The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Rice:
We are writing to urge a significant increase in US pressure on the Government of Pakistan to end martial law and to release those who have been detained or are under house arrest. This increased pressure should include a strong, unequivocal statement from President Bush explicitly condemning martial law and the subsequent arrests, and a cutoff of all security assistance until these repressive steps are reversed.
Although President Musharraf has sought to justify the suspension of the constitution as a response to terrorism and extremism, martial law has from the start constituted an attack on the independence of the judiciary and on civil society. As you know, President Musharraf has purged the Supreme Court of independent-minded judges. The arrests have targeted moderate and democratic critics of his rule: human rights activists, lawyers, and members of opposition political parties. It is critical for the United States government to condemn these serious human rights violations, and for senior US officials to express these concerns s clearly and forcefully.
Senior US officials, including President Bush, have criticized the emergency measures and called for a return to democracy. However, such statements were not linked to any explicit statement of consequences should the Musharraf government fail to reverse the rapidly deteriorating human rights situation.
The human rights community is in full support of effective and appropriate multilateral counterterrorism measures. However, even tacit support for this imposition of martial law in Pakistan can be expected to set back efforts to address terrorism in that country and throughout the region. Violation of fundamental human rights standards and violent repression of non-violent critics of the government will only increase popular support for militant groups. The imposition of a state of emergency by the Musharraf government flies in the face of the Administration's policy of supporting freedom and democracy as an antidote to extremism.
We strongly urge you to send a clear, consistent, and public message to the Government of Pakistan. We also urge you to call for the immediate release of those detained or held under house arrest, a rescinding of the emergency orders and any restrictions on press freedom, a full restoration of the constitution, and the reinstatement of all judges who have been removed from their positions. Without such measures, free and fair elections will not be possible.
We urge you specifically to call on the Pakistani authorities to immediately release the leading jurists and advocates now under house arrest or in detention, including members of the Supreme Court and its bar association, Chair of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan Asma Jahangir, and other officials of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.
Until these steps are taken and the rule of law is restored, all security assistance to the Government of Pakistan, including military assistance, should be suspended, to put added pressure on the Government of Pakistan to meet its international human rights obligations.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this urgent matter.
Sincerely,
Mr. Larry Cox, Executive Director
Amnesty International USA
Ms. Karin Ryan, Director
Human Rights Program, The Carter Center
Ms. Jennifer Windsor, Executive Director
Freedom House
Mr. Salih Booker, Executive Director
Global Rights
Ms. Maureen Byrnes, Executive Director
Human Rights First
Mr. Kenneth Roth, Executive Director
Human Rights Watch
Mr. Gary Haugen, President
International Justice Mission
Mr. Robert Arsenault, President
International League for Human Rights
Ms. Felice D. Gaer, Director
Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights
Ms. Robin Phillips, Executive Director
Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights
Mr. Frank Donaghue, Chief Executive Officer
Physicians for Human Rights
Ms. Monika Kalra Varma, Director
Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights
