Imran Khan’s Son Spotlights His Father’s Condition, Repression In Pak
ISLAMABAD – Terming his father and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s detention “arbitrary”, Kasim Khan has raised serious concerns at the ongoing United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) session in Geneva over the Pakistani authorities’ treatment, which he said breaches international human rights conventions.
Kasim Khan said that Imran Khan’s case was not an “isolated incident,” but it was the “most visible example” of a much wider pattern of repression in Pakistan since 2022. He spoke about the detention of political prisoners, trial and conviction of civilians by military courts, and journalists being “silenced, abducted or driven into exile,” Pakistan’s leading daily Dawn reported.
Kasim Khan, who said that his father was being held in solitary confinement, also spoke about the general elections held in Pakistan in February 2024, reiterating PTI’s allegations that polls were rigged. He said that Pakistan had made commitments under the GSP-plus framework to uphold international human rights conventions, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Convention against Torture.
He said that Imran Khan is not allowed to meet his family and being denied medical care. He also highlighted that the trial of civilians in military courts violated treaty obligations.
“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,” he added.
Kasim Khan stated that he had spoken to his father on March 21, who asked him to convey a message. In the message, Imran Khan accused Pakistan’s judiciary of compromising its integrity and targeting his wife.
Imran Khan, who has been in prison since August 2023. (IANS)
