as elections approach, crackdown on opposition intensifies

Thousands of arrests and trials before military tribunals. In Pakistan, the military and government have recently stepped up their crackdown onhe officials and supporters of the party of the former Pakistani Prime Minister, Imran Khan – and this, while legislative elections are in preparation in the country, and must take place at the latest in October 2023.

Imran Khan, 70, was overthrown in April 2022 but remains popular and hopes to return to power after this election. His arrest on May 9, while responding to a court summons, set the country ablaze. “I was treated like a terrorist”he said after being detained for three days, which sparked widespread protests.

Suspicions of enforced disappearance

The outburst of violence triggered by this affair justified, according to the authorities, particularly harsh interventions against the opposition and its popular leader. Denouncing “terrorist” acts, the authorities arrested thousands of supporters of Imran Khan’s party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and about twenty of its senior officials, accused of incitement to violence. The government has also approved the referral to military tribunals of persons accused of damaging public or military buildings.

Journalists and lawyers close to the PTI, as well as activists, also say they have since been victims of intimidation. According to the NGO Reporters Without Borders, the disappearance of pro-PTI journalist Imran Riaz Khan must be attributed to the military intelligence services. Amnesty International, for its part, considered this to be a case of “enforced disappearance under international law”.