PPP HR cell concerned over gross misuse of Peca law

ISLAMABAD: The Human Rights Cell of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) condemns the arrest of Farhan Mallick of Raftar Media in Karachi, demands his release and transparent investigations into the matter.

“The state agencies arrest innocent citizens on whimsical, vague, and unsubstantiated allegations of ‘anti-state’ propaganda. Once arrested the accused is then rigorously punished through abuse of judicial process involving harassment, intimidation and mental torture in custody and delaying court proceedings before eventually proven innocent and released,” said President PPP Human Rights Cell Farhatullah Babar in a statement on Saturday.

Farhatullah Babar said this unfortunately has been almost a standard operating procedure (SOP) with the FIA to stifle dissent and freedom of expression during the past decade since Peca was promulgated in 2016. “The reason for this deeply worrying practice is that the investigation agency FIA does not submit 6-monthly reports to the parliament for scrutiny and discussion as mandated under the Peca law.”

He urged the parliament to ensure that the FIA complies with Section 53 of the Act and regularly submit reports to the parliament. He said there is ruling of the Senate chairman on the type of information to be given in these reports, procedure for laying it, and the discussions in the parliament on it.

Demanding the immediate release of Farhan Mallick, he called for respecting the citizens’ right to freedom of expression and the right to information guaranteed in the Constitution as well as international covenants signed by the state.