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PAKISTAN: Brutal attack and threats of rape against female opposition council members of the Karachi city government by the ruling party members

May 4, 2007

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

5 May 2007
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UA-148-2007: PAKISTAN: Brutal attack and threats of rape against female opposition council members of the Karachi city government by the ruling party members

PAKISTAN: Repression against political oppositions; impunity
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Dear friends,  

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by the brutal attack and threats of rape against female opposition council members of the Karachi city government by the council members of the Muttehda Qoumi Movement (MQM), a member of the ruling alliance in President General Musharraf's government and the ruling party of the City District Government Karachi (CDGK), on 26 April 2007. We were informed that the opposition female council members were severely beaten and threatened with rape during the attack, which resulted in injuries to four female and six male opposition council members. We are concerned that the Sindh police refused to register case against the ruling party council members and instead registered cases of hooliganism against the opposition council members. The AHRC believes that President General Musharraf’s Pakistan government attempts to use hooliganism by its allied parties to divert the attention of people from the judicial crisis which was started after the chief justice of the supreme court was pressured to resign on 9 March 2007.

DETAINED INFORMATION:

According to the information we have received, Muttehda Qoumi Movement (MQM), a member of the ruling alliance in President General Musharraf's government, has the control of the Council of the City District Government Karachi (CDGK), and through their majority in the city district council they generally use power to keep members of the opposition parties in threats. The city district council is consisted of 240 members; 75 members are from the opposition parties. The members of the city district council are elected indirectly through the union councils. The Nazim (chief) of the union council automatically becomes members to the CDGK and some seats are filled on reserve seats elected by town council members.  

On 26 April 2007, there was oath ceremony of two new elected members of the city district council of Karachi; one from MQM and other from opposition party. As the session was started, the presiding officer, Mrs. Nasreen Jalil, who is also Naib Nazim (deputy mayor), allegedly refused to take oath from Mr. Mohammad Yaqoob, a newly elected member of opposition party, while taking oath from the member from the MQM. This sparked a heated debate between the members of the MQM and those of the opposition parities in the district city council. The presiding officer Mrs. Nasreen Jalil, in an allegedly pre-planned manner, abused several opposition members particularly passing some abusive remarks against the female members of the opposition parties and then suddenly abrogated the session.

Based on the information contained in the complaint lodged to the concerned police station by opposition party members, Mrs. Nasreen Jalil (presiding officer) gave a signal to some members of the MQM. About 30 to 40 members of the MQM then suddenly attacked the members of the opposition and also allegedly assaulted the female members with belt, sticks, chairs, fists and legs in presence of the presiding officer. When the male members of the opposition intervened to stop the assault against the female members, they were also attacked with some hard metals. The complaint of the opposition party further states that the members of the MQM even called the female members of the opposition as prostitutions and that they threatened to rape the female members before their family members. 

One female councilor Miss Yasmeen Butt from Jamshed town was severely beaten with a leather belt and Miss Rukhsana Faisal, the member from Landhi town, was beaten with a leather belt and with fists and one councilor of the MQM allegedly crushed her hand with his boot several times. Miss Razia Soomro, the member from Lyari town, was also kicked by the several members of MQM and received several injuries on her back, hands and legs.

Mr. Mohammad Yaqoob, who was not allowed to take the oath by the presiding officer, was beaten severely and his one hand was fractured. He got some internal injuries as some government members jumped on his body after pushing him down on the floor.

Mr. Saeed Ghani, the leader of the opposition and Mr. Rafiq Ahmed, a parliamentary leader of a political group called Al-Khidmad, were also severely assaulted along with other opposition members. They also allegedly received threats to be abducted and murdered by the MQM members.

The opposition members allege that one MQM member, Mr. Salman Mujahid Baloch, who is the Nazim (chief) of UC8 of Baldia town, used his leather belt to beat female councilors. The photograph showing his beating against some female councilors with a leather belt was later published in most of the local newspapers and some electronic media channels. Mr. Abdul Sami, Nazim of UC 1 of Liaquatabad Town, Nasir Ajmeri, Nazim UC 6 of Saddar town, Mr. Abdul Jalil, Nazim of UC 3 Shah Faisal Town, Mr. Rehan Rais, Nazim of UC8 Gulshan Iqbal Town and Mr. Asif Siddiqui and Mr. Mehmood, members on labour reserved seats were also allegedly involved in beating the female councilors with some hard objects.

Soon after beating the female opposition members of the Council of the CDGK, the council members from the MQM lodged a complaint relating to hooliganism against the opposition members of the council, including the female members, to the Karachi city court police station, where the complaint was treated as the First Information Report (FIR). But when the council members of the opposition went to the police station to lodge the complaint against the council members from the MQM, the Station House Officer (SHO) Mr. Zahid Hussain reportedly refused to accept their complaints. The opposition contacted the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr. Malik Mazhar and asked him to accept their complaints about the incident but the DSP also refused to do so.

