Current and former leadership of rights-based Commissions, ex-parliamentarians, representatives of federal and provincial governments and human rights defenders from civil society, legal fraternity and academia discussed the challenges faced by national and subnational human rights institutions in Pakistan and identified a set of legal measures to ensure the continuity and sustainability of these institutions mandated to protect the rights of weak and marginalized. The measures were agreed at a National Conference here on Thursday jointly organized by the Sindh Human Rights Commission (SHRC) and the Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability (TDEA). National Commission on Status of Women (NCSW), National Commission on Human Rights (NCHR), Sindh Commission on Status of Women (SCSW) and Sindh Human Rights Commission (SHRC) were represented in the conference.
The conference speakers voiced for making all the Commissions established in the country functional, truly independent and effective for them to comply with the Paris Principles, 1993, which laid foundations for independent commissions to oversee human rights situation, as well as Pakistan’s constitution and the laws governing these institutions. They particularly called for removing legal ambiguities, curbing executive’s interference and political influence on the selection of chairpersons and members of the Commissions due to which many Commissions have become dysfunctional or are on the verge of being dysfunctional.
Iqbal Ahmed Detho, Chairperson Sindh Human Rights Commission opened the conference by highlighting the paramount need to understand the historical context, efficacy, and obstacles faced by these human rights institutions. Shafiq Chaudhary, former Chairperson of the NCHR said the legal frameworks governing institutions are not in sync with the letter and spirit of international law, which need to be fixed.
Nuzhat Shirin, Chairperson SCSW shared her concerns over the legal ambiguity that leads to discontinuation of functioning of Commissions after a term of members and chairpersons ends.
Khawaja Imran Raza, Secretary NCSW said that collaboration and cooperation among commission and with civil society institutions is crucial for these institutions to deliver on their mandate. Attaul Mustafa, Muhammad Rafiq and Abdullah Khoso, three researchers with published research work on functioning of Commissions in Pakistan, shared their findings highlighting the legal, operational and administrative lacunae, which hinder the smooth functioning of the commissions. Justice (R) Majida Rizvi ex-chairperson SHRC, Anis Haroon ex-chairperson NCSW and Mossarat Qadeem Chairperson Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) participated in a panel discussion agreeing on the need for removal of legal and regulatory flaws and systematically introducing able and assertive leadership of the Commissions.
