With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, prisons were identified early on as places where outbreaks were likely and would require urgent government attention. In Pakistan, prisons are notoriously overcrowded, making physical distancing and other public health recommendations impossible to implement. They also lack adequate health care facilities and have unsanitary conditions, accelerating the spread of infectious diseases. Amnesty International and Justice Project Pakistan look into these conditions as well as other underlying systemic issues lead to a catalogue of human rights violations, including the violations of the right to life and the right to health, guaranteed by Pakistan’s Constitution and its international human rights obligations.
