http://www.freedomtalk.net/ calls the Press Release extremely disturbing and detrimental to the fairness of law and justice. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FtRS8yrWAAEp0LS?format=jpg&name=large


  • April 6, 2023: the police booked Muhammad Ali Mirza, a self-proclaimed religious rhetorician, and YouTuber, under section 16/ 1960 of The Punjab Maintenance of Public Order ordinance. Plaintiff had requested to book Mr. Mirza for alleged blasphemy under section 295C.https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FtRbqXjXoAAEil2?format=jpg&name=large   


  • April 1, 2023: minorities and human rights activists reported the abductions of at least two Hindu females from different parts of the Sindh province. The parents, friends, and families alleged the Muslim men kidnapped Sheela Meghwar and 17-year-old Lachmi for possible forced conversions for forced marriages in March 2023. They also alleged the police and local administration for not registering timely police reports.


  • March 24 & 25, 2023: Violating Article 20 of the Pakistan constitution and the Supreme Court of Pakistan 2014 ruling of the then Chief Justice of Pakistan, Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, religious fundamentalists, local authorities, and the police destroyed the minarets and dome of a mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community in Kalara Kalan, a village near Gujarat, in the Punjab province. The demolishers snatched the phones of the onlookers to prevent video recording. The police and the authorities said, "they acted under the court orders.”   RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION / HATE CRIME  


  • March 16, 2023: Shahzadi Rai, transgender rights activist and the violence case manager at Gender Interactive Alliance shared footage of the people harassing and threatening her. Ms. Shahzadi called the intruders “clerics” who were holding acid bottles, hurled life threats, and intended to harm her. Ms. Shahzadi said this was the fourth time the intruders show up at her door. She was not home at the time of the occurrence, and her friend, who was at home, made the footage. The police have registered a case. https://twitter.com/ShahzadiRai/status/1636301327218122753  https://twitter.com/ShahzadiRai/status/1636347590135382018


  • March 7, 2023:District Bar Association Gujranwala (Punjab Province) banned members of the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community from the Bar membership. The Bar Association declared it mandatory to sign an affidavit and oath denouncing the Ahmadi faith. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FreY4OXWwAA34j8?format=jpg&name=medium  On October 13, 2022, the provincial government of Punjab made an affidavit mandatory for marriage that the newlyweds believe in the finality of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The announcement has been made on the verified Twitter account of the Punjab government.  The lawmakers of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) work together for the resolution to disconnect persecuted Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community from social assimilation. https://twitter.com/GovtofPunjabPK/status/1580813342004105219 In September 2022, Muhammad Naeem Chattha Qadri, a cleric affiliated with Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), ordered his supporters to attack the pregnant women, belonging to the persecuted Muslim minority Ahmadiyya community. He repeatedly urged his followers to kill Ahmadis in his speech.  He asked his supporters to make sure “no Ahmadis are born and kill the newborn babies.” He also warned police that TLP is unstoppable. In September 2022: the Chief Minister (CM) of Pakistan’s largest province Punjab, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, promised to build a mosque with a ban on Muslim-minority Ahmadiyya community entrance. He also warned the Christians, Hindus, and Muslim minorities to accept the repressive status quo or leave the country. September 2022, in the middle of the worst political crisis and biblical floods in Pakistan, Mian Javed Latif, a lawmaker and the vice president of the ruling party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), alleged opposition leader and ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan for blasphemy. In his speech, he also disdained the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community. Targeting minorities for political gains is an established mindset in Pakistan.https://twitter.com/i/status/1569953908373569536 


  • February 25, 2023: unidentified armed attackers attacked Marvia Malik, Pakistan's first transgender News Anchor, and Trans rights activist, in Lahore, the Punjab province. Malik told the police that she had been receiving threats for some time over raising her voice for the rights of the transgender community.She said her activism is the motive for the attack. Malik remained unhurt in the attack. In 2018, a privately owned Kohenoor TV hired Marvia Malik.


  • February 18, 2023: violent offenders accused and tortured Nosh, a teenage Christian sanitary worker, for stealing a cell phone in Malir Christian colony, Karachi. After Nosh repeated denials of committing the theft, the attackers kidnapped, tied, and tortured Nosh all night in a nearby house. The brutal torture marks were visible all over the body of Nosh. Later, the investigation proved Nosh's innocence, and the offenders released him.https://twitter.com/FreedomTalkNet/status/1631239153101750272


  • February 2023: armed attackers shot dead Muhammad Osama alias Mahnoor and critically injured Israr alias Gulalai, members of the Transgender community in Swat, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. The police claimed to have identified the suspects and conducted the raids for arrest. The motive of the murder is still under investigation.


