Human rights are "rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled".

[1] Prop
onents of assert that everyone is endowed with certain entitlements merely by re
ason of being human.[2] Human rights are thus conceived in a universalist and eg
alitarian fashion. Such entitlements can exist as shared norms of actual human m
oralities, as justified moral norms or natural rights supported by strong reason
s, or as legal rights either at a national level or within international law.[3]
However, there is no consensus as to the precise nature of what in particular s
hould or should not be regarded as a human right in any of the preceding senses,
and the abstract concept of human rights has been a subject of intense philosop
hical debate and criticism.
The modern conception of human rights developed in the aftermath of the Second W
orld War, in part as a response to the Holocaust, culminating in its adoption by
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembl
y in 1948. However, while the phrase "human rights" is relatively modern the int
ellectual foundations of the modern concept can be traced through the history of
philosophy and the concepts of natural law rights and liberties as far back as
the city states of Classical Greece and the development of Roman Law. The true f
orerunner of human rights discourse was the enlightenment concept of natural rig
hts developed by figures such as John Locke and Immanuel Kant and through the po
litical realm in the United States Bill of Rights and the Declaration of the Rig
hts of Man and of the Citizen.
Pakistan s human rights record has dramatically improved since the reforms that to
ok place after the tenure of President Zia-ul-Haq in 1988. The situation of huma
n rights in Pakistan is a complex one, as a result of the country's diversity, l
arge population, its status as a developing country and a sovereign, Islamic rep
ublic as well as an Islamic democracy with a mixture of both Islamic and colonia
l secular laws. The Constitution of Pakistan provides for fundamental rights, wh
ich include freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press and the
right to bear arms. These clauses are generally respected in practice. Clauses
also provide for separation of executive and judiciary, an independent judiciary
and freedom of movement within the country and abroad.
The founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah wanted Pakistan to be a moderate sec
ular state blended with some Islamic values and principles. No Pakistani Governm
ent has ever come up with a detailed conclusion on what he exactly meant by this
. Nevertheless, Pakistan's status as an Islamic Republic should not be confused
or compared with other Islamic Republics in the region, such as the Islamic Repu
blic of Iran. Unlike Iran, Pakistan is not a theocracy, but rather an Islamic de
mocracy where elections regularly takes place on time and are mostly free and fa
ir. Most of Pakistan's laws are secular in nature, most of which were inherited
from the United Kingdom's colonial rule of modern-day Pakistan before 1947. In r
ecent times, there has been increasing pressure on Pakistan to amend or replace
some of its outdated laws made during the time of the British Empire.
Although the government has enacted measures to counter any problems, abuses rem
ain. Furthermore, courts suffer from lack of funds, outside intervention, and de
ep case backlogs that lead to long trial delays and lengthy pretrial detentions.
Many observers inside and outside Pakistan contend that Pakistan s legal code is
largely concerned with crime, national security, and domestic tranquility and le
ss with the protection of individual rights.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, or HRCP, is an independent, non-profit
organization, founded in 1987, which is not associated or affiliated with the go
vernment or any political party. It is committed to act with impartiality and ob
jectivity in all matters. Among its main aims are spreading awareness of human r
ights among the people, mobilising public opinion, collecting information and di
sseminating knowledge about human rights abuses, and to monitor and defend human

rights in Pakistan.
It describes its aims as:
to work for the ratification and implementation by Pakistan of the Universal Dec
laration of Human Rights and of other related Charters, Covenants, Protocols, Re
solutions, Recommendations and internationally adopted norms;
to promote studies in the field of human rights and mobilise public opinion in f
avour of accepted norms through all available media and forums, and to carry out
every category of activity to further the cause;
to cooperate with and aid national and international groups, organisations and i
ndividuals engaged in the promotion of human rights and to participate in meetin
gs and congresses on human rights at home and abroad;
to take appropriate action to prevent violations of human rights and to provide
legal aid and other assistance to victims of those violations and to individuals
and groups striving to protect human rights.
Among issues it has covered are women's rights, including the rights of women ac
cused of rape under the Hudood Ordinances and so-called "honour killings", use o
f bonded labour, restrictions on press freedom, police excesses, religiously-ins
pired violence and Canada's false labelling of 24 students as terrorists.[1]