A Pakistan-based rights group slammed the government's “blatant manipulation” of the electoral process ahead of next month’s scheduled parliamentary elections, which it said are unlikely to be “free, fair, or credible.”
The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on January 1 said it “is deeply concerned by the overall deterioration in human rights, which needs urgent attention as the new year unfolds.”
“Foremost is the blatant manipulation of the electoral landscape in which one political party among others has been singled out for systematic dismemberment,” it added.
The group said the process has “assumed a familiar pattern,” including arrests of party workers and supporters, lack of transparency of any charges filed, and a crackdown on party workers’ right to peaceful assembly.
HRCP also alleged “enforced disappearances, obvious signs of pressure on party leaders to resign or exit politics altogether and, most recently, the large-scale rejection of candidates’ nomination papers.”
“At this point, there is little evidence to show that the upcoming elections will be free, fair, or credible,” it added.
HCRP officials raised concern about the rejection by authorities of the candidacies of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and other members of his Tehrik-e Insaf party (PTI).
Pakistan's Election Commission has rejected Khan's nomination to participate in the national elections in two constituencies. The 71-year-old former cricket star has been involved in a series of political and legal battles since he was ousted as prime minister in April 2022 and has been in prison since August.
Pakistani politicians often compete for a seat from more than one constituency to increase their chances of winning.
The commission said Khan's nomination was rejected because he was not a registered voter of the constituency where he was seeking to run and because he is "convicted by the court of law and has been disqualified."
Speaking at an Islamabad news conference, HRCP co-chairperson Munizae Jahangir said Khan's party was “being dismembered in a systematic manner” and that rejection of nomination papers for most of its proposed candidates raised concerns about the Election Commission's actions.
Jahangir blasted the government’s clampdown on dissent, saying it has severely limited civic discourse “at a time when people must be allowed to express their will freely ahead of [the February 7] national election.”
In a statement, Chairperson Asad Iqbal Butt assailed the government for its “mass expulsion of vulnerable Afghan refugees and asylum seekers — in violation of international customary law and without consideration for their prospects of safety in their country of origin — has put many women, children, elderly and disabled Afghan nationals at risk.”
Islamabad in early October announced that all 1.7 million “undocumented foreigners,” most reportedly from Afghanistan, should leave the country by November 1.
Most Afghans returning from Pakistan have complained of harassment, abuse, and mistreatment during the expulsion process, allegations Islamabad has denied.
According to its website, the HRCP was established in 1986 and is a nonpolitical, not-for-profit organization committed to defending human rights in the South Asian nation.