Several Pakistani newspapers reported on Monday 3 December that “Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf accepted in principle a proposal made by the Ministry of Human Rights to appoint Human Rights Defenders in the ministry”.

It all came from a presentation made by the Ministry of Human Rights. There were several welcome announcements (such as including human rights as a subject in educational institutions and plans to effectively implement its international  obligations) but the idea to appoint Human Rights Defenders in the Ministry (as civil servants one has to assume) is baffling. It would completely do away with the idea that HRDs ought to be independent and capable of monitoring authorities. If accepted under this title it would surely confuse the current understanding of what are HRDs. The Minister for Human Rights would soon be called Human Rights Defender in Chief.

The Pakistani newspaper Dawn adds:  “The basic idea to have human rights defenders in the country was to help those poor victims who could not afford to plead their cases in courts or seek other remedial measures against oppressors. “The number of human rights defenders and their service structure will be worked out by the ministry in collaboration with other ministries,” the official said. However, critics of the government say as elections were just a few months away, new positions are being created to accommodate pro-PPP voters.”

Let’s hope that the Ministry will revert to the more neutral and clarifying title of ‘human rights officers”.

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• PM approves appointment of rights defenders (dawn.com)