Rule of Law

Religious minority prisoners in Pakistan are subjected to systemic discrimination, harsh treatment and denial of basic rights compared to their Muslim counterparts.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, 76, was arrested on August 22, ushering in the highest-profile detention amid President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s sweeping anti-corruption campaign.

Of Islamabad's approximately 41,520 registered Afghan citizens, many retain memories of earlier refuge. Before 2006, some 25,000 had lived in a refugee camp within the Islamabad Capital Territory.

Sri Lanka’s Government has a “historic opportunity” to end decades of impunity and deliver justice for victims of past violations, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) has said, urging sweeping reforms to address crimes committed during and after the country’s civil war.

According to the study, which surveyed 2,000 workers from 290 units, 93 per cent of workers’ ESI contributions are not deducted, 92 per cent are excluded from PF benefits, and 90 per cent are not issued salary receipts.

The council also criticized the government for excluding minorities from all reform commissions, which were set up to recommend measures aimed at combating discrimination and promoting social justice.

Nayak argues the response is problematic on multiple fronts. Section 32, he says, is a weak, omnibus penal clause covering breach of official duty but does not specifically address wrongful inclusion of ineligible voters.

The global human rights watchdog said that Afghanistan now faces one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, exacerbated by donor governments’ aid cuts and the return of 1.9 million refugees expelled from Iran and Pakistan.