Every few years, Pakistan finds itself defending the same accusations before the same audience. Yet the real question is no longer whether Pakistan must improve. Every responsible state has an obligation to protect the rights of all its citizens. The real question is whether those judging Pakistan are willing to apply the same standards to themselves. The European Union’s latest GSP+ assessment has once again brought this debate into focus. While it acknowledges Pakistan’s legislative and institutional progress, it continues to place significant emphasis on minority rights, raising an important question: Are human rights truly being assessed through one universal yardstick?
The report itself presents a more balanced picture than many of the headlines it generated. It recognises Pakistan’s continued engagement with the GSP+ monitoring process and its commitment to the international conventions attached to the trade arrangement. It also acknowledges progress in labour protections, environmental governance, prison reforms, anti-torture measures, women’s rights, and the strengthening of national human rights institutions. These are not symbolic declarations; they reflect legislative and administrative efforts that have gradually expanded Pakistan’s institutional framework for protecting rights and improving governance.
None of this suggests that Pakistan has reached the finish line. The European Commission rightly observes that many reforms must now produce stronger results on the ground. Laws and institutions acquire meaning only when they are consistently implemented. That expectation is reasonable. However, fairness demands that progress receive the same attention as shortcomings. An assessment that repeatedly highlights deficiencies while giving comparatively little weight to measurable improvements risks creating an incomplete picture.
The debate becomes even more significant when viewed in a broader international context. Several European countries have themselves adopted restrictions on visible expressions of Islamic identity. France has prohibited conspicuous religious symbols in public schools, banned full-face veils in public spaces, and more recently restricted the wearing of abayas in schools. Similar restrictions on face coverings exist in Belgium, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Whether these measures are viewed as safeguards of secularism or as limitations on religious freedom, they continue to generate legitimate debate across Europe.
Alongside these policies, Europe has also witnessed growing concerns over Islamophobia, anti-Muslim rhetoric, and attacks on places of worship. These developments do not diminish Pakistan’s responsibility to protect its religious minorities, nor should they be used to dismiss genuine concerns raised by international partners. They do, however, reinforce a simple principle: if human rights are universal, then similar challenges deserve equal scrutiny regardless of where they occur.
Pakistan is often viewed through the lens of its shortcomings alone, yet the broader reality is more complex. Constitutional guarantees for religious freedom remain in place, institutional reforms continue to evolve, and successive efforts have sought to strengthen legal protections for vulnerable communities. These measures do not eliminate existing challenges, but neither should isolated incidents define the country’s entire human rights record.
The relationship between Pakistan and the European Union should continue to be built on constructive engagement rather than selective criticism. The GSP+ framework has encouraged important reforms and remains an opportunity to strengthen institutions, improve governance, and protect fundamental rights. That partnership will become even more credible if recognition of progress accompanies criticism of deficiencies.
Human rights do not belong to one region, one civilisation, or one political bloc. They belong to humanity. Their credibility depends not only on exposing failures but also on acknowledging progress and applying the same standards to every nation. Pakistan must continue its reform journey, but international accountability will carry genuine moral authority only when one yardstick is used for all.
—The writer is a freelance columnist
