ISLAMABAD: The Amnesty International (AI) has said that the arrest of suspects allegedly involved in the attack on Malala Yousafzai offers an opportunity to the authorities to address their poor record in protecting human rights defenders.

“By her words and deeds, brave education rights activist Malala Yousafzai has proved that the pen is indeed mightier than the sword,” said Mustafa Qadri, the AI’s Pakistan researcher, in a statement.

“But activists promoting rights of women and girls in her native Swat and across Pakistan remain at risk of deadly attacks and other abuses from Taliban and other groups, also because of the authorities’ continued failure to hold the perpetrators to account.

“Human rights defenders play a critical role in promoting the rights of people in the society. With the world watching, it is critical that the country seizes this opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to human rights, justice and rule of law,” he said.

The military announced on Friday that 10 members of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, suspected of involvement in the 2012 attack on Malala Yousafzai, had been arrested.

“The arrested men must be treated humanely. If there is credible, admissible evidence against them, they should be brought to trial, the proceedings of which should meet international standards of fairness, and without recourse to death penalty,” Mr Qadri said.

Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2014