American Professor, social critic and well known political activist Noam Chomsky wrote an open letter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Umar Atta Bandial to express his concern regarding the reported torture of Dr. Shahbaz Gill, a senior PTI leader and chief of security staff of the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan.
According to a tweet shared by Fawad Hussain Chaudhary, Chomsky expressed his concerns about the situation of freedom of speech in the country. Almost 60 national and international activists have raised concerns on the torture reports. UN and other international organizations have also expressed concern regarding human rights abuses and terrorism charges pressed against political opponents by the current regime.
It’s the second letter by Noam Chomsky since the ouster of Imran Khan in April. Imran Khan alleged that his ouster was a result of a US-led conspiracy. Earlier, Chomsky had also written a letter to the new Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shahbaz Sharif, raising concerns about the crackdown by the coalition government against journalists and media houses.
Islamabad Police arrested Dr. Shahbaz a couple of weeks ago under mutiny and sedition charges. Shahbaz Gill’s lawyer told media that Islamabad Police had tortured Gill while in custody. He also submitted a medical report in the Islamabad High Court.