Rights Watch (26th March 2020)

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Rights Watch

Honour Killing

One Hazaro Gulwani, from Jacobabad murdered his wife Shado, as well as her male friend, Mashooq Gulmani. Hazaro Gulwani had accused his wife and her friend of having an extramarital relationship and on pretext of ‘honour’ killed them both. The victims belonged to the Jageer village of Jacobabad district. Their bodies were subsequently handed over to their families. The suspect however managed to escape arrest and flee.

Extrajudicial Killing

A man who was shot at by Lahore’s Dolphin Squad personnel on March 13 in Iqbal Town, succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital.

Prior to his death, the victim Hassan Bhatti claimed in a video statement that he had been intercepted by 4 Dolphin Squad officers and was inquired as to why he had not stopped his car. Bhatti said that had not known he was being asked to stop and requested them if he could park his car on the side of the road after the Dolphin police demanded a search. One of the Squad officers, identified as Sabir in the FIR, shot Bhatti in his back, allegedly without reason.

Bhatti remained on the spot with no medical aid until the arrival of some local police officers, who then shifted Bhatti to Jinnah hospital. The victim was later transferred to a private hospital where he succumbed to his wounds on March 20.

Press Freedoms

The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) in a press statement on March 25, denounced the harassment and torture of journalists by security personnel, during the lockdown in Karachi, Sukkur and Hyderabad.

The statement pointed out that journalists were being thrashed by security personnel despite holding valid office ID cards while lockdown orders gave clear exemption to media persons and journalists. PFUJ appealed to the Sindh government and LEAs to take notice of these incidents and to ensure journalists’ safety.