Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance they will give to Gulalai Ismail, the Pakistani humanist and human rights activist who was arrested in Islamabad on 12 October before being released on bail with her passport confiscated.

We are concerned by restrictions on freedom of expression in Pakistan, including the detention of human rights activists, in Pakistan. We are also concerned about constraints on the operating space for civil society and NGOs in Pakistan. The freedom to hold and express views without censorship, intimidation or unnecessary restriction is a cornerstone of democracy. The arrest and release under bail of Gulalai Ismail is a further worrying development against the backdrop of restrictions on fundamental rights in Pakistan.

We regularly raise at a senior level our concerns about the human rights situation with the Government of Pakistan, including on the freedom of expression. I discussed human rights in Pakistan with the Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, in September 2018.

The British High Commission in Islamabad will continue to support civil society and NGOs in lobbying the Government of Pakistan to honour in practice its international commitments, including on freedom of expression.