HRCP urges fair deal for Attabad displaced, detainees

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed alarm at the arrest of over two dozen political activists in Gilgit-Baltistan and reports of maltreatment of some of them in detention. At least 33 people have been arrested in Gilgit Baltistan following protests against the August 11, killing of two people in police firing. The police had opened fire when nearly 200 people protested during the chief minister’s visit to Aliabad. They were protesting against delays in payment of compensation to families displaced by the Attabad landslides. HRCP said in a statement on Thursday: “The Commission takes serious exception to the manner in which the authorities have chosen to deal with public resentment following the August 11 killings.