Islamabad: Leading international human rights organisation Amnesty International has expressed serious concern over reports of arbitrary detentions of key leaders in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, including the chief minister, as well as internet disruptions in the region, questioning the proportionality of the emergency measures imposed by the federal government.
The statement came after the federal government declared a state of emergency on Sunday and imposed governor’s rule in the province, suspending the provincial government led by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
Condemning the emergency declaration 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,” he noted.
Pant warned that the army’s deployment risks further militarising Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and creating conditions for unlawful use of force, particularly given the armed forces’ history of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial executions during counterterrorism operations.
He called on Pakistani authorities to avoid using military personnel for ordinary policing tasks and to ensure military forces remain accountable and comply with international human rights law and standards.
“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,” Pant stated.
Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sohail Afridi, and several cabinet members were detained after the provincial government was suspended under emergency rule, local media reported on Monday.
The leaders would be charged and tried in the legal cases pending against them, Pakistan’s Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry told the media.
Following the imposition of emergency, the Governor House in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was set on fire amid escalating political tensions and a deteriorating security situation in the region.
In videos circulating on social media, the Governor House was seen engulfed in flames, while other footage showed police firing and shelling in cities across the province.
Earlier on Sunday, opposition parties strongly opposed the federal government’s decision to impose governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, terming the move an assault on democracy and pledging to challenge it through legal and public platforms.
In a statement, the PTI warned that the decision had set a “dangerous precedent”, describing it as political victimisation intended to weaken the province’s elected leadership, the Pakistani daily Dawn reported.
(IANS)
