May 29, 2008	Thursday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 23, 1429

LONDON, May 28: “We are calling for not only the reinstatement of deposed judges but also the establishment of an independent judiciary,” said Amnesty International Secretary-General Irene Khan while briefing the media on the occasion of the launching of AI’s 2008 Report here.

She said the AI supported the ongoing movement of the bar and the bench in Pakistan and regarded the march of the ‘black coats’ on the streets for establishing the rule of law a positive development.

She was asked about AI’s position with regard to the lawyers’ movement in Pakistan.

Earlier, in an exclusive interview with Dawn and DawnNews Irene Khan said that AI had reasons to believe there were very serious allegations that terror suspects had been tortured, ill-treated by Pakistani intelligence agencies and interrogated by western governments.

“And that means the western governments were aware that these people were being tortured when they were being interrogated.

“We have raised our concerns with the UK authorities on a couple of cases and we believe there are others but I can’t name them because some of those cases are currently in the courts here. But certainly we have cases where dual nationals, Pakistani British citizens or British citizens were arrested, were detained illegally in Pakistan, ill-treated or tortured and may then have a contact with the British intelligence people too.”

She said that in 2007 the violations of human rights in the war against terror had reached epidemic proportions. They were spreading.

“We have seen them in Pakistan, we have seen them in Afghanistan, we have seen them spreading like a virus from the US to the European Union.”

The AI Report said that last year thousands of lawyers, journalists, human rights activists and political workers were arbitrarily detained in Pakistan.

“The independence of the judiciary was curbed. Some victims of forced disappearance reappeared but hundreds remained missing. Honour killings and resort to jirgas continued.”