  • February 11, 2023: religious fundamentalists attacked a police station, dragged a blasphemy suspect in custody out of the station, beat him to death, and burnt his body over blasphemy allegations in Nankana Sahib, the Punjab province. Before lynching the victim, the mob stripped him and dragged him on the streets. The victim Muhammad Waris was in custody over allegations of desecrating the Holy Book of Islam and sorcery. According to the police, hundreds of angry people gathered outside the station and demanded the custody of the victim, but the police ran away to save their own lives. After Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's notice, two senior police officers were suspended for protecting the victim, and the police arrested 12 suspects. RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION   HATE CRIME In February 2022, an enraged mob stoned to death a 41-year-old man Mushtaq Ahmed and hanged his body from a tree over blasphemy allegations in Mian Channu, the Punjab province. According to police, “the mosque custodian has seen Mr. Ahmed burning the pages of the Muslims Holy Book, and he informed other people first and later came to the police.”  The police claimed eight policemen were also injured who tried to save Mr. Ahmed and arrested 80 suspects. A fierce backlash on social media accused the police of not protecting Mr. Ahmed. A 49-year-old Sri Lankan man Priyantha Kumara Diyawadana was lynched over blasphemy allegations on December 3, 2021, in Sialkot, the Punjab province.


  •  February 10, 2023: religious fundamentalists desecrated five graves and removed Islamic inscriptions from the entrance of a shop belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community in Talwandi Khajoorwali, Gujranwala, the Punjab province. RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION   HATE CRIME  


  • February 4, 2023: a mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community was shot at by some unidentified attackers in Satellite Town, the Sindh province. The bullets hit the walls. Some worshippers were inside the mosque, but no fatalities or injuries were reported.  https://twitter.com/IamAmirMahmood/status/1622182898291077120   RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION  HATE CRIME


  • February 3, 2023: religious fundamentalists vandalized and set on fire two mosques belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community and damaged the property in Umerkot and Mirpurkhas, parts of the Sindh province.  RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION  HATE CRIME


  • February 2, 2023:  religious fundamentalists and supporters of a violent religious party attacked and demolished the minarets of a mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community in broader daylight while the police looked on at Preedy Street, Karachi. The Ahmadi community was struggling to file a police report. The police have yet to arrest the vandals who destroyed the minarets of an Ahmadi mosque a week ago in Karachi. Religious persecution  hate crime  


  • ​January 22, 2023: in an apparent hate crime, religious fundamentalists sneaked into a cemetery and desecrated the graves, and attempted to burn the coffins of the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community in Faisalabad, the Punjab province. Just a few days ago, the headstones of Ahmadi graves were destroyed in the said cemetery. 

 

  • January 21, 2023:  religious fundamentalists stopped the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community from burying a 75-year-old woman in the cemetery shared by the Muslim majority and minority communities in Chak Pero, Faisalabad, the Punjab province. The Ahmadi community then traveled an estimated 250 kilometers to bury the body. Religious persecutionhate crime    

 

  • January 2023: violating Article 20 of the Pakistan constitution and the Supreme Court of Pakistan 2014 ruling, the local police forced the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community to remove minarets from their places of worship in Toba Tek Singh, the Punjab province. Religious persecution  hate crime.    


  • January 18, 2023: in an apparent hate crime, religious fundamentalists sneaked into the mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community and damaged the minarets in Martin Road, Karachi. 


  • January 2023: the local police allegedly desecrated and demolished the minarets of a mosque belonging to the Muslim minority Ahmadiyya (Ahmadi) community at Moti Bazaar, Wazirabad. The police were acting upon a complaint filed under Section 298-B and 298-C of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) by a leader of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a party consisting of religious fundamentalists. The demolition and desecrations violate the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruling in 2014 to protect the minorities' worship places and ordered the government to establish a force to enforce the order. 

