Over 70% of cases of human rights violations in Pakistan remain unpunished

(August 22, 2009) In the last three years there have been more than 11 thousand cases of human rights violations in Pakistan, 8 thousand of which are still pending and waiting for justice. These were the facts presented by the country’s Human Rights Minister, Syed Mumtaz Alam Gilani to the National Assembly, the Pakistani parliament, during a question and answer session. The minister admitted the "disastrous" results of provincial governments in "bringing those guilty to justice.” From the figures he elaborated Sindh province in south-east appeared to be the worst, where out of some 6 thousand cases of human rights violations, only 783 offenders were punished. In the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), where the army and Taliban have been waging war against each other, out of 2 thousand violations only 730 cases have been resolved. Punjab recorded 2131 complaints, in which 814 led to the initiation of legal action. In Balochistan, courts have resolved 305 cases compared with 823 complaints of human rights violations. Gilani said that he has put forward a draft law to create a national commission on human rights. It has already received the go-ahead from the executive, and now awaits the verdict of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Rights, to become effective.