A UN torture expert has called on Pakistan to end its inhumane treatment of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, as his party planned to stage a nationwide march demanding his release.
Alice Jill Edwards, the UN special rapporteur on torture, said Mr Khan had been held in near-total solitary confinement for 33 months under round-the-clock CCTV surveillance.
Mr Khan, Pakistan's former prime minister, has been imprisoned for more than two years over a series of charges that he and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party say are politically motivated.
He was ousted from office in a parliamentary no-confidence vote in 2022 and has since faced dozens of cases, including corruption, leaking state secrets and terrorism-related offences, all of which he denies.
“Fmr PM #ImranKhan now held in near-total solitary for 33 months in a small, windowless cell under 24-7 CCTV,” Ms Edwards said in a post on X.
“Often more than 2weeks continuously, without exercise or meaningful human contact. This far exceeds the MANDELA rules. I call on #Pakistan to restore humane conditions.”
Ms Edwards’ post refers to the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, dubbed the Mandela rules, designed to ensure prisoners have their dignity and human rights respected.
They define solitary confinement of a prisoner at 22 hours or more a day without meaningful human contact. Prolonged solitary confinement – defined as more than 15 consecutive days – is prohibited because it can amount to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
In a longer post on LinkedIn, Ms Edwards added: “I am also concerned about reports that he is being denied proper medical and is suffering from serious medical issues that have not been treated appropriately, compounding a spinal injury from a 2013 accident and bullet wounds sustained in a November 2022 assassination attempt.”
Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, Mr Khan’s UK-based international media adviser, said Mr Khan has been kept “in complete isolation with no meetings whatsoever for over eight months now”.
“Both he and his wife have a fundamental right to a fair trial and to the protection of basic prisoners’ rights. The situation is deeply concerning and dire for both of them,” he wrote on X responding to Ms Edwards' post.
Mr Khan's sister, Aleema Khan, has in recent days been touring towns across Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to rally support for a planned 5 August march to Adiala Jail, where the former premier is being held.
The rally has been called to mark the third year of his jailing.
Pakistan's Punjab government denied permission to hold the march in Lahore. The party leadership said they will now demand permission from the courts for the protest march that will begin on 5 August and continue, organisers say, until his release.
“When sisters are compelled to come onto the streets to seek justice, it means all limits have been crossed by transgressors. My brother is being punished and subjected to mental torture because of his stance on the supremacy and sovereignty of the country,” she said, addressing a rally.
His party and family have repeatedly raised concerns about the cricketer-turned-politician’s health in prison, saying he has experienced deteriorating eyesight, including vision loss in one eye, and has been denied adequate medical care. Pakistani authorities have rejected allegations that he is being mistreated.