​

ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES


  • May 1, 2023: Baloch missing person activists and Baloch rights groups reported the enforced disappearances and kidnappings of at least twelve Baloch men from different parts of Pakistan during April 2023. Family, friends, and Baloch rights activists alleged security forces for the disappearances of Ali Hassan S/O Ghulam Nabi, Sarfraz Rakhshani S/O Uzmatullah, Ahmad Nazir, Sher Zaman S/O Sarbat Khan, Shoib S/O Ali Akbar, Shehzad Baloch, Zaheer Kethran, Zia Ullah S/O Noor Ullah, Inaam S/O Ishaq, Majid S/O Abdul Hameed, Bashir Ahmad & his brother (not identified) S/O Taj Muhammad. Short-term missing: Saghir S/O Rahim Bux, Akhtar S/O Ali, Tahir Aziz S/O Aziz, Javed Zehri S/O Mir Hassan Late updates: Addition, missing before April 2023: Rahamdil Baloch S/O Ismael Baloch (March 23, 2023). Returned: Waris S/O Musa, Habib Badini, Atiq Baloch, Wali Ullah Lahdi, Abdul Shakoor S/O Fateh Ali, Khalid S/O Muneer Ahmad, Liaqat Zehri.


  • April 20, 2023: Voice of Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) reported the discovery of three dead bodies in Marwara, Balochistan. VBMP identified the bodies as Fareed Shahwani S/O Ghulam Mustafa disappeared in August 2022 from Mastung, Balochistan, and Azeem Khan S/O Yaar Khan disappeared on March 21, 2013, while traveling between Quetta to Harnai, and Hazrat Samalani S/O Muhammad Khan disappeared in Harnai on March 23, 2023. The VMB alleged that the security forces had arrested the individuals. https://twitter.com/VBMP5/status/1649119800302665728   https://twitter.com/VBMP5/status/1649431304792952834


  • April 16, 2023: unidentified kidnappers kidnapped Dr. Fayyaz Lashari, and Dr. Nabidad Bugti in Ziarat Cross, Balochistan province. Hours later, the kidnappers released Dr. Nabidad, but Mr. Lashari was still missing. Families and friends alleged the security force for the kidnapping of Dr. Fayyaz Lashari, and Dr. Nabidad Bugti.https://twitter.com/aman_ullah55/status/1647529749189734400


  • April 10, 2023: Mr. Jawaid Ahmad Mahar filed a police report for the missing of his brother Ayaz Mahar in Karachi under sections 34 and 365. According to the reports, Mr. Mahar is one of the highest tax-paying Pakistanis, a politician, and the owner of the Unique Group, a petroleum, and Gas exploring group. Mr. Ayaz disappeared when he got out of his car on his way to his village from Karachi. His friends and sympathizers feared his arrest or enforced disappearance and launched a Twitter campaign #ReleaseAyazMahar Source 


  • April 5, 2023: Abdul Qayoom Gaincho, a third-year student at the Institute of Law Meetharam Hostel Building, University of Sindh Jamshoro, disappeared from Wadhu Wah Road, Qasimabad, province of Sindh. Mr. Gaincho returned after 48 hours. There are no reports of torture during his disappearance. Motive and Kidnappers:UNKNOWN


  • April 1, 2023: Baloch missing person activists and Baloch rights groups reported the enforced disappearances and kidnappings of at least nineteen Baloch men from different parts of Pakistan in March 2023. Family, friends, and Baloch rights activists alleged security forces for the disappearances of Ataullah, Namb Baloch (returned), Balochistan University BS. Student Abdul Sattar Marri S/O Rab Nawaz Marri, (Bashika Khan S/O Mehran, Moulvi Ghulam Baksh S/O Dara, Laal S/O Mir Hamd, Mughal and Moran S/O Dara, teacher Javed Marri - returned after four days), sportsman Sagheer Ahmad, Sher Khan S/O Alwan Bugti, Khalid S/O Muhammad Hassan, Asif S/O Abdullah, Waris Baloch, Nawaz Shafique, Mazahir Hussain, Shah Fahad S/O Mahmood Khan, and Minhaj Mukhtar. After his return, student Abdul Sattar Marri alleged Provincial Minister Mir Naseebullah Khan Marri for the kidnapping. Minister's office did not deny or issue any statement. 


