ISLAMABAD: Social and human-rights activists on Friday rejected the government’s assurance that it is operating an “open and transparent” policy for the registration of International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs).
“The government has issued arbitrary orders of closure of international NGOs and there is no transparency in its registration process,” said Mohammad Tehseen, the director of South Asia Partnership Pakistan.
He challenged the government to press charges against NGOs that it alleges are involved in “anti-state activities.”
“Why doesn’t the government approach the courts against those NGOs involved in illegal activities?” he asked.
Tehseen, who has been campaigning for the right of NGOs to work freely in the country, claims that the crackdown on charity organizations is part of a government strategy to clamp down on dissent.
“The welfare organizations have been providing services to remote areas of Pakistan where the government has failed to initiate development projects,” he said. “Is the provision of clean drinking water, education and awareness of human rights to the people a crime?”
On Oct. 2 this year, the government rejected the registrations of 18 INGOs, giving them 60 days to wind up their operations and leave Pakistan. In June 2015, the then-Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan directed all INGOs in Pakistan to apply for full registeration with the ministry to continue working in the country. As a result, 141 organizations applied for registration, of which only 74 were approved.
While briefing a Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights last week, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Interior Mohammad Siddique said that all INGOs were given the opportunity to explain their activities.
“All of the INGOs that have been directed to leave the country were given the opportunity of a personal hearing but they failed to satisfy the relevant officials about their workings,” he said.
Zaigham Khan, an analyst and human-rights activist, urged the government to satisfy the donors’ community about the banning of the INGOs and to improve the transparency of the process.
“The Pakistani authorities will have to face difficult questions at international forums such as the United Nations about its purported crackdown against NGOs and human-rights activists if it fails to bring transparency in its working,” he said.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Thursday said that the government was pursuing an “open and transparent” INGO policy “which is underpinned by national laws, rules and regulations,” and that “the evidence is contrary to assertions.”
It added that all actions were in accordance with universally recognized principles and practice, as every state has the right to define laws, policies and regulatory frameworks, keeping in mind the national context, circumstances and needs.
Amid calls for transparency, Pakistan denies targeting international NGOs
Amid calls for transparency, Pakistan denies targeting international NGOs
- Activists urge government to ensure transparency in registration of NGOs
- Of 141 international NGOs, the government has so far allowed 74 to continue their operations
Pakistan opposition rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to demand release of Imran Khan
- PTI-led gathering calls the former PM a national hero and demands the release of all political prisoners
- Government says the opposition failed to draw a large crowd and accuses PTI of damaging its own politics
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan at a rally in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, describing him as a national hero who continues to command public support.
The gathering came days after a rare and strongly worded briefing by the military’s media chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, who dismissed Khan as “narcissistic” and “mentally ill” on Friday while responding to the former premier’s allegations that Pakistan’s chief of defense forces was responsible for undermining the constitution and rule of law.
He said that Khan was promoting an anti-state narrative which had become a national security threat.
The participants of the rally called for “civilian supremacy” and said elected representatives should be treated with respect.
“We, the people of Pakistan, regard Imran Khan as a national hero and the country’s genuinely elected prime minister, chosen by the public in the February 8, 2024 vote,” said a resolution presented at the rally in Peshawar. “We categorically reject and strongly condemn the notion that he or his colleagues pose any kind of threat to national security.”
“We demand immediate justice for Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and all political prisoners, and call for their prompt release,” it added, referring to Khan’s wife who is also in prison. “No restrictions should be placed on Imran Khan’s meetings with his family, lawyers or political associates.”
Addressing the gathering, Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, denied his administration was not serious about security issues amid increased militant activity. However, he maintained the people of his province had endured the worst of Pakistan’s conflict with militancy and urged a rethinking of long-running security policies.
The resolution asked the federal government to restore bilateral trade and diplomatic channels with Afghanistan, saying improved cross-border ties were essential for the economic stability of the region.
The trade between the two neighbors has suffered as Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration in Kabul of sheltering and facilitating armed groups that it says launch cross-border attacks to target its civilians and security forces. Afghan officials deny the claim.
The two countries have also had deadly border clashes in recent months that have killed dozens of people on both sides.
Some participants of the rally emphasized the restoration of democratic freedoms, judicial independence and space for political reconciliation, calling them necessary to stabilize the country after years of political confrontation.
Reacting to the opposition rally, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar said the PTI and its allies could not gather enough people.
“In trying to build an anti-army narrative, they have ruined their own politics,” he said, adding that the rally’s reaction to the military’s media chief’s statement reflected “how deeply it had stung.”
“There was neither any argument nor any real response,” he added, referring to what was said by the participants of the rally.
