• Watchdog says 2025 marked by ‘severe contraction of civic space’, ‘erosion of judicial independence’
• Report says right to freedom of expression ‘deeply suppressed’; legal mechanisms used to curb dissent
• Chairperson says 273 persons forcibly disappeared
• Body calls govt response to climate disasters ‘reactive’

ISLAMABAD: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, in its annual report, painted a grim picture of the rights situation in 2025, saying that the previous year witnessed the severe contraction of civic space, the erosion of judicial independence, and deepening insecurity.

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

Mr Khalique said that a number of constitutional and human rights-related violations were part of the report, and now they have come on the record.

Mr Butt called it “not a report, [but] a charge sheet”.

“In 2025 as many as 273 persons faced enforced disappearance. Around 13 were traced from state agencies’ centres but (the whereabouts of) others are unknown,” he said, adding that thousands of people had been missing for years.

If anyone has committed a crime, they should be produced in court, he maintained.

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.

Worryingly, legal and institutional mechanisms were increasingly used to curb dissent, it said, adding that amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, alongside 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.

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

Judicial independence

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

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. Militancy and counterterrorism operations disproportionately affected Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, resulting in significant civilian and law enforcement casualties.

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

Miners and sanitation workers in particular remained vulnerable to accidents with little reported progress in improving their safety. While climate-related disasters, particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan, caused multiple deaths and destroyed infrastructure, the government’s response remained reactive rather than long-term.

The report noted several positive developments. The passage of the National Commission for Minorities Act represents a long-awaited step toward institutional protection for religious minorities.

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

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2026