RELEASE: Rep. Summer Lee Joins Reps. Casar and McGovern in Calling for the Release of Political Prisoners in Pakistan, Including Former Prime Minister Imran Khan
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 23, 2024
Contact: Vaibhav Vijay, Vaibhav.Vijay@mail.house.gov
Rep. Summer Lee Joins Reps. Casar and McGovern in Calling for the Release of Political Prisoners in Pakistan, Including Former Prime Minister Imran Khan
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Representatives Summer Lee (D-Penn.), Greg Casar (D-Texas), Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), and 59 other Members of Congress are calling on President Joe Biden to center human rights in U.S. policy towards Pakistan following the country’s February 2024 National Assembly elections. The group is urging Pakistani authorities to release political prisoners, including former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has been unjustly imprisoned since May 2023.
This letter, authored by Rep. Casar and co-led by Rep. Lee and Rep. McGovern, is the first from U.S. Members of Congress explicitly calling for the release of political prisoners in Pakistan, including Khan. Casar initiated the letter as a follow-up to the nearly unanimous passage of H.Res. 901, which called for U.S. support for democracy and human rights in Pakistan.
“In Pakistan’s February 2024 elections, we witnessed unprecedented electoral fraud and voter suppression,” Rep. Lee said. “People were silenced, journalists and activists were jailed, and democracy was attacked. We must stand with those fighting for their right to self-governance, and we are urging the immediate release of Imran Khan and all political prisoners.”
The Pakistani elections were marred by irregularities, including widespread electoral fraud, state-led efforts to disenfranchise voters, and the arbitrary arrest of political leaders. In February, Casar and 30 other members had called on President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to investigate pre- and post-poll rigging. Today’s letter reiterates many of those earlier concerns.
“We echo the calls for Khan’s immediate release and for an end to widespread arbitrary detention of party members and activists in Pakistan,” the members wrote. “We ask your Administration to urgently secure the guarantees from the Pakistani government for Khan’s safety and well-being and urge U.S. embassy officials to visit him in prison.”
The letter also addresses broader human rights concerns: “Developments since the February vote point to a clear turn towards authoritarianism in Pakistan. The government has cracked down on social media and political activism, labeling it ‘anti-state propaganda’ and ‘digital terrorism.’ These are attacks on fundamental human rights. Pakistani authorities are even engaging in transnational repression, extending their crackdown beyond borders. We stand in solidarity with the people of Pakistan and their struggle to rebuild a truly representative democracy.”
The letter is authored by U.S. Representative Greg Casar (TX-35), co-led by U.S. Representatives Jim McGovern (MA-02) and Summer Lee (PA-12), and signed by U.S. Representatives Don Beyer (VA-08), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Cori Bush (MO-01), André Carson (IN-07), Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Judy Chu (CA-28), Yvette Clarke (NY-09), Steve Cohen (TN-09), Joe Courtney (CT-02), Madeleine Dean (PA-04), Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Jesús “Chuy” García (IL-04), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Dan Goldman (NY-10), Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), Raúl Grijalva (AZ-07), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Jonathan Jackson (IL-01), Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Hank Johnson (GA-04), Ro Khanna (CA-17), Dan Kildee (MI-08), Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), Greg Landsman (OH-01), John Larson (CT-01), Barbara Lee (CA-12), Ted Lieu (CA-36), Stephen F. Lynch (MA-08), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Mike Quigley (IL-05), Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03), Jaime Raskin (MD-08), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Linda T. Sánchez (CA-38), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Brad Sherman (CA-32), Melanie Stansbury (NM-01), Dina Titus (NV-20), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), Paul Tonko (NY-20), David Trone (MD-06), Marc Veasey (TX-33), Nydia Velázquez (NY-07), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Maxine Waters (CA-43), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), and Susan Wild (PA-07).
It is supported by First Pakistan Global, Democracy And Human Rights Alliance, Community Alliance for Peace and Justice – Pakistan Democracy Campaign, and The Coalition to Change U.S. Policy on Pakistan (CUSP).
The full letter can be viewed here.