Pakistan leads in Human Rights violation
June 17, 2011
Formed in 1947, with intent to establish an Islamic state, Pakistan can today be seen crushing every single Islamic
teaching and ideal. The Holy Quran clearly prohibits any kind of ill-treatment of any innocent. It equates killing of an
innocent with the killing of entire humanity. Dozens of innocent people are getting killed in Pakistan on a daily basis-
sometimes in the hands of the Taliban and suicide bombers and sometimes by the security forces themselves. Many
mysterious deaths are even said to be the handiwork of the ISI and the Army.
Recently, a 40-year old journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad was killed just because he was doing his job honestly. On May
31, Shahzad had to lay his life for exposing the unholy nexus between the Pakistani Navy and Al Qaeda. “Islamic” rulers
of an “Islamic” country couldn’t tolerate the truth being brought to the fore by a true Muslim journalist. In this
flagrant case of Human Rights violation, not only an innocent has been killed but also an attempt has been made to
suppress the freedom of the Press. Reportedly, the ISI is said to be behind the assassination of Saleem Shahzad.
Within a week of this ghastly incident, another gruesome act of Human Rights violation took place in Karachi on June 8.
Sarfaraz Shah (19) was dragged out of a park by a man in plain clothes. He was pushed towards a group of Sindh Rangers,
a paramilitary force, who were in uniform and armed. The unarmed young man pleaded for his life as one of the Rangers
pointed a gun at his neck. The Ranger then shot him twice at close range, hitting him in the thigh. The young man was
writhing on the ground, bleeding heavily and crying for help. Shortly after, he died from his injuries.
Pak Rangers killing Sarfaraz Shah in Pakistan
And Sarfaraz Shah killed by Rangers
A journalist made an amateur video of this horrendous act. This disturbing video has been watched widely across the
world. Pak Rangers didn’t like their inhuman act being exposed. Now, they have threatened the journalist, who made that
video, of dire consequences. But killing of innocent Sarfaraz didn’t go down well the Pak judiciary. Taking suo motu cognizance of this gruesome act, the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Chaudhry not only ordered the removal of the
Pak Rangers Director, Major General Ejaz Chaudhry and Police Commissioner Fayyaz Leghari but also directed the
Accountant General to withhold their salaries if its orders were not carried out. On this heart-rending act of Human
Rights violation, the Chief Justice observed, “Rangers were indulging in target killing instead of stopping it.” In
their defence, Pak Rangers are alleging that Sarfaraz was involved in a robbery, whereas his relatives are saying that
Sarfaraz was just walking in the park. The Supreme Court has also ordered the verification of Sarfaraz’s past crime
record, if any.
Many sincere and responsible people in Pakistan have expressed concern over this incident. The worries of the Pakistani
people are accentuated by the fact that Pak Rangers are an indispensable component of Pakistan’s internal security and
work directly under the Interior Ministry. Therefore, such an act of daylight killing of an innocent puts a big question
mark on the working of the internal security system of Pakistan. Though Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik has
order an enquiry into it, Prime Minister Gilani is not fine with the criticism of Pak Rangers. Defending the Rangers on
the floor of the National Assembly, he said “state institutions cannot be blamed for the actions of some individuals.”
If evidences of each and every incident are collected, Pakistan will certainly top the list of countries witnessing
Human Rights violations. In a similar incident on 17 May this year, five unarmed Chechens (3 men and 2 women) were
killed by the Pakistani security forces in Kharotabad near Quetta. Among the deceased women, one was 7 months pregnant
whom the ‘brave’ troops shot 12 bullets. When faced with criticism, Pak Army contended that three of them were suspected
suicide bombers; even though no arm or weapon is recovered from their possession. But the charge on troops is that they
tried to molest a Chechen girl. When she and her colleagues resisted, the soldiers shot them dead in cold-blood.
When everyone in Pakistan ranging from suicide bombers, terrorists, extremists, tribal councils and clerics is in the
business of denying and crushing the fundamental Human Rights of the common people, replication of such cruel and
inhuman acts by the Pak security and intelligence agencies will lead Pakistan nowhere but only make the country a
‘leader’ in Human Rights violation.
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Author Tanveer Jafri is a columnist based in India. He is also a receipent of many awards in the field of Communal
Harmony & other social activities.