ISLAMABAD: The Ja­miat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) has written a letter to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) alleging that the government had “curbed fundamental rights” of the party.

Harris Khalique, the HRCP’s secretary general, revealed during a seminar, “Reclaiming Civic Spaces in Pakistan”, at a hotel on Thursday that the government had arrested hundreds of JUI-F workers to scuttle the party’s plans for a march on Islamabad.

“The JUI-F has claimed that its workers are being arrested and a directive has been given to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regula­tory Authority to ensure that statements and interviews of party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman are not aired on television,” he said.

Mr Khalique said it was not the first time that a party had approached the HRCP with a complaint that its basic rights were being suppressed.

“The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had also written such a letter and informed us that it is facing the same problems. From time to time the Pakistan Peoples Party also writes such letters,” Harris Khalique added.

I.A. Rehman, a former secretary general of the commission, said even those who face allegations of human rights violation had written to the HRCP that their basic rights were being violated.

Mr Rehman said in his speech that the arrival of new technology had raised hopes that censorship would fade away.

“Instead, it has gifted oppressive regimes new tools to muzzle dissent, especially after 9/11. Now voice is muted even during live programmes and governments have become more secretive rather than becoming open to the public. In the past first information reports were registered against journalists, but now their services are terminated,” he added.

Farhatullah Babar, a PPP stalwart, differed with a suggestion by some activists that they should not support the JUI-F’s march because of the party’s stance on women’s rights. His contention was that “you should not leave the platform vacant for one party’’.

“It can be difficult for some of you to support Fazlur Rehman, but if we let the platform vacant, only his (Fazlur Rehman’s) narrative will be heard,” he said.

Khawar Mumtaz, chair­person of the National Com­mission on the Status of Women (NCSW), said civil society organisations, especially women’s, are affected the most by the growing trend of curbs being placed on social spaces by the government.

Journalists Iqbal Khattak and Murtaza Solangi spoke on “obvious and latent restrictions” imposed on freedom of expression through silencing or manipulating voices in the print, electronic and social media.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2019