Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the unjust incarceration of human rights defender Idris Khattak and calls for his immediate release. The human rights defender was forcibly disappeared on 13 November 2019 and found in state custody over 7 months later. He was tried and convicted by a military court under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment in December 2021. An appeal against his conviction is pending before a military court and offers some hope for his release.
The human rights defender has spent nearly five years of imprisonment in crowded and unsanitary conditions. Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned about his safety, especially given his age and underlying health concerns. The organisation calls for his immediate release.
Idris Khattak is a human rights defender who has campaigned for the rights of religious and ethnic minorities, especially against violations by military and intelligence agencies in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa area. He is an outspoken critic of oppressive state policies and documented systemic violations against oppressed communities.
On November 13, 2019, Idris Khattak was forcibly disappeared by plainclothes men. 7 months later, in June 2020, the human rights defender was found in military custody. He was subsequently tried and convicted by a military court under the OSA and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment.
United Nations human rights experts, in a joint communication, strongly condemned his conviction and sentencing. “Mr. Khattak’s reported sentencing is an attack against the human rights community in Pakistan and sends a chilling message to civil society activists monitoring and reporting on alleged violations, committed by the military and security forces or with their consent or acquiescence, such as systematic or widespread enforced disappearances" the experts said.
Pakistan has a long history of targeting human rights defenders with enforced disappearances as a tool to quell their dissent and criticism of the administration and military policies. Many of the human rights defenders who have been arrested or subjected to enforced disappearance in Pakistan have been deprived of their basic right to medical assistance or contact with their families. Further to this, many are kept in degrading conditions, and are often subjected to abuse and torture. Those that are released are threatened into silence and face the risk of further violence against themselves and their families if they dare to speak out. The little information available on experiences during their ordeal is only available on condition of anonymity out of fear for their safety.
As the human rights defender approaches five years of unjust incarceration, Front Line Defenders calls on the Pakistan authorities to immediately end his persecution, remove all legal cases against him and release Idris Khattak safely to his family. “We call for accountability for his enforced disappearance and treatment by the Pakistan authorities, including the unlawful and unjust practice of trying a civilian in a military court, and denying him access to an effective legal remedy and due process rights. The human rights defender’s long incarceration, given his age and underlying health issues, raises serious concerns for his physical and mental safety in prison. Idris Khattak should never have been imprisoned unjustly and his release is essential for ensuring his personal safety.”
The organisation urges the Pakistan authorities to ensure that all human rights defenders in Pakistan are allowed to live and work with dignity and safety, without fear of reprisals.