The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) issued a strong statement on Sunday demanding an end to emergency and governor's rule in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The commission called for the immediate release of the chief executive and all other arbitrarily detained officials, describing the detentions as a "grave affront to democratic norms."
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the only province in Pakistan led by an opposition government, making the federal government's decision particularly troubling. On October 12, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and several cabinet members were taken into preventive custody after the provincial government was suspended under emergency rule. HRCP reiterated its opposition to these measures and urged the lifting of emergency rule and restoration of the provincial assembly.