  • March 9, 2023: Voice of Baloch Missing Persons reported a dead body was found in Mastung, Balochistan. The efforts to identify the body turned futile, and no one claimed the corpse. In September 2022, within 24 hours, the dead bodies of three Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) were found in different parts of the Sindh province. The family and friends of the deceased Waseem Akhtar, Abid Abbasi, and Irfan Basarat Siddiqui alleged the security forces for their enforced disappearances a few years ago. The activists were affiliated with the banned faction of the MQM, led by self-exiled leader Altaf Hussain. The dead bodies have visible torture marks, and the victims of extrajudicial killing followed by kidnappings. Two decomposed corpses were found in Turbat and Quetta, in Balochistan province. The Baloch rights activists for the Enforced Disappearances believed the corpses could be of the missing Baloch persons and demanded the government start the procedure for identifying the bodies. In August 2022, the dead body of a Sindhi nationalist, Aqib Chandio found two months after his alleged enforced disappearance. Law enforcement agencies (LEAs) have picked up Mr. Chandio twice in the past. That is an obvious case of extrajudicial killing. In June 2022, a decomposed dead body of the Baloch missing person Yasin Bugti was found near Chaman Bypass, province of Balochistan. Yasin Bugti was abducted from Quetta city in 2016. The family and friends told the media that all the people killed in the alleged encounters had been picked up by LEAs in the past.


  • March 8, 2023: unidentified armed attackers kidnapped Abid Mir, a writer, journalist, and the regional editor of Lok Sujag https://twitter.com/lok_sujag, a digital news media platform. March 10, 2023: Mr. Mir returned. Abid Mir's Statement after returning to his Twitter feed: "I,Abid Mir, am a writer, teacher, and freelance journalist from Balochistan,Pakistan. Last few days,I disappeared.The way literary figures, journalists, social media activists, human rights organizations, and national and international media outlets inside and outside Pakistan 1/ Regardless of what happened to me,enforced disappearances are a pressing and burning issue in Pakistan,particularly in Balochistan.We should all unite to raise our voices against enforced disappearance and must not remain silent unless the last missing person returns home safely."  https://twitter.com/AbidMir81/status/1635160390064807937   https://twitter.com/AbidMir81/status/1635160851895418880


  • March 1, 2023: (February 2023) family and friends and the activists of the Baloch missing persons reported that Saud Badini S/O Abdul Baqi, Khurram Badini S/O Abdul Samad (students), Muzammil Qambrani (poet); Qambrani returned after days, Rasheeda Zehri and Rahim Zehri (husband/ wife), Rahim’s mother and two daughters were also picked up, but released after spending two days in captivity; daughter-in-law returned after days in February 2023. Security forces kidnapped Another Balcoh woman Mahal Baloch, after a fierce backlash and countrywide protests, the counter-terrorism department (CTD) presented Mahal Baloch in court; the CTD alleged that Mahal was planning a suicide attack. Family, friends, and rights activists denied the CTD claims. http://freedomtalk.net/ found numerous legal flaws and discrepancies in the police report (first information report – FIR) dispelling the police allegations against Mahal Baloch. Returned in February 2023: Zohaib Raisani, Mohammad Riaz, and Mohammad Azam. 


  • February 17, 2023: family and friends alleged security forces for the enforced disappearances of Human Rights Council of Balochistan Chairperson BIBI Gul's mother Mehnaz, four other women, Mahal, Nugrah, Nazeenk, and Banadi; all women belong to the same family. The victim's family and friends alleged that law enforcement agencies (LEAs) for the attack, torture, and kidnappings. https://twitter.com/HRCBalochistan/status/1626938321917169665


  • February 3, 2023: 65-year-old Bibi Khantoon, her son Rahim Zehri, daughter-in-law Rasheeda Zehri and two grandkids aged four and one years, tortured and kidnapped from their home in Khuzdar, province of Balochistan. Bibi Khatoon and her grandkids were released after two days, while Mrs. Zehri returned home on February 14, while Mr. Zehri is still missing. On February 14, Rights activists, civil society, and members of the public protested in front of the Balochistan press club for the unjust arrest and forced disappearances. Balochistan provincial Interior Minister Zia Lango said, "the Government departments are not aware of such incident.” The kidnappers repeatedly hit Bibi Khatoon in the head before arrest. Rahim’s family and friends alleged that law enforcement agencies (LEAs) for the attack, torture, and kidnappings. https://twitter.com/BBCUrdu/status/1625665231731974145


  • February 3, 2023: unidentified assailants attacked, discharged firearms, attempted to kidnap Hafeez Baloch, and assaulted Mr. Baloch, his family, and friends outside Karachi Central Jail. Mr. Baloch and his family sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The plain cloth attackers were riding the vehicles commonly used by law enforcement agencies (LEAs). Hafeez Baloch’s family and friends alleged LEAs for the attack and attempted kidnapping. Hafeez Baloch is the victim of enforced disappearances. He was an M.Phil. student at Quaid-e-Azam University (QAU) and preparing for the final semester at the time of his forcible disappearance in 2022. He was arrested abroad and handed to the Pakistani authorities, who concealed his custody for a long time. He was released by a court order when the attack occurred outside Karachi Jail.https://twitter.com/VeengasJ/status/1621857792968605696


