ISLAMABAD (Kashif Shamim Siddiqui): The National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) is venturing ahead with the support of civil society partners, international commissions, and local bar councils, to explore avenues to help Pakistani prisoners oversees particularly those who are unable to afford independent legal counsel and ignorant of the law or the language of the county in which they are jailed.
This was stated by the Chairperson of the National Commission for Human Rights Rabiya Javeri Agha while speaking as a keynote speaker at the side event on “Incarceration of Foreign Nationals” at the National Conference “Reimagining Justice” organized by Justice Project Pakistan. She said that leveraging the local Commissions’ power to visit detention centers, the NCHR hopes to help develop partnerships between Pakistani missions and human rights commissions to help Pakistani prisoners aboard.
“Recently, we initiated dialogue with the Malaysian commission Suhakum and the Pakistani mission in Kuala Lumpur, looking to foster synergies between these two entities. We have also engaged with the YBJK Bar Council to secure legal aid for the 299 Pakistanis held in Malaysia. Looking ahead, we aim to collaborate with the UAE commission to provide assistance to Pakistani detainees,” she said.
The NCHR Chairperson shared that as of April 2024, more than a thousand nationals from neighboring Afghanistan, India, and Iran are in jail in Pakistan. Approximately 66 percent are convicted; while 34 percent are still under trial. She said that despite the fact that all countries, except Afghanistan, have signed the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, these prisoners face systemic challenges which lead to their prolonged detention.
“Delays in verification and nationality identification, limited consular assistance due to bureaucratic hurdles or strained diplomatic relations, language and cultural barriers and delays in repatriation processes due to lack of prisoner transfer agreements adds to the already difficult situation for these prisoners,” she said.
“Imagine being confined with the four walls of a cell, denied the warmth of family visits, solace of a familiar voice over the phone, or the hope of returning home any time soon. This is the reality that many foreign nationals imprisoned both in Pakistan and across the world face each and every day,” said the NCHR Chairperson.
She said that as per its mandate to look into cases of detention and prisoner rights, the Commission is conducting nationwide visits to jails. “We have been particularly concerned with foreign women prisoners which number 15 today.” She shared that during these inspections, the Commission encountered two foreign women prisoners, both suffering from mental illness who had no recollection of their identities -one was from India and one from Tanzania.
Rabiya Javeri Agha said that during the Commission’s visits to Malir Jail, NCHR came across Indian fishermen, languishing in jails for years. “While NCHR found no evidence of cruel or inhuman and degrading treatment amongst the Indian prisoners, what was sad was the time lapse since the fisherfolk had been in prison. Some as long as five years unable to speak to their families.”
She shared that following numerous meetings with the Ministry of Interior and Foreign Affairs, NCHR’s efforts culminated in the issuance of orders by the government for the release of 650 Indian fishermen. “This was despite, the Indian government’s failure to equally reciprocate in the return of Pakistani fishermen.”
Chairperson NCHR shared with the participants that “it is expected that 39 more Indian prisoners will be released on April 29. This a very good gesture by the government of Pakistan and it reflects the government’s strong and positive commitment to upholding humanitarian principles.”
39 more inmates expected to be released amid Pakistani-Indian prisoner exchange imbalance
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25.04.2024
ISLAMABAD (Kashif Shamim Siddiqui): The National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) is venturing ahead with the support of civil society partners, international commissions, and local bar councils, to explore avenues to help Pakistani prisoners oversees particularly those who are unable to afford independent legal counsel and ignorant of the law or the language of the county in which they are jailed.
This was stated by the Chairperson of the National Commission for Human Rights Rabiya Javeri Agha while speaking as a keynote speaker at the side event on “Incarceration of Foreign Nationals” at the National Conference “Reimagining Justice” organized by Justice Project Pakistan. She said that leveraging the local Commissions’ power to visit detention centers, the NCHR hopes to help develop partnerships between Pakistani missions and human rights commissions to help Pakistani prisoners aboard.
“Recently, we initiated dialogue with the Malaysian........
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