HRCP highlights severe contraction of civic space, erosion of judicial independence in 2025

The report, titled “State of Human Rights in 2025”, was launched in Islamabad, with HRCP Chairperson Asad Iqbal Butt, former chairperson Hina Jilani, co-chair Munizae Jahangir, vice-chair Nasreen Azhar and Secretary General Harris Khalique present.

Butt, while speaking to reporters, said it was a fact that human rights in Pakistan were in their worst state.

“It is not a report, it is a charge sheet. In 2025, as many as 273 persons faced enforced disappearance. Around 13 were traced from state agencies’ centres, but others are unknown,” he said.

Butt added that thousands of people have been missing for years and that if anyone has committed a crime, they should be produced in a court of law.

Khalique said that multiple constitutional and human rights-related violations were part of the report and on the record.

The report observed with alarm that the right to freedom of expression — particularly to question authority and demand accountability — was deeply suppressed in 2025, with far-reaching consequences for the rule of law and the protection of fundamental freedoms.

Additionally, legal and institutional mechanisms were increasingly used to curb dissent. Amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), as well as the use of sedition and anti-terrorism laws, led to the widespread targeting of journalists, political workers, activists and lawyers.

Reports of intimidation, enforced disappearances and restrictions on movement contributed to a climate of fear and self-censorship, limiting public discourse and obscuring human rights violations.

HRCP further claimed that amendments to the 1997 Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) at the federal and Balochistan levels allowed law enforcement agencies and even the armed forces to detain any person for up to three months without charge or judicial oversight, expanding the scope for undermining fundamental rights of liberty, due process and protection from arbitrary detention.

In particular, the report highlighted a marked deterioration in judicial independence, particularly following the passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, which reconfigured judicial appointments and expanded executive influence.

According to the report, key court decisions during the year further narrowed democratic space, raising serious concerns about due process and the separation of powers through judgements that enabled the military trials of civilians, and effectively delegitimised the PTI by denying the party the reserved seats it had been granted in 2024.

Security challenges compounded rights violations. HRCP claims that counter-terrorism operations disproportionately affected Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, resulting in significant civilian and law enforcement casualties.

Enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and collective punishments persisted, according to HRCP, while vulnerable groups — including women, children, religious minorities, and transgender persons — continued to face violence and discrimination without adequate redress.

The report further highlighted that miners and sanitation workers in particular remained vulnerable to accidents with little reported progress in improving their safety.

Moreover, HRCP noted that climate-related disasters, particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan, caused multiple deaths and destroyed infrastructure, but the government’s response remained reactive rather than long-term.

The report did, however, note several positive developments. The passage of the National Commission for Minorities Act represented a long-awaited step toward institutional protection for religious minorities.

Moreover, the Child Marriage Restraint Acts for Islamabad Capital Territory and Balochistan marked progress in safeguarding children’s rights, HRCP reported, while the higher courts issued important judgments advancing women’s rights in areas such as inheritance and marriage.

Targeted welfare initiatives and institutional reforms at the provincial levels also offered relief, but incrementally, HRCP said.