HRCP condemns killing of human rights activist, alleged blasphemer

Demands a credible inquiry should be launched and its findings made public.

ISLAMABAD: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has condemned the assassination of Farida Afridi, as well as reports of a man accused of sacrilege  being burnt to death by a mob.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the HRCP said, "It is a matter of grave concern that the risks facing human rights defenders and those working to ameliorate the lot of marginalised segments remain very high across the country.”

The statement further said that HRCP was utterly shocked at the targeted killing of Farida Afridi, the founder of an NGO which worked for the uplift of women in an area where they need such help the most. Two armed men riding a bike had shot her in the head and fled.

The threats to human rights defenders in FATA are as worrisome as the impunity the killers enjoy, the statement read, adding, the ghastly murder is reminiscent of the killing on December 8, 2011, of Zarteef Afridi, a well known human rights defender and HRCP coordinator in Khyber Agency. He too was shot dead by two men riding on a motorcycle. Eight months on, his killers are still at large.

"HRCP would like to remind the government of its obligation to provide a safe working environment to human rights defenders all over the country, particularly more so in the FATA region, which faces about the worst turmoil in the country."

The organisation said that people working as journalists, human rights defenders and workers of civil society organisations, who were striving to provide essential needs or awareness to the people faced great personal risk.

The killing of journalists, human rights and civil society activists in FATA is the latest addition to the prevailing hurdles for those working in the region for the uplift of marginalised people, particularly women.

Speaking about the government’s duty to provide security to human rights activists in FATA, the statement said, "the threats human rights defenders face are well known and government officials are expected to do more than turn up at a rights defender's funeral, pray for the departed soul and condole with the bereaved family. The government must prioritise protection for them in FATA and elsewhere, given that they face more serious threats that other citizens. It must take more interest in not only highlighting the contribution that human rights defenders make to society but also in investigating the attacks and bringing the culprits to justice. Civil society must also keep reminding the government of its obligation to protect and facilitate the rights defenders' work. “

Condemning the killing of a man in Bahawalpur, the statement said that, “HRCP also strongly condemns not only the burning to death of a man in Bahawalpur, who had been accused of desecrating pages of the Quran, but also the authorities' failure to prevent a horrendous crime that was not at all unexpected. A credible inquiry should be launched and its findings made public. The government must not only compensate the family of the deceased for its failure to protect the life of a man in police custody from 'mob justice', but also take concrete measure to avoid such unfortunate incidents in the future. HRCP welcomes the registration of a case against members of the mob and demands that the killers and all others are held to account for their role in the coldblooded murder.

Taken together, these two incidents once again highlight the level of brutality that Pakistani society has reached, organisation lamented. "Matters will not improve by looking at these incidents separately because they are mere symptoms of a deep-rooted affliction and rise in intolerance that can be managed only with broad-based and well thought out policies aimed at freeing the minds of the people of extremism," they warned.