PAKISTAN: Alleged attempted abduction and death threats of a local journalist by Intelligence officers

Dear friends,

Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a journalist named Mr. Lal Malhi who produced a documentary on disappearances was threatened and nearly abducted by the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) of the Pakistani Army from his office in Umerkot, Sindh on 6 March 2007.  The unsuccessful abduction was halted when the local journalist’s colleagues intervened and helped him escape. When members of the local community heard what had happened, they began a 4 hour protest throughout the city. There were general strikes in different areas throughout Sindh province including Umerkot city. The protesters agreed to end their strike when local police promised they would lay charges against the intelligence officer; however, later refused to lodge a case of abduction against them.

CASE DETAILS:

Mr. Lal Malhi, representative of the KTN television network at Umerkot, Sindh, had made a documentary on the disappearances of two men from the minority Hindu community named Mr. Cheetan Kumar (45 years-old) and Mr. Gordhan Das alias G.M. Bhagat (55 years-old) from the Umer Kot district in Sindh province (Please see: UA-015-2007; UP-023-2007). The disappearance of the victims was telecasted on the KTN television network and showed members of their families accuse the ISI for their abductions. After the release of documentary, Mr. Lal Malhi continuously received threatening phone calls from the local ISI office at Tharparkar District near the Indian border.

On March 6, 2007 at 6:30 pm, Mr. Malhi was in his office when five officers of ISI acting under the command of Major Aamir Bhutto barged into the room and tried to forcefully kidnap him. Journalists and other staff present immediately intervened and freed Mr. Malhi from the clutches of intelligence officers. News of the attempted abduction spread around the city and people started protesting against the actions of the ISI. Traffic went to a stand-still on the national highway, while shops and business were closed. Local police intervened and promised to file an abduction case against Major Bhutto and the other officers of ISI. After securing assurances from the local administration, striking community members called off their protest later that night.

However, when local journalists, political and human rights activists went to lodge the case against the intelligence officers at Umerkot Police station, they were denied the right to enter the case. As a consequence, the group of activists announced another general strike on March 7 to protest the intelligence activities of the Army. The strike was observed successfully in Umerkot and different cities around the province of Sindh.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Umerkot is a Pakistani city which borders India. The Pakistan Army has forces stationed in the area and it is well known that the ISI are operating within the region. It is alleged that officers from the ISI are involved in extortion, kidnapping and often threaten local people. Major Aamir Bhutto is well known for allegedly subjecting locals to kidnapping, illegal detention and extortion. His office at Chor, Umerkot is notorious for allegedly committing many crimes.

In the past, the Pakistani intelligence community has allegedly been involved in the disappearances of political workers. The victims who survived the abductions have testified before the courts that they were abducted by intelligence agencies, where they were held and tortured in different military camps (Please see: UP-001-2007; UP-191-2006).

Abduction and forced disappearance are a recurring tragedy in Pakistan.  Please see the following urgent appeals:

UA-227-2006: PAKISTAN: Three persons are missing after allegedly being taken by the police and army personnel 
UA-145-2006: PAKISTAN: Journalists to stage protest over rights of those in the media
UP-127-2006: PAKISTAN: Missing journalist found dead in Pakistan 
UA-169-2006: PAKISTAN: Two members of the Jeay Sindh Quomi Mahaz Nationalist Party abducted in the latest report of forced disappearance
UA-171-2006: PAKISTAN: Twelve persons disappeared following their arrest by the police
UA-132-2006: PAKISTAN: Fears for whereabouts of disappeared political leader in Pakistan
UG-003-2006: PAKISTAN: Alarming situation of forced disappearance of political and human rights activists in Balochistan

The AHRC condemns this attempted abduction and demands that an immediate and independent investigation is launched. The perpetrators must be arrested and fully prosecuted for their acts of state sanctioned terrorism against innocent civilians. The AHRC also demands that the state provide immediate protection for the victim and his family.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to the relevant authorities listed below and demand that they immediately intervene in this case over the attempted abduction of Mr. Lal Malhi by officers of Intelligence agency ISI.  Please urge them to take prompt action to provide protection to the victim and ensure his safety. Please also urge them to bring those responsible for the abduction to justice. The authorities must establish strict discipline with the security forces in order to stop the abductions of citizen and in particularly the kidnapping of journalists.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER