News

Imran’s Son Kasim Raises Father’s Case at UNHRC

 

Geneva: Kasim Khan, the son of incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan, raised his father’s case at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Wednesday, saying that the former prime minister’s treatment by authorities was in violation of international human rights conventions.

Imran —  imprisoned  since 2023 for  concealing  details of Toshakhana gifts — is serving a  14-year  sentence at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail in the  £190 million corruption case .

Meanwhile, his party and family have alleged that he is being kept in solitary confinement — with a  restriction  on visitors being allowed to meet him in jail — and have repeatedly raised concerns over his medical treatment after it surfaced in January that he suffered an eye ailment.

At a UNHRC session, Kasim said Imran’s case was not an “isolated incident”. In fact, he claimed, it was the “most visible example of a much wider pattern of repression in Pakistan since 2022”. In this connection, he mentioned the detention of political prisoners,  trial and conviction of civilians by military  courts and journalists being “ silenced , abducted or driven into exile”.

He also briefly mentioned the February 2024 general elections, reiterating the PTI’s allegations that they were  rigged .

Kasim noted that Pakistan had made binding commitments under the GSP+ framework to uphold international human rights conventions, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Convention against Torture.

He claimed that Imran’s detention was arbitrary and that he was being kept in solitary confinement. Kasim further mentioned that there was a bar on his family visiting him and also alleged the “denial of medical care” to him. This, along with the trial of civilians in military courts, violated those treaty obligations, he said.

Ending his short address, he said, “My brother and I are not political people. We never wanted to come before bodies like this. [But] my father’s life demands that we take action.

“We cannot stand by as his health deteriorates and he is kept away from us. If the situation were reversed, we know he would not stop fighting until we were free. That is the very least we can do for him.” - Dawn

Courtesy Dawn


Back to Pakistanlink Home

 

Back to Top