LAHORE: In a letter to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) chairperson Asad Iqbal Butt has called for immediate action on persistent rights violations in the province.

With violence against women, children and transpersons showing no signs of abatement, HRCP has recommended strengthening the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women, instituting more effective child protection mechanisms and legislating to raise the age for marriage to 18 years.

Threats to religious freedoms must also be addressed by implementing the 2014 Supreme Court judgment in letter and spirit and taking steps to penalise false accusations of blasphemy.

Existing labour laws and regulations related to inspections, safety protocols and wages must be implemented to protect vulnerable workers.

Tactics to repress dissent, such as arbitrary raids and detentions and undeclared curbs on press freedom, must end.

Women and other political prisoners must also be released immediately, and the state must legislate to restore student unions.

Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2024