This report investigates the deaths of two women, Amina and Anmol, in police custody at Lahore’s Township Police Station in August 2026. It examines conflicting accounts of their detention and deaths, allegations of torture and ill-treatment, and failures in custodial safeguards. The report highlights the need for police accountability, independent investigation, and stronger protections against custodial abuse.
This report investigates the deaths of two women, Amina and Anmol, in police custody at Lahore’s Township Police Station in August 2026. It examines conflicting accounts of their detention and deaths, allegations of torture and ill-treatment, and failures in custodial safeguards. The report highlights the need for police accountability, independent investigation, and stronger protections against custodial abuse.
The study examines internal colonialism in northern Pakistan, particularly in upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan. Torwali argues that indigenous communities have experienced political, cultural, and linguistic marginalization, resulting in the weakening of local languages, identities, and cultural rights. The study also discusses assimilation, loss of indigenous culture, fragmented political structures, and the situation of Gilgit-Baltistan. It calls for greater recognition and protection of the region's linguistic, cultural, and political rights.
The report examines Pakistan’s compliance with International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions and identifies gaps in the protection of workers’ rights. It highlights issues including forced and child labour, discrimination, weak enforcement, and inadequate labour protections. The report calls for stronger laws, effective enforcement, and better institutional mechanisms to ensure workers’ rights in Pakistan.
The NCHR report Caged in Care reveals serious human rights abuses in Pakistan's rehabilitation centres, including forced admissions, unlawful detention, excessive sedation, poor living conditions, and lack of medical oversight. Women and girls were found to be particularly vulnerable, often being confined due to family disputes or social control rather than genuine mental health needs. The investigation concludes that weak regulation and inadequate mental health laws allow many centres to operate without accountability. NCHR calls for stronger oversight, legal reforms, patient rights protections, and a rights-based approach to mental health care.
The National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) report, Unveiling Exploitation and Abuse in the Brick Kilns of Punjab, examines the continued use of bonded labour in Punjab’s brick-kiln industry. It documents debt bondage, extremely low wages, lack of written contracts and social protection, unsafe working conditions, poor housing and sanitation, and serious abuses against workers. Women face additional risks including sexual harassment, forced marriage, and gender-based violence, while children are also affected by the cycle of bonded labour. The study draws on research in Faisalabad and Kasur, including surveys of 200 workers and interviews with victims. It identifies weak enforcement of labour laws, particularly ineffective District Vigilance Committees, as a major reason bonded labour persists. NCHR recommends stronger labour inspections and enforcement, gender-sensitive monitoring, better social protection, rehabilitation for rescued workers, improved complaint systems, and more ethical and transparent brick-kiln supply chains.