European Commission Report on Pakistan's Human Rights Situation
That European Commission report just dropped. It paints a really bleak picture of Pakistan’s human rights situation. We’re talking serious stuff: enforced disappearances, restrictions on basic freedoms, problems with the courts, minority rights, and labor protections are all flagged.
And here’s the kicker this everything is tied to whether Pakistan keeps those EU trade benefits under the GSP+. It seems compliance with these international human rights rules is actually linked to that access.
The assessment covered the 2023 to 2025 monitoring period, and honestly, it flags huge shortcomings in how Pakistan is sticking to those GSP+ commitments.
One of the most glaring issues they pointed out? The rise in enforced disappearances . This is happening especially badly in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and that area claimed by Pakistan PoK. There’s a specific problem with amendments made to the Anti-Terrorism Act in Balochistan; they expanded detention powers. Rights groups are screaming about it, arguing these changes let them just disappear activists, students, journalists, without any real legal safety net.
Then there's the communication blackout issue. They noted repeated internet shutdowns across Balochistan. These aren’t just outages; they cut off access to information. It made documenting alleged abuses incredibly difficult.
The Commission also questioned how effective things are with the official bodies trying to deal with this mess. They looked at Pakistan’s Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances. Well, over nine thousand cases have been dealt with, but zero prosecutions against those supposedly responsible. And Islamabad hasn't even brought in laws specifically criminalizing enforced disappearances. It just doesn't seem to stick.
Law enforcement practices are another massive problem cited. Civil society groups documented a sharp increase in alleged extrajudicial killings. We’re talking hundreds of deaths from what were labeled "police encounters" in Punjab alone. And torture? It remains widespread, despite laws against it existing. The ugly part is that confessions allegedly pulled out under coercion are still allowed to be used in anti-terrorism proceedings.
They also slammed the use of military courts trying civilians. It’s just not meeting any international standard for a fair trial. That gap between what happens and what should happen is staggering.
Pressure seems intense on anyone who speaks out journalists, political opponents, civil society organizations. The electronic crimes law, PECA, and defamation rules are being weaponized against journalists and human rights defenders. It’s contributing to Pakistan's slide down the World Press Freedom Index, hitting that 158th spot for 2025. On top of that, trying to register NGOs or get foreign funding? That’s another barrier thrown up in the way of civil society life.
And you can’t ignore the discrimination against minorities. Ahmadi Muslims are specifically targeted. Places of worship get destroyed, and mob violence cases rarely see real prosecution. It's a pattern.
Then there’s the economic reality mixed in with all this. There’s the massive issue of bonded labor and child labor everywhere. Labor inspections are weak, union representation is non-existent. Nearly half the population lives in poverty. More than a third of school-age kids aren't even in school. And those recent constitutional changes? They just raise fresh questions about who holds the power judicial independence, the whole rule of law thing seems shaky now.
And finally, there’s corruption bleeding into everything. Mass deportation of Afghan refugees is also sitting there, demanding urgent attention alongside all these other deep, messy problems. It’s a lot to process.
Written by Gree News Team — Senior Editorial Board
Gree News Team covers international news and global affairs at Gree News. Our collective of senior editors is dedicated to providing independent, accurate, and responsible journalism for a global audience.
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