PAKISTAN: Another human rights defender was allegedly extrajudicially killed by the state intelligence agency

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a human rights defender and writer from the Pakistani part of Kashmir, Sardar Arif Shahid, was gunned down in front of his house in the garrison city of Rawalpindi. Before his murder he has been arrested and then released at his native town when he visited the area along with some Kashmiri non Muslim visitors from the Jammu part of Indian Kashmir. His passport was confiscated and his name was put on the exit control list in 2009. The High Court has gave him relief in December 2012.

CASE NARRATIVE:

Mr. Sardar Arif Shahid, Chairman of the National Liberation Conference (NLC) and the Chairman of the All Parties National Alliance (APNA), was assassinated by unknown persons in the late evening of May 13, when he approached his house. According to his driver, Rizwan Khan, when they reached Sardar’s home the driver went to open the gate of the house and suddenly he heard the sound of gun shots. As he turned towards the sound he saw Sardar had fallen in a pool of blood. Sardar was quickly taken to the military hospital in Rawalpindi where he succumbed to wounds.

Sardar was assassinated on the same day as another human rights defender, Mr. Abdul Waheed Khan, who was assassinated in Karachi. These murders occurred exactly two months after the killing of Ms. Perveen Rehman in Karachi.

Sardar was a prominent writer and human rights activist and had written two books on the peoples’ struggle of the Kashmiris of both sides — India and Pakistan. The APNA of which he was chairman has links in both Kashmirs. The APNA was a campaigner for the independence of Kashmir from India and Pakistan. This organization was developed in parallel with the All Parties Hurriayat Conference of Indian Jammu and Kashmir which was patronised by the Pakistan government.

It is believed that he was assassinated by the agents of the notorious intelligence agency of Pakistan, the ISI, as he was always receiving threats from the ISI not only in Pakistan but also in Kashmir. Mr Sardar was a vocal critic of Pakistan’s alleged role in sending militants to fight a “proxy war” against India in Indian-administered Kashmir. He also criticised Pakistan’s policy of treating Kashmir as its “colony” and was opposing the occupation of Pakistan in Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The Pakistani government banned him from travelling abroad in 2009, and later confiscated his passport and other identification documents. The Ministry of the Interior told a court in December 2012 that his documents had been confiscated due to his “anti-state activities and on the recommendation of the director-general of the ISI intelligence service”. Three months ago, police in Rawalpindi registered a case against him for publishing a monthly magazine which is alleged to have contained anti-Pakistan material. He was given pre-arrest bail by the court in that case.

Some months ago a delegation of non Muslim leaders of Indian held Jammu, came to visit Pakistani Kashmir (Azad Kashmir). Sardar received the delegation at Mirpur, his native place in Pakistani Kashmir, where he was arrested by the ISI and held in jail. After he was released he went back to Rawalpindi, Punjab, where an Anti-Pakistan case was lodged against him. His activities were not liked by the state intelligence agencies as he was opposing the policies of Pakistani establishment against Kashmir.

After his assassination protests against his killing was observed in both the parts of Kashmir and other parts of the world where Kashmiris are residing.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Human rights defenders have also been subjected to targeted killings by non-state actors, groups and individuals who opposed their work. While these are crimes in domestic law, under international human rights law the state also bears responsibility if it does not exercise due diligence, that is, if it fails to prevent such abuses or to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

Human rights defenders — be they journalists investigating and documenting wrongdoings of state agents, lawyers representing victims of human rights abuses in court or human rights activists campaigning to end human rights violations — have been subjected to a range of human rights violations themselves. They have been harassed, arbitrarily arrested and detained, subjected to enforced disappearance, torture and extrajudicial killings. Contrary to the spirit of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, state agents have committed such violations at a recently increased rate, and with impunity. This crackdown on human rights defenders has happened at a time when human rights violations are reported from Balochistan at an ever increasing rate, making the role of human rights defenders in supporting victims, campaigning for legal redress for abuses and working to end abuses more essential than ever.

The violence against human rights defenders and civil society organizations is rising by the state and Muslim groups which indicates a failure on the part of the government to provide protection to human rights defenders.

Journalists who work on human rights issues remain the prey of state and both state actors and Muslim extremist groups including the Taliban. So far 87 journalists had been killed in Pakistan since 2000. In the year 2012, eight journalists were killed while performing their official duty. During the first two months of this year alone, three journalist has been killed.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write the letters to the following authorities calling on them to initiate a high powered inquiry into the murder of Sardar Arif Shahid which was allegedly done by the state intelligence agencies. Please urge them to take strong action against the state intelligence agencies particularly the ISI who is the main source of abduction, torture and extrajudicial killings of the Kashmiri people. Please also urge them to arrest and punish all those involved with the conspiracy and murder of Arif Shahid, stop the policy of harassment and intimidation in Pakistani Administered Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan and urge the government to allow the people of Pakistani Administered Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan to enjoy their fundamental human rights; the government must immediately pay compensation to his family members.

The AHRC is writing separate letters to the UN Special Rapporteurs on the Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions and on the situation of human rights defenders calling for their intervention into this matter.

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