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PAKISTAN COUNTRY of ORIGIN INFORMATION (COI) REPORT COI Service

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PAKISTAN COUNTRY of ORIGIN INFORMATION (COI) REPORT COI Service PAKISTAN COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION (COI) REPORT COI Service 7 June 2012 PAKISTAN 7 JUNE 2012 Contents Preface Latest News EVENTS IN PAKISTAN FROM 25 MAY TO 7 JUNE 2012 Useful news sources for further information REPORTS ON PAKISTAN PUBLISHED OR ACCESSED BETWEEN 25 MAY AND 7 JUNE 2012 Paragraphs Background Information 1. GEOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................... 1.01 Map ........................................................................................................................... 1.09 Telecommunications .............................................................................................. 1.10 Public holidays ....................................................................................................... 1.13 2. ECONOMY .................................................................................................................. 2.01 3. HISTORY ..................................................................................................................... 3.01 4. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS: OCTOBER 2011 TO APRIL 2012 ........................................... 4.01 5. CONSTITUTION ............................................................................................................ 5.01 6. POLITICAL SYSTEM ...................................................................................................... 6.01 Federal legislature .................................................................................................. 6.05 Provincial governments ......................................................................................... 6.09 Pakistan Administered Kashmir (Azad Kashmir) ............................................... 6.11 Line of Control ...................................................................................................... 6.17 Map .................................................................................................................. 6.21 Gilgit-Baltistan (formerly known as the Northern Areas) .................................. 6.22 Human Rights 7. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 7.01 8. SECURITY SITUATION .................................................................................................. 8.01 US airstrikes ............................................................................................................ 8.15 Militant activity ........................................................................................................ 8.20 Balochistan (Baluchistan) ..................................................................................... 8.30 Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) ....................................................... 8.43 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) (formerally known as the North West Frontier Province – NWFP) ............................................................................................................. 8.53 Pakistani Taliban .................................................................................................... 8.62 Sectarian violence .................................................................................................. 8.73 9. SECURITY FORCES ...................................................................................................... 9.01 Police ....................................................................................................................... 9.02 Armed forces .......................................................................................................... 9.11 Other government forces ...................................................................................... 9.15 Intelligence agencies ............................................................................................ 9.18 Human rights violations by government forces ................................................. 9.22 Arbitrary arrest and detention .............................................................................. 9.26 Torture .................................................................................................................. 9.28 Extra-judicial killings ............................................................................................. 9.36 ii The main text of this COI Report contains the most up to date publicly available information as at 24 May 2012. Further brief information on recent events and reports has been provided in the Latest News section to 7 June 2012. 7 JUNE 2012 PAKISTAN Disappearances ................................................................................................... 9.46 Avenues of complaint ............................................................................................ 9.57 10. MILITARY SERVICE ...................................................................................................... 10.01 11. JUDICIARY .................................................................................................................. 11.01 Organisation ........................................................................................................... 11.01 Shariat Courts (Islamic law) ................................................................................. 11.10 Anti-Terrorism Act and courts .............................................................................. 11.15 Military courts and the Army Act .......................................................................... 11.20 Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) ....................................................................... 11.24 Tribal justice system – Jirgas ............................................................................... 11.30 Independence ......................................................................................................... 11.46 Fair trial .................................................................................................................... 11.51 Double jeopardy ................................................................................................... 11.62 Penal code ............................................................................................................... 11.64 Qisas and Diyat ordinances ................................................................................. 11.65 Blasphemy laws ...................................................................................................... 11.69 Hudood Ordinances ............................................................................................... 11.74 Code of criminal procedure ................................................................................... 11.84 12. ARREST AND DETENTION – LEGAL RIGHTS .................................................................... 12.01 First Information Reports (FIRs) ........................................................................... 12.01 Detention, bail and sentencing ............................................................................. 12.11 Convictions in absentia ......................................................................................... 12.16 13. PRISON CONDITIONS ................................................................................................... 13.01 14. DEATH PENALTY ......................................................................................................... 14.01 15. POLITICAL AFFILIATION ............................................................................................... 15.01 Freedom of political expression ........................................................................... 15.01 Freedom of association and assembly ................................................................ 15.09 Opposition groups and political activists ............................................................ 15.15 Politically motivated violence ............................................................................... 15.19 16. FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND MEDIA ................................................................................ 16.01 Journalists .............................................................................................................. 16.16 17. HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS, ORGANISATIONS AND ACTIVISTS ..................................... 17.01 18. CORRUPTION .............................................................................................................. 18.01 National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) ........................................................... 18.07 National Accountability Bureau (NAB) ................................................................. 18.11 19. FREEDOM OF RELIGION................................................................................................ 19.01 Demography ............................................................................................................ 19.15 Constitution and legislation .................................................................................. 19.19 Blasphemy laws ...................................................................................................... 19.26 Legal procedures for blasphemy charges ............................................................ 19.52 Hudood Ordinances ............................................................................................... 19.54 Anti-terrorist laws ..................................................................................................
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