Daily Times

The situation for human rights activists has become worst in Khyber Pakhtunkhwaa province where at least 51 percent human rights activists received threats during their work. This was indicated on Tuesday in a survey report of a Shirkat Gah, an NGO working on human rights in Pakistan.

The report was presented in a ceremony organized here at a local hotel in Lahore. MPA Seemabia Tahir, Neelum Hayat Malik, human rights activists and members of civil society were in attendance at the event.

According to the report, total 908 human rights activists from all over the country filled the survey out of which 356 claimed of receiving a threat. 40 per cent human rights activists from Sindh, 34% from Punjab and 42% from Balochistan claimed of receiving a threat because of their work. The situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhaw was worst with 51 per cent activists receiving threats.

The report highlighted that the activists working on enforced disappearances received the most threats (53 per cent). 52 per cent of activists working on land rights, 50 per cent of activists working on minority rights, 47 per cent of activists working on human trafficking, and 42 per cent of activists working on child rights had received threats.

The threats range from different kinds of harassment to death threats. 43 per cent of activists said that they were threatened to death for taking up an issue. 30 per cent of activists said that they were harmed physically while 67 per cent said that they were harassed.

The survey report also highlighted that 40 per cent of the threats came from the influential person from the community, 32 per cent from religious militant groups, 25 per cent from local thugs, 23 per cent from law enforcement agencies, 20 per cent from political groups, 14 per cent from family and relatives, 10 per cent from mafias and 5 per cent from fellow human rights defenders.