Amnesty International says declaration of emergency in KP must not be pretext to crackdown on human

Dubai  –  Responding to the declaration of a state of emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as well as the imposition of governor rule and the deployment of armed forces in the province, Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for South Asia, said: “Reports of arbitrary detentions of key leaders – including the provincial chief minister – and internet disruptions across the province raise concerns about the proportionality of these emergency measures. While states may, in strictly limited circumstances, derogate from their human rights obligations to respond to a public emergency that threatens the existence of the nation, emergency measures are not a blank cheque to crack down on human rights, silence dissent, or concentrate power. “At this critical juncture, the federal authorities must ensure independent oversight of all actions taken under the emergency framework, and guarantee that any emergency measure is strictly necessary and proportionate to the situation.”