Assassination of Mr. Rashid Rehman, a human rights lawyer and HRCP Regional Coordinator in Punjab

Pakistan

May 15, 2014

TheObservatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme ofthe International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World OrganisationAgainst Torture (OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the followingsituation in Pakistan.

Description of the situation:

TheObservatory has been informed by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)of the assassination of Mr. RashidRehman, a human rights lawyer and HRCP Regional Coordinator forthe work of human rights defenders in Punjab. He headed the HRCP specialtaskforce office in Multan.

In December 2013, Mr. Rashid Rehman had participated in OMCT campaign
"10 Days of activism against torture"

According tothe information received, on May 7, 2014, at 8.45 pm, Mr. Rashid Rehman wasshot five times by twounidentified men who walked into the HRCP office on Kutchery Road, Multan. He succumbedto his injuries on the way to Nishtar Hospital. Mr. Rashid Rehman's colleagueMr. Nadeem Parvaz and client Mr. Fazal Baloch were also shot and arereceiving treatment in the same hospital. The two gunmen managed to escape.

TheObservatory firmly denounces the assassination of Mr. Rashid Rehman, which waspreceded by death threats he received as a result of his human rightsactivities. Indeed, Mr. Rehman denounced the repression of religious minoritiesand advocated against the misuse of blasphemy laws in Pakistan[1]and, since December 2013, had been representing Mr. Junaid Hafeez, a lecturerat Bahauddin Zakariya University in Multan, who was accused of blasphemy in ahigh profile case. It is reported that no lawyer was willing to take the casefor many months after Mr. Hafeez’s first lawyer withdrew on the first hearingof his bail petition after being threatened by extremist religious groups. Thenext hearing in Mr. Junaid Hafeez's case is fixed for May 19, 2014.

On April 9,2014, Mr. Rehman was threatened with death by four men in a courtroom in MultanCentral Prison, where the case of Mr. Junaid Hafeez was being heard due tosecurity reasons. Accordingto Mr. Rehman, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Sindhu and Mr. Sajjad Ahmad Chawan, bothlawyers who were present in the courtroom, said to him: “you will not come to court next time because you will not existanymore”. Mr. Ayoub Mughal and afourth man present in the court whose identity is not known allegedly repeatedthe threat.

Although thethreats were made before Additional District and Sessions Judge Shahbaz AliParacha, he did not say anything even when Mr. Rehman reportedly drew hisattention to the threats. On April 10, 2014, Mr. Rehman and Advocate Allah Dad, who was also representingMr. Hafeez, wrote to the Punjab Chief Minister, the Inspector General of Punjabpolice, the city police officer and District Bar Association’s President SherZaman Qureshi, saying that they had been threatened by two lawyers and twoother people who asked them not to appear in a blasphemy case.

HRCP alsowrote to the Punjab government on April 10, 2014,bringing the threats made against Mr. Rehman inside a courtroom and in front ofa judge to his attention. HRCPexpressed its concern in that regard and also demanded that the persons who hadthreatened Mr. Rehman were proceeded against and effective measures were takento ensure Mr. Rehman’s security. On the same day HRCPalso released a statement tothe media exposing and condemning the threats[2].

Howeverthe authorities took no action against those who threatened Mr. Rehmanand did not provide any security to him. The police in Multan did not evensummon the men who had threatened Mr. Rehman for questioning, much less takeinto custody for making the threat, which is an offence under Pakistan’s penallaw. No case was registered against the four men either.

FollowingMr. Rashid Rehman's assassination, the police stated that the shooting waslikely to be a targeted killing and that they were aware of threats that hadbeen made against him. The Chehliyak police in Multan, on a complaint of thebrother-in-law of Mr. Rashid Rehman, lodged a first information report underSection 302 ("Punishment of qatl-i-amd"[3]),Section 324 ("Attempt to commit qatl-i-amd") and Article 7 of theAnti Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997 against two unidentified attackers. No furthersteps have been taken so far and no progress made in arresting the killers.

Moreover, onMay 8, 2014, the day of Mr. Rehman’s burial, leaflets that claimed that Mr.Rehman had met his “rightful end” were distributed in Multan and the person wholed the funeral prayers was threatened.

TheObservatory recalls that this is not the first time that those opposing oradvocating against the misuse of blasphemy laws in Pakistan are targeted.Judges have previously been attacked in Pakistan for acquitting blasphemydefendants and two politicians who discussed reforming the law were shot deadin 2011. The federal and provincial governments’ inability to condemn such killingsas well as their failure to investigate abuses in the lodgingof blasphemy cases and instigation of hate and violence in Punjab not only encourageacts of violence against human rights defenders but also underminetheir trust in the authorities’ commitment to protect them.

Furthermore,in the last three years five human rights defenders belonging to HRCP have beenkilled. Numerous others have been intimidated and threatened for their work andremain under constant threat. To date all these crimes remain in impunity as noone has been held to account for any of these crimes and the authorities failto guarantee the protection of human rights defenders under threats.

