Non-Governmental
Organization with special consultative status with ECOSOC
IMPACT
OF THE STATE OF EMERGENCY
AND
THE STRUGGLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN PAKISTAN
At
the Sixth (extended) session of the United
Nations Human Rights Council (10-14
December 2007) in Geneva,
Switzerland a panel was held under
the auspices of Interfaith International. Major speakers were:
Sayed Iqbal Haider,
Secretary General of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan; Former
Attorney General and Federal Minister for Law, Justice, Parliamentary
Affairs and Human Rights
Sardar Shaukat Ali
Kashmiri, Chairman, United Kashmir
Peoples National Party (UKPNP); Secretary General, International Kashmir
Alliance;
Mr. Baseer Naveed,
Senior Researcher, South Asia and Asian Legal Research Center (ALRC)
Moderator
was Dr. Charles Graves, secretary
general, Interfaith International
Dr. Sayed Nazir Gilani,
Secretary General, Jammu and Kashmir Council for Human Rights, and
President of the International Kashmir Alliance, sent a message of support
The
session made the following declaration vis à vis Pakistan:
(1) forthwith
release and reinstatement of the judges of the Supreme Court as they were
on 2nd November 2007;
(1)
Forthwith restoration of the Constitution along with all
Fundamental Rights, without any unconstitutional amendments;
(2)
Forthwith appointment of a truly independent and effective Election
Commission with the consensus of major political parties;
(3)
Forthwith appointment of neutral caretaker governments at the
Federal and Provincial levels, with the consensus of major political
parties;
(4)
Forthwith withdrawals of all amendments in the PEMRA ordinance as
well as withdrawal of the ban on freedom of speech and all restrictions on
the print and electronic media
The
session also underlined support for Baluchistan leaders and human
rights activists in Pakistan, in particular of the Baluch Marri
family, as they were under increasing persecution by the government of
General Musharraf. The panelists, noting the recent assassination of Mr.
Balach Marri on the Baluchistan-Afghanistan border, spoke against any
extradition to Pakistan of the Baluch human rights activists Mr.
Herbiyar Marri and Mr.
Mehran Baluch residing in the
United Kingdom, calling upon the government of the United Kingdom to
provide them all protection.
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