Our leadership
HRCP’s elected office bearers for 2023–26 bring together a rare combination of community-level activists, human rights practitioners, public intellectuals, journalists and lawyers.
Council
Chairperson: Asad Iqbal Butt
Asad Iqbal Butt is a veteran human rights defender and long-standing member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s governing council. He has been at the forefront of advocacy efforts addressing enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and the rights of religious minorities, particularly in Sindh. Mr Butt has led numerous fact-finding missions and public hearings and had mobilized hundreds of grassroots-level activists, particularly in conflict-affected and underserved areas.
Co-chair: Munizae Jahangir
Munizae Jahangir is a well-respected journalist, filmmaker and human rights advocate. With a career spanning over two decades, Ms Jahangir has reported extensively on conflict, gender, civil rights and democratic movements in Pakistan and the wider South Asian region; she has spoken up consistently for press freedom, digital rights and the rights of religious minorities. She also serves on the boards of the Asma Jahangir Foundation, AGHS Legal Aid Cell and South Asians for Human Rights.
Treasurer: Husain Naqi
Husain Naqi is a veteran journalist, civil liberties campaigner, trade unionist and former co-director of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Known for his fearless journalism during periods of political repression, Mr Naqi has consistently championed press freedom, democratic governance and the rights of marginalized communities. He has led numerous fact-finding missions across Pakistan and mobilized hundreds of community-level activists.
Vice-chair HRCP Balochistan: Kashif Kakar Panezai
Kashif Kakar Panezai is a well-respected lawyer of the high court and regularly represents survivors of rights violations, particularly the families of victims of enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention, women and marginalized communities. He has spoken consistently for the right to decent work for Balochistan’s coalminers.
Vice-chair HRCP Islamabad: Nasreen Azhar
Nasreen Azhar is a long-standing human rights advocate and has served in various leadership roles at the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan since its inception. She has been elected multiple times to the organization’s governing council. Ms Azhar is also a founding member of the Women’s Action Forum in Islamabad and has served as a member of the National Commission on the Status of Women.
Vice-chair HRCP Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Akbar Khan
Akbar Khan has over three decades of experience as a community-level rights activist and has mobilized numerous grassroots-level activists and students in the province. He is a seasoned election observer and has a special interest in the role of conflict and militancy in human rights in the former tribal areas.
Vice-chair HRCP Punjab: Raja Muhammad Ashraf
Raja Muhammad Ashraf is a seasoned human rights defender, whose interest in activism stems from his days as one of the earliest members of the People’s Students Federation. As a longstanding member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, he has spoken up consistently for the rights of religious minorities, peasants and workers.
Vice-chair HRCP Sindh: Qazi Khizar Habib
Qazi Khizar Habib has been associated with the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan for over two decades. As a journalist and rights activist, he has advocated for the right to education, free and fair elections, and local government. He has mobilized hundreds of activists around enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and the right to freedom of peaceful assembly.
Secretary-general: Harris Khalique
Harris Khalique is an acclaimed poet, writer and human rights practitioner. With a career spanning literature, journalism, civil rights, trade unionism and policy advocacy, he is widely recognized for his contributions to democratic discourse and social justice in Pakistan and beyond. As secretary-general, Mr Khalique has led the organization’s efforts to document rights violations, promote the gamut of all fundamental rights, and advocate for the rights of marginalized groups, particularly religious minorities, peasants and workers, and freedom of expression and assembly. He is also a recipient of the Presidential Pride of Performance Award.