TheObservatory offers sincere condolences to the bereaved family and to Mr. RashidRehman's friends and colleagues and urges the authorities in Pakistan to conduct an immediate, thorough, effective,and impartial investigation in order to identify all those responsible, bringthem before a civil competent and impartial tribunal and apply the penalsanctions provided by the law, as well as to adopturgent measures to protect human rights defenders in Pakistan.

Actions requested:

The Observatory urges the authorities of Pakistan to:

i. Guaranteein all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of all HRCPmembers and staff, particularly Advocate Allah Dad, witnesses of Mr. RashidRehman’s assassination, as well as all human rights defenders in Pakistan;

ii. Carryout an immediate, effective, thorough, transparent and impartial high-levelinvestigation into the assassination of Mr. Rashid Rehman, in order to identifyall those responsible, bring them before a civil, competent and impartialtribunal, and apply to them the penal sanctions provided by the law;

iii Probethe reasons why the authorities failed to take any meaningful steps oninformation provided by Mr. Rehman and HRCP detailing the threats, requestingsecurity for the lawyer and taking action against the four men who threatenedhim;

iv. Provideadequate reparation and compensation to Mr. RashidRehman’s relatives;

v. Take effectivesteps to ensure that the rising dangers against human rights defenders arecurbed and ensure in all circumstances that they are able to carry out theirwork without unjustified hindrance and fear of reprisal;

vi. Condemn Mr.Rashid Rehman’s murder unequivocally and recognise publicly that human rightsdefenders have a legitimate role to play in ensuring peace, justice anddemocracy, and therefore promote a dignification campaign of human rightsdefenders;

vii. Conformin all circumstances with the provisions of the Declaration on Human RightsDefenders, adopted on December 9, 1998 by the United Nations General Assembly,in particular:

- itsArticle 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually or inassociation with others, to promote the protection and realization of humanrights and fundamental freedoms at the national and internationallevels” ;

- and itsArticle 12.2 which states that “the State shall take all necessary measures toensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individuallyand in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, defacto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary actionas a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to inthe present Declaration”.

viii. Ensurein all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms inaccordance with international human rights standards and internationalinstruments ratified by Pakistan.

Addresses:

· H.E. Mr. Muhammad Nawaz SHARIF,Prime Minister of Pakistan, Prime Minister House, Islamabad, Pakistan. Fax: +92 51 9221596. E-mail: pspm@pmsectt.gov.pk or nsethi@pmsectt.gov.pk

· H.E. Mr. Mamnoon Hussain, Presidentof Pakistan, President's Secretariat, Islamabad, Pakistan. Fax: +92 51 9207458.Email: publicmail@president.gov.pk

· Mr. Pervaiz RASHID, Ministerof Justice, Human Rights, Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage,Pakistan. E-mail: pervaiz.rashid@senate.gov.pk

· Mr. Shahbaz Sharif, Chief Minister, Government ofPunjab Province, Chief Minister's Secretariat, 5-Club Road, GOR-I, Lahore,Punjab, Pakistan. Fax: +92 42 99205065. Email: cmcomplaintcell@cmpunjab.gov.pk

· Mr. Justice Tassaduq HussainJillani, Chief Justice of Pakistan, SupremeCourt of Pakistan, Constitution Avenue, Islamabad, Pakistan. Fax: +92 51 9213452. Email: mail@supremecourt.gov.pk

· Mr. Justice Umar Ata Bandial, ChiefJustice of the Lahore High Court, Shahra-e-Quaid-e-Azam, Lahore Pakistan. Fax:+92 42 99212319.

· H.E Mr. Zamir Akram, Ambassador tothe Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations in Geneva, 56, Rue deMoillebeau, Case Postale 434, 1211 Geneva 19, Switzerland. Fax:+41-22-734-8085. E-mail: mission.pakistan@ties.itu.int

· H.E Mr. Munawar Saeed Bhatti,Ambassador to EU, Belgium and Luxembourg, 57 Avenue Delleur; 1170 Brussels,Belgium. Fax: +32 (0)2 675 83 94. E-mail: parepbrussels@mofa.gov.pk

Please alsowrite to diplomatic representations of Pakistan in your respective countries.

***

Paris-Geneva,May 15, 2014

Kindlyinform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in yourreply.

TheObservatory, a FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of HumanRights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.

To contactthe Observatory, call the emergency line:

• E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org

· Teland fax OMCT + 41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22 809 49 29

· Tel and fax FIDH + 33(0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80

[1]Blasphemy carries the death penalty in Pakistan. The accused are oftenlynched or languish for years in jail without trial because lawyers are tooafraid to defend them.

[2] See http://hrcp-web.org/hrcpweb/hrcp-slams-threat-to-lawyer-representing-blasphemy-accused/

[3]Qatl-e-Amd is murder by intention.