Source description last updated: 6 December 2021
 
In brief: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is a non-governmental organisation acting countrywide in Pakistan aiming at promoting human rights and trying to prevent their violation.
 
Coverage on ecoi.net:
Annual report “State of Human Rights”, other reports on specific topics (women and children rights, education, prison, elections, democracy and human rights violations).
Covered monthly on ecoi.net, for Pakistan.
 
Mission/Mandate/Objectives:

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), registered in 1987, is the country’s main human rights institution.

“A non-political, not-for-profit organisation, HRCP is committed to realising the entire ambit of human rights—civil, political, economic, social, and cultural—for all citizens and persons present in the country. HRCP uses the framework provided by the fundamental freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution of Pakistan as well as international human rights instruments, to some of which Pakistan is a state party.” (HRCP website: About us, undated)

HRCP’s main activities include the following: “Organis[ing] campaigns to raise awareness of human rights through public meetings and rallies, lobby[ing] with lawmakers, state institutions and autonomous human rights bodies to introduce and implement measures designed to check human rights abuse and promote respect for human rights by offering concrete alternatives” and the promotion of “democratic governance and the rule of law by generating ideas and pressure for constitutional and legal reforms, participatory democracy and communities’ role in governance, fair electoral processes, the independence of the judiciary and legal profession, pro-people administration, and minimum standards for law enforcement agencies with respect to the use of force and protection of the rights of litigants and detainees.” (HRCP website: Our work, undated)

Additional activities include the training and mobilisation of human rights defenders and the collaboration and networking with other domestic and international civil society organisations on broad human rights topics as well as on specific issues. (HRCP website: Our work, undated)

Funding:
No information found.
 
Scope of reporting:
Geographic focus: Pakistan.
Thematic focus: Human rights.
 
Methodology:

The HRCP helps “provide redress to survivors of human rights abuses by referring complaints and grievances to the authorities concerned” and organises consultations, seminars and conferences to “[s]teer public attention towards areas in which human rights have been denied or violated”. (HRCP website: Our work, undated)

The HRCP gathers information by collecting, digitising and categorising data on human rights issues as reported in the press and through “fact-finding missions to investigate grave human rights violations at the local, provincial and national levels”. (HRCP website: Our work, undated)

“Sources, where not quoted in the text, are HRCP surveys, fact-finding reports and communications from its correspondents and private citizens; official gazettes; economic and legal documents and other public releases and statements; reports in the national and regional press; and publications of international agencies such as UNDP, ILO, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, and the World Bank. Considering the limitation of official reports, press accounts and sample surveys conducted by NGOs, the figures and assessments offered here may not always represent the full or exact picture. They should be taken as a reflection of the trend during the year.” (The Human Rights Commission Pakistan: Annual Report 2018, March 2019, title pages)

Fact-finding reports are based on field visits, consultations and interviews with a large number of stakeholders and publicly available sources (see, for example, Human Rights Commission Pakistan: The Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project, 2021, p. 1). Thematic reports are occasionally composed in collaboration with other organisations and based on a variety of sources such as focus groups (see, for example, Human Rights Commission Pakistan: An end to fear and censorship, May 2021, p. 1 [Internet Archive, 1 June 2021]), interviews, desk research and publicly available data (see, for example, Human Rights Commission Pakistan: Woman Legislators Political Participation in Pakistan 2018-20, 2020, pp. 15-16).

 Language(s) of publications:
English. Some publications are also available in Urdu.

Methodological note:

ecoi.net's source descriptions contain background information on an organisation’s mission & objective, funding and reporting methodology, as well as on how we cover the source. The descriptions were prepared after researching publicly accessible information within time constraints. Most information contained in a source description was taken from the source itself. The aim is to provide a brief introduction to the sources covered regularly, offering information on relevant aspects in one place in a systematic manner. 

 
All links accessed 6 December 2021, unless stated otherwise.