Meanwhile, the presiding officer Mrs. Nasreen Jalil refused to take any sanctionary action against the council members from the MQM, who were responsible for the brutal attack on the opposition members. She merely gave a very light sanction preventing one councilor Mr. Salman Mujahid Baloch from attending three sessions of the council only after facing several protests from the opposition parties, people and the media. No other santionary action has been taken against any other council members of the MQM for their crimes.

Please also see the article of a local newspaper DAWN regarding this case: http://www.dawn.com/2007/04/27/local2.htm 


ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

Division of political power between an executive, a legislature, and a judiciary is one of the most important fundamental principles of multiparty democratic political system. However, this principle is not respected at all in Pakistan and this case is yet another example illustrating this problem.
 
For example, in this case, Mutehda Qaumi Movement (MQM) has gained majority in the Council of the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) and never allowed any bill proposed by the opposition members. For one and a half years since the ruling MQM party got power at the CDGK, the MQM has obstructed the oppositions from effectively working in the city. Since February 2007, the MQM has stopped the funds to several union councils including five union councils of Jamshed town led by opposition groups. The ruling party has withdrawn secretaries of opposition union councils and stopped the accounts through an order from the City Nazim (mayor) of Karachi to the banks.

Another example of the complete failure of enforcing the division of political power is the threats on the Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudry in Pakistan. The AHRC has recently reported that he was requested to resign from his post, and how when he refused he was physically restrained form leaving the President’s Camp Office for several hours and finally as to how a reference was cooked up and filed in order to prevent him from sitting as the chief judicial officer of Pakistan. For details, please see also the AHRC’s statements on this matter.

AS-088-2007: PAKISTAN: Detention of Chief Justice shows utter disrespect for independence of judiciary
AS-090-2007: PAKISTAN: AHRC condemns the arrest, detention and physical violence used against lawyers supporting Chief Justice Iftehkar Chaudry
AS-091-2007: PAKISTAN: Failure to protect Chief Justice Chaudhry would be a blatant act of negligence on the part of the government
AS-086-2007: PAKISTAN: Attack on independence of judiciary is now extended to freedom of expression and information


SUGGESTED ACTION: 
Please write a letter to the following authorities demanding stern actions against the presiding officer of CDGK and government members who had beaten severely the women members of the house. Please also demand that a criminal case of torturing women members, beating and threatening to kill should be filed in police against government members..

To support this appeal, please click:

Sample of letter:

Dear _________,

PAKISTAN: Brutal attack and threats of rape against female opposition council members of the Karachi city government by the ruling party members

Names of the victims:
1. Miss Yasmeen Butt from Jamshed town, Karachi, Pakistan
2. Miss Rukhsana Faisal, member from Landhi town, Karachi, Pakistan
3. Miss Razia Soomro, member from Lyari town, Karachi, Pakistan
4. Mr. Mohammad Yqoob, newly ellected member from Baldia Town Karachi, Pakistan
5. Mr. Saeed Ghani, the leader of the opposition in city district government Karachi, Pakistan
6. Mr. Rafiq Ahmed, Parliamentary leader of Al- Khidmat group, Karachi, Pakistan
Name of alleged perpetrators:
1. Mrs Nasreen Jalil, presiding officer and Naib Nazim of the City District Government of Karachi (CDGK), Pakistan
2. Mr. Salman Mujahid Baloch, Nazim of UC8 of Baldia town, Karachi, Pakistan
3. Mr. Abdul Sami, Nazim of UC 1 of Liaquatabad town, Karachi, Pakistan
4. Nasir Ajmeri, Nazim UC 6 of Saddar town, Karachi, Pakistan
5. Mr. Abdul Jalil, Nazim of UC 3 Shah Faisal town, Karachi, Pakistan
6. Mr. Rehan Rais, Nazim of UC8 Gulshan Iqbal town, Karachi, Pakistan
7. Mr. Asif Siddiqui, the member on labour reserved seats, CDGK
8. Mr. Mehmood, the member on labour reserved seats, CDGK
9. Mr. Zahid Hussain, Station House Officer (SHO), Karachi City Court Police Station, Karachi, Pakistan
10. Mr. Malik Mazhar, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Karachi City Court Police Station, Karachi, Pakistan
Date of incident: 26 April 2007

I am shocked to learn about the brutal attack and threats of rape against female opposition council members of the Council of the Karachi City District Government (KCDG) by the members of the ruling Mutehda Qaumi Movement (MQM) on 26 April 2007. 

According to the information I have received, on 26 April 2007, the presiding officer, Mrs. Nasreen Jalil, who is also Naib Nazim (deputy mayor), allegedly refused to take oath from Mr. Mohammad Yaqoob, a newly elected member of opposition party, while taking oath from the member from the MQM. It sparked a heated debate between the members of the MQM and those of the opposition parities in the district city council, and about 30 to 40 members of the MQM reportedly attacked the members of the opposition including female members with belt, sticks, chairs, fists and legs in presence of the presiding officer. I am appalled to learn that the members of the MQM even called the female members of the opposition as prostitutions and that they threatened to rape the female members before their family members. 