  • February 1, 2023: Baloch missing person activists and Baloch rights groups reported the enforced disappearances and kidnappings of at least twelve Baloch men from different parts of Pakistan in January 2023. Family, friends, and Baloch rights activists alleged security forces for the disappearances of Zohaib Raisani, Hamid S/O Bijjar, Ahmed S/O Ashraf, Babo S/O Hussain Ahmed, Raza Magsi, Abdul Khaliq Baloch S/O Ghulam Qambrani, Kiyya S/O Mohammad Ashraf, salam S/O Muhammad Azum, Khuda Rham, Naseeb-Ullah Shahwani S/O Bakhtawar Shahwani, Salam S/O Mohammad Azam, and Khuda Raheem S/O Mushki. Short-Term kidnapping: five men returned after being subjected to the short-term kidnapping; Noor Ahmad Hasni, Shams Saleh S/O Master Saleh, Atif S/O Mohammad Fazal, Sher Khan, and Basit Baloch. Returned: seven men returned after being missing for the past several months/ years; Suhail Baloch, Saud Naz, Yasir Bashir, Pir Jan Baloch, Siraj Noor, Arif Hamal, and Nadil Hussain.


  • ​January 2023: rights activists identified two tortured bodies found in Balochistan province as Waheed Zehri and Sarang Marri. The Baloch rights activists alleged security forces for the abduction and killings of the victims. The security forces did not issue any clarification. 


CENSORSHIPS | BANS | FINES


  • May 22, 2023: the provincial Punjab Government banned TV rating agency Medialogic over allegations of “anti-state activities raising high-risk security concerns.” The noted media rating agency remained in the news for quite some time for its alleged role in manipulating ratings and evaluations of mainstream TV channels. SourcePakistan Observer 


  • May 15, 2023: authorities restored Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube after a ban was imposed on May 9, 2023.


  • April 10, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) banned the coverage of bomb blasts, terrorism, and firing incidents. The ban was enforced after regrouping and the return of terrorist groups like Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a proscribed militant group, Pakistan’s deteriorating relations with the Afghan Taliban, and increased insurgency in Balochistan. Within the first three months of 2023, 854 people have been killed in terrorism and counterterrorism operation in Pakistan.


  • March 27, 2023: the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) censored the live broadcast of rallies and public assemblies to bar media from the telecast of the ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan's court appearance in Islamabad. The prohibition under section 27 of the PEMRA ordinance 2002 referred to the live telecast of violent attacks on police and law enforcement agencies LEAs at the time of Mr. Khan's court appearance in Lahore drew fierce criticism after LEAs and police used excessive force against his supporters. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FsL2g3uWAAA9wVK?format=jpg&name=large  https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FsL2hTKWYAAvCma?format=jpg&name=medium


  • March 18, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) banned BOL Channel transmission for live coverage of clashes between law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters at the Judicial Complex Islamabad. PEMRA has earlier banned electronic media from airing such content. https://twitter.com/reportpemra/status/1626868248460292096 


  • March 18, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) banned coverage of ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s court appearance and rallies in the judicial complex, enforcing the existing PEMRA laws. According to the letter, “PEMRA prohibits live/ recorded coverage of any kind of rally, public gathering procession by any party, organization, and individual, etc for today i.e March 18, 2023, including from the Judicial Complex Islamabad.”https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FrfFdjiXoAAFYvm?format=jpg&name=large Court reporter Saqib Bashir reported that a Session Judge had granted entry to some journalists, but the police denied the knowledge of such permission.  https://twitter.com/saqibbashir156/status/1636956933134360576


  • March 9, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) ordered all satellite TV channel licensees to “refrain from telecasting any content in any manner (either recorded or produced under its banner of aired during a live speech or press talk) against state institutions.” The censorship also restricts criticism aimed at the sitting Supreme Court (SC) and High Court judges.The censorship has been promulgated under sections 27 of PEMRA Ordinance 2002 as Amended by PEMRA (Amendment) Act 2007. The orders has been issued on March 9, 2023, in a notification F.No.3(07)/2023/OPS-BM/ 4419.  https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fqwy22ZXgAACZUt?format=jpg&name=large   https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fqwy4ICX0AA2bVi?format=jpg&name=large


