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Outrage in Pakistan over rights activist’s abduction

Jibran Nasir is known for his support of minorities and vocal criticism of human rights abuses
Pakistani rights activist Jibran Nasir leads a political rally in Karachi in 2018. Nasir was allegedly abducted on June 1

Pakistani rights activist Jibran Nasir leads a political rally in Karachi in 2018. Nasir was allegedly abducted on June 1. (Photo: AFP)

Published: June 02, 2023 10:33 AM GMT
Updated: June 02, 2023 10:46 AM GMT

Christians and human rights campaigners have condemned the alleged abduction of an outspoken rights activist who is known for his support of religious minorities in Muslim-majority Pakistan.

Lawyer, politician, and rights activist Jibran Nasir was picked up by unidentified armed men from near his residence in the southern port city of Karachi on June 1, his family members claimed.

His wife, Mansha Pasha, filed a police complaint on June 2 seeking immediate action to get Nasir released.

According to the complaint, a car blocked the couple’s car when they were returning home from dinner.

“Some 15 people along with weapons came out in civil clothes and forced my husband to get out of the car, manhandling him,” Pasha stated in the complaint.

The abduction of Nasir came days after he strongly criticized a state crackdown on the supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan who violently protested his attempted arrest recently.

Pakistan’s National Commission for Human Rights expressed concerns over the abduction.  

“We demand that he be safely recovered immediately and his abductors held accountable under the law,” the commission said in a statement on June 2.

Christian groups have called for the release of Nasir.  

Pastor Ghazala Shafiq of the Church of Pakistan said they would join a protest rally to be organized by the Joint Action Committee at Karachi Press Club. She urged churches and Christians to pray for his safe return.

“His whereabouts are still unknown. We request the higher authorities and law enforcement agencies for the reviver of our precious asset and provide security to his family. Another lawyer in Karachi was similarly abducted by four unknown men. Police are not ready to take any action,” she told UCA News.  

Nasir is known for his public support for the rights of minorities who face various forms of abuse and discrimination in the country.  He is a vocal critic of human rights violations in the country.

In 2020, he was the counsel of Arzoo Fatima, whose Catholic parents accuse her Muslim neighbor of kidnapping her in Karachi, forcibly converting her to Islam and forcing her to marry him in 2020.

According to Shafiq, Nasir is presently pursuing cases of five victims, all of them Christians.

“He calls me aapa (elder sister) who always stands boldly for us. There is no replacement. The state should avoid unlawful tactics. A high sense of insecurity prevails in our country where the political tumult is worsening the economic misery,” she said.

Pakistan's Supreme Court last month declared the arrest of ex-PM Khan unlawful, two days after his detention sparked deadly clashes and huge protests nationwide. Authorities began a crackdown after his supporters attacked public property and military installations.

Since being ousted from office last April, Khan has waged a tempestuous campaign for snap elections and hurled unprecedented criticism at Pakistan's leaders and powerful military elite, even accusing them of plotting a November assassination attempt that saw him shot in the leg.

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