Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa

For information on FIRs, including whether they vary across the country, see Response to Information Request PAK104714 of January 2014.

Samples of FIRs, in English, typed in Urdu, and handwritten in Urdu, are attached to this Response (Attachments 1 to 3).

1. Caste Information Included in FIRs

According to sources, it is not a requirement to include information about castes in FIRs (Activist 20 Dec. 2018; Law Office 18 Dec. 2018; Advocate High Court, Islamabad 14 Dec. 2018). However, in correspondence with the Research Directorate, a human rights activist and published commentator who is also a lawyer based in Lahore, stated that police "often" insert information about religion or caste in FIRs (Activist 20 Dec. 2018). An Advocate High Court in Lahore also indicated, in correspondence with the Research Directorate, that police will mention caste information if it is provided by the complainant (Advocate High Court, Lahore 15 Dec. 2018). Similarly, in correspondence with the Research Directorate, a representative of a law office in Lahore stated that "the complainant may ask the police to insert the caste of [the] accused" (Law Office 18 Dec. 2018). In addition, the representative noted that caste information will be included in an FIR if a person's caste is part of their name (Law Office 18 Dec. 2018). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a Lahore-based lawyer stated that mention of caste information in an FIR was "usually the case in earlier days" to avoid confusion over different persons having the same name, but it is no longer the case since "everyone" now has a national identity card (Lahore-based Lawyer 21 Dec. 2018).

2. Online FIR Registration

According to the law office representative, it is possible to register FIRs through online portals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Karachi and Punjab (Law Office 18 Dec. 2018). Other sources similarly stated that it is possible to file FIRs online in Karachi (Karachi-based Lawyer 24 Dec. 2018; Lahore-based Lawyer 21 Dec. 2018).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Activist. 20 December 2018. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Advocate High Court, Lahore. 15 December 2018. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Advocate High Court, Islamabad. 14 December 2018. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Karachi-based Lawyer. 24 December 2018. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Lahore-based Lawyer. 21 December 2018. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Law Office, Lahore. 18 December 2018. Correspondence from a representative to the Research Directorate.

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Asian Human Rights Commission; Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, Pakistan; Citizens-Police Liaison Committee – Lahore; Human Rights Commission of Pakistan; Pakistan – High Commission in Ottawa; Pakistan International Human Rights Organization; three advocates and one lawyer in Pakistan.

Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; AsiaNews.it; Asylum Research Centre; Australia – Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; Daily Times; Dawn; ecoi.net; EU – European Asylum Support Office; The Express Tribune; Factiva; Freedom House; The Guardian; Human Rights Watch; International Commission of Jurists; Ireland – Refugee Documentation Centre; Justice Project Pakistan; Pakistan – Balochistan Police Federal Investigation Agency, Islamabad Capital Territory Police, Islamabad High Court, Ministry of Interior, National Police Bureau, Supreme Court; UK – Home Office; UN – Refworld.

Attachments

1. Pakistan. N.d. FIR template in English. Sent to the Research Directorate by the activist, 20 December 2018.
2. Pakistan. N.d. Sample FIR typed in Urdu. Sent to the Research Directorate by the activist, 20 December 2018.
3. Pakistan. N.d. Sample FIR handwitten in Urdu. Sent to the Research Directorate by the activist, 20 December 2018.