  • March 8, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) banned the coverage of protest(s) on the Mall Road Red Zone, Lahore. The letter F.No.3(07)/2023/OPS-BM/ 4418 referred to the PEMRA laws, court rulings read, “ …  No Television Channel will make any coverage of the protest(s) being conducted on the Mall Road Red Zone and also notify all the channels in accordance with Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Amendment Act 2007and Electronic Media Code of Conduct, 2015.” https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FqsJPNsXgAAVljN?format=jpg&name=large The police said, they were trying to arrest ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan, while Mr. Khan was using a human shield to avoid the arrest. However, the police did not arrest Mr. Khan. A cat-and-mouse drama is going on in Pakistan for over a year. Pakistan has plunged into poverty, and lawlessness and is a country only fit for the elites and VIPs. 


  • March 5, 2023: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) suspended the license of the privately-owned ARY News for airing what PEMRA called the "content in willful defiance" of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan's speeches. Over the past few months, PEMRA has intermittently banned ARY News, Imran Khan, and his supporters. The ban was imposed under section 30 of the PEMRA ordinance 2002 as amended by PEMRA (Amendment Act 2007). Imran Khan has been sharply criticizing and alleging retired army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa for his ouster. PEMRA statement read, “airing of baseless allegations, the hateful, slanderous and unwarranted statement against state institutions and officers was in sheer violation of Article 19 of the Constitution of Pakistan and a judgment of the Supreme Court of Pakistan passed in a Suo Moto case." https://twitter.com/Riazhaq/status/1632593521000546304 March 7, 2023: The Sindh High Court (SHC) ordered immediate restoration of ARY News.



  • February 28, 2023: the Central Board of Film Censors (CBFC) banned Mariam Khan and Ahmen Khawaja's short documentary My Mother’s Daughter, scheduled screening On International Women’s Day. The CBFC termed the film “unsuitable for the exhibition for the reasons that the short documentary seems more a propaganda. Unauthenticated judicial procedure shown, wrong values are highlighted, which is against the Pakistani culture & society.” The filmmakers were given fifteen days to appeal. The film was about a child marriage and the forced conversion of a Christian girl. The filmmakers denied the CBFC allegation of propaganda. Human rights groups in Pakistan believe that as many as 1,000 Christian, Hindu, and Sikh girls, an estimated 80% of them are teenaged kidnapped each year in Pakistan for forced conversion and marriages. Still, some independent groups claimed the numbers are underreported. The United Nations (UN) experts have written a letter to the government of Pakistan's action on coerced religious conversions and forced child marriage. Pakistan:UN experts urge action on coerced religious conversions, forced and child marriage | OHCHR   https://www.instagram.com/p/CpiSAYPMAEC/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=5a82d833-3b7d-4d76-a775-7477375f5bfa


  • February 1, 2023: Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) degraded Wikipedia, a multilingual free online encyclopedia. The PTA said in a press release, “Wikipedia services degraded over unlawful content.” On February 7, 2023, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered the PTA to fully restore Wikipedia. The PM formed a committee to remove what he (Pakistan) believes is objectionable content.


PLIGHT OF MEDIA AND WORKERS 



  • April 22, 2023: Pakistan largest Jang and Geo TV Network Media Group sent legal notices to at least 11 employees for protesting over a freeze on salaries for over eight years, delayed wages for months, and deprivation of other allowances, such as Gratuity and Provident Funds. The notices were sent just a day before Eid, the highest spending time for Muslims. The employees called off the strike after the management assured mutual resolution. Some employees have worked for decades. Reportedly, the owners still enjoy an opulent lifestyle with assets in many foreign countries. https://twitter.com/OfficialKUJ/status/1650861043709788160/photo/1


  • March 2023: employees and retired workers of the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation – PBC (Radio Pakistan) protested for pension, timely wages, and retirement benefits for months. A poorly managed PBC has been facing delayed wages, pensions to 300 employees, and post-job dues for years. The PBC has rented out its prime properties at a cheaper value than the current market price. Since 2018, PCB has been laying off workers without timely payment. A subcommittee of the Senate Standing Committee on Information has taken up the issue, but the officialdom and Pakistan's economic meltdown obstruct a quick fix.


  • March 17, 2023: civil society, journalists, advocacy groups, and media organizations joined the protests in front of the office of Jang group at Al-Rahman Building I.I.Chundrigar Road, Karachi. The reporters and newsroom staff of Pakistan's largest media house, Jang Group of Newspapers, protested over the non-payment of wages for months. The group also owns Geo News and Geo TV Network. According to Mudassar Saeed, Journalist, Senior Executive Producer at North Geo News, the employees demand 1: Overdue increments amidst inflation 2: Salaries on Time 3: Provident Fund 4: Gratuity.  https://twitter.com/mudsays/status/1635980104898682882  https://twitter.com/mudsays/status/1636024526172553217



  • January 2023: civil society, journalist advocacy groups, and organizations joined the protests organized by the reporters of Pakistan's largest media house, Jang Group of Newspapers, over the non-payment of wages for the last three months. The group also owns Geo News and Geo TV Network. 


​FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION UNDER ATTACK ON CAMPUSES


  • May 5, 2023: Federal education Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain informed the seizure of the O-level textbooks over allegations of “promoting objectionable content.” Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) Senators Mohsin Aziz and Faisal Saleem Rahman had raised the objection in Senate over a controversial chapter of ‘Same Sex Family.’ SourceDaily Times 


  • April 6, 2023: Global Village Space (GVS), a digital media platform, reported that “the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women University bans female students from wearing jeans and tights on campus.” (SBBWU) imposed the ban on the pretext of Modest Dress Code and warned the violators a fine of RS.1000, Peshawar, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. https://www.globalvillagespace.com/kp-university-bans-jeans-tights-on-campus/


  • April 5, 2023: the office of the Deputy Director (Colleges) banned all the public and educational institutions' libraries from obtaining the new translation of the Muslims Holy Book prepared by the Muslim minority Qadinai/ Ahmadi community in three Tehsils (subdivisions) of the Punjab province. Order No: 255 / DDC (1), dated April 5, 2023, has been enforced in Chiniot, Lalian, and Bhowana subdivisions. The authorities did not support the ban with any evidence or explanations. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fs85XQPWYAAwsko?format=jpg&name=large  


  • March 27, 2023: the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan advised all Pakistanis Universities/ Degree Awarding Institutes (DAIs) to incorporate a course on the Muslims Holy Book translation, tajveed, and Tafseer mandatory for the undergraduate degree programs from fall 2023. Letter reference: HEC/CURR/SR-533/2023/4520 March 27, 2023. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fs3XHqYXgAU9laR?format=jpg&name=medium



  • March 6, 2023: affiliates of Islami Jamiat Tulba (IJT) and university guards attacked the participants of the Holi (a Hindu festival), and injured at least 15 students at the University of Punjab's new campus, in Lahore. The IJT started threatening the students after the Holi invitation was circulated in the university. According to the Holi organizers, the university had allowed the event. The university denied the incident of violence and injuries. However, UoP admitted the attackers were religious fundamentalists who came from the other province to vilify the university. The injuries of the students are not life-threatening. JIT holds the opinions of the Religious Far-Right.   https://twitter.com/Xadeejournalist/status/1633078958412505090   https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=173714358785283


  • March 6, 2023: Just weeks apart, Saqlain Bangash, a security officer, was killed on Peshawar University Campus, and lecturer Bashir Ahmed at Islamia College Peshawar. The police arrested the suspect and termed Mr. Bangash killing a mistake by his fellow security officer. According to the police, the killing of Mr. Ahmed ensued from intermittent arguments between the victim and the suspect. Peshawar University is a heavily guarded property with a massive presence of security forces. Senses of insecurity and uncertainty have gripped the staff and the students. The administration, staff, and students remain in constant fear in the university and call for the mental assessment of the security staff. April 2, 2023: students demand the resumption of classes after a continuous suspension of educational activities on campus. Students feared missing the examinations and the academic year.


  • February 27, 2023: authorities deployed heavy contingents of paramilitary troops, anti-terrorism squads, and police at the Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) Islamabad after fierce clashes among student groups of different ethnicities that left many students injured. Authorities arrested and booked several students and forced the female occupants of the dormitory in the middle of the night without relocating arrangements. 


