Committee to Protect Journalists has urged Pakistani authorities to investigate the abduction of Waziristan-based journalist Gohar Wazir, who was allegedly tortured in captivity for more than 30 hours before being released on April 21.
Gohar Wazir is the president of the Bannu Press Club and mainly reports on human rights abuses in Waziristan.
He was abducted last month by five unidentified men and taken to an undisclosed location where he was allegedly tortured. He was released after over a day.
In a statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called for an “impartial” investigation into the abduction of the journalist.
The journalist has alleged that during the captivity, he was given electric shocks while he remained handcuffed until he conceded to their demands. The journalist’s captors had demanded that he record a video praising pro-government militants, according to the statement.
The US-headquartered organisation said they were “deeply disturbed by the brazen abduction” of the journalist.
“Pakistan authorities must swiftly and impartially investigate Wazir’s abduction and allegations that he was electrocuted in captivity and take serious steps to end a dangerous pattern of impunity related to violence against journalists,” Beh Lih Yi, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator said.
In 2019, security personnel in plainclothes detained Gohar Wazir in Bannu after reporting on a protest by Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM).
He was held overnight at a Counterterrorism Police station with about two dozen other people. He was then transferred to a prison in Haripur District. He was later released.
Journalists in Pakistan have faced serious obstacles to their work, including harassment, intimidation, assault, arbitrary arrest and detention, abduction, and death.
