Parliament is deeply concerned at the alarming rate of executions in Pakistan following flawed trials, including of minors and persons with mental disabilities, some of which are carried out while appeals are still under way. In a resolution, it calls on Pakistan to reinstate its moratorium on the death penalty, with the ultimate goal of full abolition.
MEPs also urge the Pakistani Government to prevent misuse of the ‘blasphemy law’, which is so vaguely defined as to render it open to abuse, including to target political dissidents. Vigilantism towards alleged ‘blasphemers’ is heightening the climate of religious intolerance, MEPs fear.
They deplore the general “roll-back in Pakistan of the respect for human rights and the rule of law”, in particular the freedom granted to security forces, the use of military courts, the crackdown on NGOs, the intimidation of human rights defenders and religious minorities, and the increase in extrajudicial killings.
EUROPE DIPLOMATIC 