Daily Times

Lahore: Pakistan must implement the United Nations Human Rights Committee recommendations to ensure compliance with its human rights obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Commission of Jurists said on Thursday.

The ICJ statement noted that the Human Rights Committee, the treaty-monitoring body that oversees countries’ implementation of and compliance with the ICCPR, had concluded first ever review of Pakistan’s human rights record. “While it is encouraging to see Pakistan’s increased engagement with United Nations human rights mechanisms in recent years, it is deeply worrying that since ratifying the ICCPR, Pakistan’s human rights situation has worsened in a number of aspects, including with the restoration of the death penalty and the introduction of military trials for civilians,” said Livio Zilli, ICJ’s Senior Legal Adviser and UN Representative. Explaining the impact of the UNHRC’s remarks, Reema Omar of the ICJ says that compliance with the ICCPR and human rights treaties is a condition for Pakistan GSP+ status. She says that serious failure to effectively implement these treaties can endanger the economic benefits that come with the GSP+ status. “Pakistan should recall that Sri Lanka lost its GSP+ status based on shortcomings in the implementation of UN human rights conventions, including the ICCPR,” Omar notes. She urges the government to ensure prompt and effective implementation of the HRC’s recommendations.

Published in Daily Times, July 28^th , 2017.