THE HRCP has sounded the alarm about the increasingly shrinking space in which it is allowed to function. In a strongly worded statement, the Commission cited a growing list of state actions that have obstructed its legitimate, peaceful work: the disruption of consultations in Islamabad and Gilgit by individuals claiming to represent security agencies, the illegal sealing of its Lahore office in 2024 along with the removal of its electricity meter, and the freezing of its bank account under a purported State Bank directive that the court later found to be non-existent. Most disturbingly, the HRCP’s chairperson was held and interrogated by the Karachi police — a first in the Commission’s decades-long history.The HRCP asserts that many of its recent gatherings have been disrupted by officials insisting that a no-objection certificate is required to hold even indoor discussions. Yet there is no clear law mandating NOCs for routine meetings by rights groups. The government, however, maintains that such requirements fall under standard security procedures, particularly when events involve foreign participants. Officials may have invoked a patchwork of administrative protocols and legal provisions — such as the Charities Registration and Regulations Act, certain Economic Affairs Division rules, and the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance — to justify these restrictions. But these frameworks are often applied inconsistently and without transparency, giving authorities excessive discretion to stifle civic engagement.

This pattern is not unique to the HRCP. In recent years, Pakistan has witnessed a systematic narrowing of civic space, with growing curbs on journalists, NGOs, student unions and human rights defenders. Internet shutdowns, defamation cases, and opaque funding regulations have all contributed to this climate of fear. As things stand, HRCP is perhaps the last bastion of principled rights advocacy in Pakistan — a watchdog that has consistently spoken for those whom the state neglects, marginalises or vilifies. If HRCP is silenced, who will speak for the missing in Balochistan — especially when their disappearance is often linked to actors operating outside the civilian mandate? Who will defend the rights of labourers, religious minorities and trans persons? The state must urgently reverse course. It must clarify the legal basis for requiring NOCs, establish an appeals mechanism against arbitrary denials and ensure rights groups are not harassed or financially strangled. A rights-respecting democracy welcomes scrutiny; it does not fear it.

Published in Dawn, July 4th, 2025