SHC rejects interior secretary’s reply to show-cause notice

The Sindh High Court has rejected the reply of the interior ministry’s secretary to a show-cause notice over failure to file reports about the presence of missing persons at internment centres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and directed the secretary to appear in person along with a complete list of people being detained at those centres.

Hearing petitions against the enforced disappearances of citizens from different areas of Karachi, a division bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, noted that the interior secretary did not appear despite the specific orders of the court to file a list of detainees held at the internment centres so that the presence of missing persons could be verified.

The bench observed that the deputy secretary filed a reply to the show-cause notice on behalf of the interior secretary, which was prima facie found to be unsatisfactory. It was informed that a list of all internment centres and all internees had been filed by the KP government before the Supreme Court, which was also dealing with the matter.

The court stated that the interior secretary had not made any efforts to acquire such information from KP or the Supreme Court. It said that if the interior secretary had appeared it could have been discovered whether missing persons whose cases were pending before SHC were detained at the internment centres or not.

The court observed that it could at least be able to know whether or not people who were missing in Karachi were in such centres. It rejected the interior ministry report and directed the interior secretary to appear in person along with list of internment centers and internees. It remarked that no one was above the law, and if court orders were not complied with, the law would take its natural course.

To a court query whether the country was signatory to any the UN convention on enforced disappearances, the director general of the ministry of human rights said Pakistan was not party to the international convention for the protection of all persons from enforced disappearances and as such it had no obligation under that treaty.

He said there was the UN working group of enforced disappearances which was established by the UN secretary general, and the ministry of foreign affairs filed reports in respect of enforced disappearances.

The court directed the ministry of foreign affairs to file the last report that was filed before the UN working group on enforced disappearances established by general secretary, highlighting the comments of the government in this respect, keeping in view the prevailing situation in the country in respect of missing persons/enforced disappearances.

It observed that the ministry of human rights seemed to be making its best efforts to have legislation passed to criminalise the illegal practice of enforced disappearances and had already provided a draft legislation to the ministry of law, which was pending before it.

The court observed that it is expected that such legislation should be finalised and placed before parliament for approval without further delay so that there is as legal deterrent for those who engage in such illegal practices.

It also directed the ministry of human rights to place a progress report about the appointment of chairperson of the national commission of human rights as it was essential that this body also be activated so it could also look into the matter of enforced disappearances.