Security issues

The burglary at the house of the editor of HRCP’s annual report, Maryam Hasan, last week adds to the general sense of insecurity prevailing among so many citizens in the country. Maryam, like thousands of other women living on their own, are of course especially vulnerable in a society that offers them little protection. The complications in the case are added to by the fact that Hasan is the editor of the HRCP’s ‘State of Human Rights’ annual report. The 2017 edition of this report had been released in Islamabad on April 16. As is the case for HRCP reports, consistently documenting the situation of human rights in many spheres within the country for almost three decades, the 2017 report put forward some unpleasant truths about basic freedoms in the country, about missing persons, about police ‘encounters’ as well as the situation of women, minorities and on the provision of fundamental rights for citizens. The items taken away from Hasan’s home included two hard disks, her laptop and some jewellery.

Was this a raid intended to intimidate a human rights activist disguised as a burglary? In a press release on April 20, the HRCP has said in more or less plain words that this was indeed the case. We hope the authorities will be examining the case in some detail. No matter what its nature, a situation in which unknown persons are able to break into a home in the early hours of the night is on many fronts terrifying. If the purpose was indeed to harass a professional engaged in producing a document that was critical of certain actions, it is still more disturbing. The truth needs to be dug up. There should be no cover-ups. The actual sequence of events and the persons behind them need to be identified, to both protect the rights of women who may be targeted because they are seen as vulnerable victims as well as activists who choose to agitate in a peaceful fashion against violations of the law and of international conventions in their land.