Case swept under carpet, UN expert demands speedy probe into Pak journalist's killing

Islamabad, Sep 27 (IANS) A United Nations (UN) expert has called on Pakistan and Kenya to step up efforts to fully probe and investigate the killing of Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya and prosecute those responsible.

Sharif, a well-known Pakistani investigative journalist, was forced to leave Pakistan after allegedly being on the hit list of some terror outfit. He later moved to Kenya and was shot dead by the Kenyan police - claimed as a case of mistaken identity - on October 23, 2022.

The journalist's autopsy revealed that he was subjected to brutal torture, leading to suspicions that the shooting incident may have been used as a cover-up.

Arshad Sharif's family claimed involvement of Pakistani intelligence agencies in the murder, naming then Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and the then Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Nadeem Anjum for the "targetted, premeditated, planned and well-coordinated" murder.

The Kenyan High Court on July 8, this year, also termed the killing as unlawful, arbitrary and disproportionate in a landmark judgement.

However, the probe seems to have been kept on the back burner by both the countries.

"It is now almost two years since Arshad Sharif's death and several months since the Kenyan High Court delivered a historic judgment ruling his killing as arbitrary, disproportionate and unlawful. None of the police officers linked to the shooting has been arrested and no charges have been filed by prosecutors in Kenya yet," said UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, Irene Khan.

"I am deeply concerned that neither the Kenyan authorities, nor the Pakistani government has stepped up their efforts to fully investigate the case," she added.

Khan acknowledged that the Kenyan High Court judgment is an important victory for Sharif's family, who had filed a civil suit.

"But, its real impact will only be felt if the two governments bring the perpetrators of Sharif's murder to justice. I urge the Kenyan and Pakistani government to muster the political will to ensure full accountability and bring to justice all those responsible for Arshad Sharif's murder, so that this case can become a landmark reference in the fight against impunity for the killing of journalists," said Irene Khan.

In October 2023, UN experts wrote to Kenyan and Pakistani authorities demanding investigations into the killing and the charges that led to Sharif's exile from Pakistan.

An investigation committee was formed and a fact-finding team was sent to Kenya to investigate the case even as the victim's family directly blamed Pakistan's former army chief and the former ISI boss for being the main culprits behind the murder.

"Justice for Mr. Sharif and his family will not be done until the circumstances behind his murder are fully clarified, including whether it was a transnational crime, and all responsible actors are identified, prosecuted and punished in Kenya and Pakistan," said Khan.

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