PAKISTAN: The office and staff of an NGO are under threat from the authorities and intelligence agencies

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to inform our readers that police action was taken at the offices of the Association of Global Human Rights and Ethics (AGHE). The police with the help of a magistrate have sealed the office and forcibly removed the staff. The government of Gilgit and Baltistan (GB) has banned the AGHE's activities. Please see the previous Urgent Appeal issued on March 1, AHRC-UAC-032-2013.

 

After receiving orders for restrictions on its activities the AGHE has confined its actions to within its offices but the authorities, under pressure from fundamentalist organizations operating under the patronage of the powerful groups of the state, took physical action to close down its offices in the different cities. 

UPDATED INFORMATION:

On April 10, 2013, police officials in the company of a magistrate raided the project office in Skardu, the district of the highest peak of the country, K2, Gilgit-Baltistan, and took over control of office. The officials ordered the staff to vacate the office immediately and when they enquired as to the reason the officials presented the order of the Superintendent of Police (SP) to seal the AGHE office. They also threatened and harassed the staff which included female members.

However, the actions of the administrations did not stop at closing down the offices and stopping the activities but also extended to threatening the female staff to provide information about the funding. They were threatened with dire consequences if they failed to comply with the demands.

They were called on different occasions by various government agencies, particularly an intelligence agency and were asked questions about USAID and its program and future interventions etc. They were also pressurized to disclose the passwords of their official and private emails. The intelligence officials have also revealed the content of conversations of telephone calls made to their staff, their friends and relatives. This is a clear indication that in GB the agencies are taping the telephones and intercepting the emails of ordinary citizens.

The AGHE has challenged the orders of the government of GB in the High Court which awarded a stay order and stopped the government from taking further action against the organization. However, despite this stay order from the High Court the police officials have sealed the office at Skardu.

Please see the attached link to a newspaper article on the matter:

http://pamirtimes.net/2013/03/26/ngo-aghe-decides-to-challenge-cancellation-of-registration-in-court/.

This is not the first time that police and special branch officials have forcibly entered the project office, tried to stop the work and harass the employees and other visitors. This was, in fact, the third time the police have raided the office. Please see documents showing newspaper articles and official notices.

Before this latest raid the authorities also raided the office of AGHE in another city, Gilgit, when a 3-day capacity building program for the community networks was being carried out under the Citizens’ Voice Project during the 2nd week of March, 2013. This raid was also conducted in the same fashion in that a magistrate with police officials arrived at the training hall and ordered a halt to the activities. However, at the protest of the participants and intervention of some media persons the magistrate left the place after giving them a warning.

On March 25, the Assistant Commissioner (AC) Gilgit, who is also the Registration Authority of NGOs issued two orders against the AGHE. The first one was a Show Cause Notice which was issued before noon and instructed the organization to suspend their activities. However, within two hours and before the organisation had the opportunity to respond another order was delivered to cease all activities. In fact, the authorities back-dated the orders and delivered them by hand on the 29th March.

It is said generally in the Gilgit Baltistan that the administration is particularly targeting the USAID funded project titled Citizens’ Voice for Effective Legislative Governance in Gilgit-Baltistan. The reason is suspected to be that the project avoided the normal red tape and did provide kick-backs to the officials. It is worth mentioning here that the project from USAID was given to AGHE after the organisation took part in a funding proposal that was open to other NGOs.

Another suspected reason to stop the activities of the AGHE is the Muslim fundamentalists, who have a number of training camps in the GB and are involved in sectarian killings of persons from Shia sect. The fundamentalists are provoking anti-west sentiments and pressurizing the authorities to take action against USAID funded activities.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the following authorities calling on them to immediately withdraw the illegal actions against the AGHE which is working for human rights, women's issues and child rights. Please urge them to allow the rights organizations to work freely. The authorities must stop following the policy of appeasement towards the fundamentalist groups. Please also urge them to prosecute the government officials who are abusing the constitution of Pakistan which allows the right based organization to work freely. Also remind them that by banning a right based organization the government is depriving the people of their fundamental and basic rights.

The AHRC writes a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteurs on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders calling for their intervention into this matter.