Imaan Mazari-Hazir: Seeking justice for Pakistan's disappeared
Sep 27, 2024
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Imaan Mazari-Hazir, a dedicated Pakistani lawyer, is renowned for her fierce advocacy of human rights, particularly against state abduction and disappearance. In the discussion, she addresses the escalating human rights crisis in Pakistan, emphasizing the culture of fear and the impunity faced by perpetrators. Imaan also critiques the violence in Balochistan and its implications for justice. Despite the challenges, she highlights the resilience of Pakistan's youth and their potential to drive positive change through activism.
Imaan Mazari-Hazir emphasizes the urgent need for legal resistance against state abuses, particularly enforced disappearances in Pakistan.
The podcast highlights the growing threats to democracy in Pakistan, as military influence increasingly undermines civilian governance and civil liberties.
Deep dives
Iman Mazari Hazir's Fight for Human Rights
Iman Mazari Hazir, a prominent human rights lawyer in Pakistan, is driven by her experiences growing up in an environment where power imbalances and injustices are rampant. Her commitment to advocating for vulnerable communities, such as the Baloch and Pashtun ethnic groups, stems from witnessing the state's oppression through enforced disappearances and extrajudicial actions. Despite personal risks, including arrests and threats, she persists in her work, believing that her legal practice not only serves those directly affected but also illuminates broader societal issues within a challenged democracy. This dedication highlights her belief in the importance of legal resistance against powerful institutions that evade accountability for their actions.
The Reality of Enforced Disappearances
Enforced disappearances in Pakistan epitomize the misuse of state power, where individuals are abducted by security agencies without a trace and often face dire consequences. Mazari Hazir points out the climate of fear that prevents victims and their families from reporting such cases, leading to significant underreporting of incidents. Despite the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, its ineffectiveness and the culture of impunity it has fostered leave over 10,000 cases unaccounted for, with no perpetrators facing justice. The ongoing cycle of disappearances, especially in regions like Balochistan, illustrates how state actions to combat extremism often target innocent civilians, perpetuating violence and instability.
Challenges to Democracy and the Rule of Law
The current political landscape in Pakistan is marked by serious challenges to democracy, as highlighted by Mazari Hazir, who notes the increasing subjugation of civilian governance to military influence. She criticizes the shrinking space for dissent, evident in the arbitrary detention of political leaders and the continuous intimidation faced by human rights advocates. Officials’ attempts to amend laws further restrict judicial powers, compounding the erosion of civil liberties. Mazari Hazir remains hopeful about the potential for change, particularly among the youth and grassroots movements, believing that collective resistance can lead to accountability and the restoration of democratic values.
Mishal Husain speaks to Imaan Mazari-Hazir, a lawyer in Pakistan whose passion for human rights began early in her legal studies. She has become well known in her home country for defending people’s rights against the state – taking on difficult cases of abduction and forced disappearance, and speaking out against the country's powerful military. She has herself faced arrest, and now charges under anti-terror laws. Amid political and economic turmoil, is the rule of law in Pakistan in crisis?
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