  • February 24, 2023: the Directorate General of Elementary and Secondary Education of Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, (tauntingly called Azad Jammu and Kashmir -AJK), made hijab mandatory for all female students and staff. The AJK minister Deevan Ali Khan Chughtai told Dawn.com, “We have done it exactly in observance of the injunctions of God and His Messenger (peace be upon him) […] The women have been ordained to wear veils and men have been ordained to lower their gaze,” 


TARGETING RIGHTS MOVEMENTS AND PROTESTERS 


  • April 28, 2023: Islamabad police attacked, arrested, and maltreated Ismat Raza Shahjahan, her husband Professor Shahjahan, her young son, and protesters for protesting against the demolitions of non-regularized settlements in the limits of the Capital Development Authority (CDA). She got bruised and scratched on her hands. Ms. Shahjahan, a political worker affiliated with the Women's Democratic Front (WDF) and Awami Workers Party (AWP) arrested along with at least forty protesters. The police released Ms. Shahjahan and Professor Shahjahan after several hours, but their son and other protesters were in custody till filing this report. https://twitter.com/BThalho/status/1652691093614370819?s=20   https://twitter.com/AreebaFatimaa/status/1652613469688983552?s=20  



  • March 27, 2026: a large number of women protested for the release of Haq Do Tehreek –HDT (give rights movement)leader Maulana Hidayat Ur Rehman. The police arrested Mr. Rehman and three comrades in February 2023 from a court where they went for a bail hearing over allegations of killing a police constable in November 2022. The police alleged that Mr. Rehman incited violence and killing. Balo­chistan Home Minister Ziaullah Langove ordered the arrest. The HDT is demanding the reduction of the checkpoints in the heavily guarded Gwadar, a deep seaport created with the Chinese partnership under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). According to the local people of Gwadar, the fishermen are not catching enough fish and feeding their families because China’s advanced technology-equipped deep-sea fishing trawlers plucked all the fish from the sea, the local people are not getting enough share in the jobs and have to show identifications on many checkpoints. March 24, 2023: a local court revoked the bail of six HDT activists, councilor Haji Javed, councilor Naveed Muhammad, councilor Naseer Shahzada, Chairman Allah Bux, Abid GM, Moulana Liaquat Baloch, and arrested them from a court premise.https://twitter.com/MHidayatRehman/status/1639572816067526659 April 18, 2023: at the bail hearing, Maulana Hidayat Ur Rehman named military General Asif Ghafoor and Akhtar Mengal behind his arrest, refused to apologize, and reiterated to continue to struggle for fishermen and Gwadar's rights. Again, the court denied him bail. According to the journalist Israr Ahmed, Mr. Rehman is a peaceful activist whose bail has been refused from the local courts to the Balochistan High Court. One of his cases is decades old and registered during Pervez Musharraf, a deceased military general and politician who became the tenth president of Pakistan. https://twitter.com/IsrarAhmedPK/status/1648362731685449728     https://twitter.com/MHidayatRehman/status/1648385132460638209 May 18, 2023: The Supreme Court of Pakistan granted bail to Maulana Hidayatur Rehman. The jail authorities denied receiving release orders from Supreme Court and did not free Mr. Rehman. https://twitter.com/HamidMirPAK/status/1660585872209903616?s=20 May 22, 2023: Maulana Hidayatur Rehman release from jail. 


  • March 8, 2023: a fierce fight broke out between the participants of the Aurat March and the police in Islamabad and Lahore. In Islamabad, the police used batons and excessive force to disrupt the participants of the Aurat Azadi (women's freedom) March. According to some reports, the clashes started after the police objected to the inclusion of the transgender community in Azadi March. Pakistan religious fundamentalists are intolerant towards Aurat March and the succeeding governments in Pakistan have a history of surrendering to their demands.


  • March 3, 2023: local administrations of Islamabad, Lahore, and Multan cities banned public rallies on International Women's Day on March 8, 2023. The rallies have been organized by the Aurat March organizers. The city officials banned the rally on the pretext of what the administration believed were controversial placards and sloganeering. The provincial government of the Punjab province imposed Section 144 (Section 144 prohibits all kinds of corner meetings, jalsa, public gatherings, and congregations in the areas) to stop Aurat March. Later the administrations withdrew section 144.


SNIPPETS


























  • May 1, 2003: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) termed blind, deaf, and dumb, aimed at the incumbent, “derogatory.” After the careful review and language of HRCP social media threads, http://www.freedomtalk.net/ observed HRCP's political impartiality is compromising and biased.https://twitter.com/HRCP87/status/1653002679885393920?s=20Pakistan is going through the worst inflation, political crisis, and an ugly power war among politicians, judiciary, and establishment. Poverty, unemployment, street crimes, terrorism, and social injustice is prevailing. The unheard and crushed people use Freedom of Expression to vent anger and deprivation.  




























 


 














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