I am informed that one female councilor Miss Yasmeen Butt from Jamshed town and Miss Rukhsana Faisal, the member from Landhi town, were severely beaten with a leather belt. Miss Razia Soomro, the member from Lyari town, was also kicked by the several members of MQM and received several injuries on her back, hands and legs. Mr. Mohammad Yaqoob, who was not allowed to take the oath by the presiding officer, was beaten severely and his one hand was fractured. Mr. Saeed Ghani, the leader of the opposition and Mr. Rafiq Ahmed, a parliamentary leader of a political group called Al-Khidmad, were also severely assaulted along with other opposition members. 

I am also informed that one MQM member, Mr. Salman Mujahid Baloch, who is the Nazim (chief) of UC8 of Baldia town, used his leather belt to beat female councilors. Mr. Abdul Sami, Nazim of UC 1 of Liaquatabad Town, Nasir Ajmeri, Nazim UC 6 of Saddar town, Mr. Abdul Jalil, Nazim of UC 3 Shah Faisal Town, Mr. Rehan Rais, Nazim of UC8 Gulshan Iqbal Town and Mr. Asif Siddiqui and Mr. Mehmood, members on labour reserved seats were also allegedly involved in beating the female councilors with some hard objects.

I also concerned that the Karachi City Court Police Station registered a FIR lodged by the council members from the MQM against  against the opposition members of the council with a charge of hooliganism, while refusing to register the complaint of the opposition council members. I am also informed that the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr. Malik Mazhar refused to accept their complaints of the opposition council members about the incident. 

Meanwhile, the presiding officer Mrs. Nasreen Jalil merely gave very light sanction preventing one councilor Mr. Salman Mujahid Baloch from attending three sessions of the council only after facing several protests from the opposition parties, people and the media. No other santionary action has been taken against any other council members of the MQM for their crimes.

I think this case is yet another example illustrating the complete failure of enforcing the division of political power between an executive, a legislature, and a judiciary, which is one of the most important fundamental principles of multiparty democratic political system, in Pakistan. I am informed that MQM in the CDGK never allowed any bill proposed by the opposition members. I am concerned such incident took place after the Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudry received threats in Pakistan. He was requested to resign from his post, and when he refused he was physically restrained form leaving the President’s Camp Office for several hours and a reference was cooked up and filed in order to prevent him from sitting as the chief judicial officer of Pakistan.

In light of the above, I strongly urge you to immediately order an independent and thorough investigation into this case and take strong santionary and legal action against Mrs Nasreen Jalil, presiding officer and Naib Nazim of the CDGK, and other ruling party council members responsible for this brutal attack on opposition council members. Mr. Zahid Hussain, Station House Officer (SHO) of the Karachi City Court Police Station, and Mr. Malik Mazhar, DSP of the Karachi, should also be punished for their biased and unjust attitude towards this case. I also request the CDGK as well as the Government of Pakistan to provide medical treatment to the injured opposition council members of Karachi and adequately compensate them. Most of all, I urge the Government of Pakistan to fully respect division of political power and ensure the freedom of expression and freedom of political participation of opposition parties.

Yours sincerely,


--------------------

PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Muhammad Wasi Zafar
Minister of Law, Justice and Human Rights
S Block Pakistan Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 51 920 2628
E-Mail: minister@molaw.gov.pk

2. Mr. Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao
Federal Minister of Interior
Room#404, 4th Floor, R Block,
Pak Secretariat
Islamabad (Pakistan)
Tel: +92 51 9212026
Fax: +92 51 9202624
E-mail: minister@interior.gov.pk

3. Mr. Mohamag Ali Durrani
Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting
Government of Pakistan
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Email: infominister@infopak.gov.pk

4. Dr. Ishrat UL Ibad
Governor of Sindh province
Karachi
PAKISTAN
Tel: + 92 21 920 1201
Fax: +92 21 9205041
E-mail: pvt_secretary@governorsindh.gov.pk (for private secretary of Governor)

5. Dr. Arbab Abdul Rahim
Chief Minister of Sindh
Chief Minister House
Karachi
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 9202000

6. Chief Secretary
Government of Sindh
Chief Secretariat,
Karachi, Sindh province,
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 21 921950
Fax: +92 21 9211946
Email: cs.sindh@sindh.gov.pk 

7. Secretary
(Criminal Prosecution) SGA &CD Department
Government of Sindh
Sindh Secretariat,
Karachi, Sindh Province.
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 21 9213327-6
Fax: +92 21 9213873
Email: secy.cpsd@sindh.gov.pk

8. Syed Mustafa Kamal
City Nazim
District Government Karachi (CDGK)
Karachi
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 21 9232400-01
Fax: +92 21 9232406
E-mail: webmaster@karachicity.gov.pk


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)


Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-148-2007
Countries :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.