Ilhan Omar Expresses Worries About PTI Repression

Ilhan Omar, a Muslim member of the US Congress, has raised concerns about increasing repression leading up to Pakistan’s upcoming general elections, highlighting a growing crackdown on opposition political figures.

Against the backdrop of human rights concerns, there is a prevailing sense of apprehension within Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, marked by a notable escalation in the arrests of opposition candidates.

Since my colleagues and I raised our concerns about human rights in Pakistan last November, things have only gotten worse. There can't be free and fair elections when one of the opposition parties has been criminalized.https://t.co/ZG8giXTjVM

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 4, 2024

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In the days preceding the elections, Ilhan Omar, a representative from the United States, has called for the assurance of free and fair elections in the South Asian nation, expressing apprehension about the intensifying crackdown on a prominent political party.

Through a post on social media, she emphasized that true democratic elections cannot occur when one of the opposition parties is being targeted and criminalized, citing a news report.

Ilhan Omar visited Pakistan in mid-2022, where she met with Imran Khan, the founder of PTI, President Alvi, and other members of the government. During her visit, she also held discussions with the then-Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, emphasizing the enduring ties between Islamabad and Washington.

Earlier, multiple Democrats in the House of Representatives had urged the State Department to initiate an investigation into human rights violations taking place within Pakistan.