US urges Pakistan to respect human rights, PTI protesters’ right to demonstrate

The United States has urged Pakistani authorities to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the PTI protesters’ right to demonstrate peacefully, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.

As the PTI convoys from various parts of the country are enroute Islamabad to demand the release of its incarcerated founder Imran Khan, the federal government has vowed to not let them reach their desired destination in the capital, D-Chowk.

Containers and barbed wires have been strategically placed to impede PTI supporters, while heavy police deployments indicate that the authorities are determined to use force, if need be.

In the State Department briefing earlier today, Miller was asked to comment on the PTI supporters’ protest as well as their reported clashes with the police.

“In Pakistan and around the world, we support freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and association,” the spokesperson said.

“We call on protesters to demonstrate peacefully and refrain from violence, and at the same time, we call on Pakistani authorities to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to ensure respect for Pakistan’s laws and constitution, as they work to maintain law and order.”

The statement comes after clampdown on PTI’s ‘do or die’ protest in the federal capital. The protest, which the government is determined to foil with force, was originally scheduled to be staged on November 24, but the convoys took a breather after PTI leaders said they were in “no hurry” to reach the federal capital, as workers and supporters from across the country attempted to defy arrests, baton charges and tear gas to participate in the agitation.

Amid the movement of PTI convoys throughout today, the Punjab government and police announced that a constable was killed at the hands of “miscreants” at Hakla interchange.

Last week, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had ruled that PTI’s planned protest was unlawful and directed the federal government to take all necessary measures to maintain law and order in Islamabad without disrupting public life, particularly with the Belarusian president’s arrival in the capital for a three-day official visit.