Human Rights Commission of Pakistan

🇵🇰 #CAT84: The CAT experts addressed numerous issues during their review of Pakistan, echoing the concerns of several NGOs. The experts urged #Pakistan to amend the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention & Punishment) Act 2022 to include a comprehensive definition of torture that aligns with the Convention Against Torture. The Act does not explicitly reference severe mental and psychological torture, or acknowledge torture to be a distinct and grievous act. These limits the scope and application of the Act, and may affect the domestic prosecution of such crimes. The experts also highlighted the potential threat of the 2023 Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan, which allows the deportation of foreigners identified as illegal and unregistered, to the principle of non-refoulement, specifically for Afghan refugees. Since the plan’s implementation, the government reports that 30,000 Afghans have been deported, while over 600,000 Afghans have voluntarily returned to Afghanistan. However, according to the IOM and the UNHCR’s findings, there have been 2,154,205 returns to Afghanistan, of which 226,000 were deportations. The experts also received concerns that many “voluntary returns” are actually forced, or achieved by coercion, like through police abuse and extortion. #EndTorture #CATReview #HumanRights @IscanErdogan @ana_racu @ClaudeHellerR @jorgecontesse @UNHumanRights @UN_SPExperts @UNTreatyBodies @UNGeneva @DrAliceJEdwards @HRCP87 @JusticeProject_