The culture of arresting and torturing political prisoners in Pakistan, something that has continued with a certain impunity, has left a deep impact on the psyche of the nation, says Shahid Husain
Thousands of political prisoners in Pakistan who were tortured by police or other security agencies have been suffering from trauma even if they have been released. “Psychological trauma of victims of torture can be acute or chronic. The acute are usually easily treatable but if they remain untreated they are difficult to treat,” notes psychiatrist and president, Pakistan Association for Mental Health (PAMH) Prof. Haroon Ahmed.
“Besides specialised psychological help, the patients themselves can adopt certain attitudes and behaviour while going through torture and later on when they are out of it,” he says. “The first principle to understand is the torturer is bent upon breaking the personality of the individual, which includes life-threatening ways of scaring. Second, the individual should keep himself mentally occupied in an optimistic future of her/his belief,” Prof Ahmed says.
“The third is depression-lack of interest in life and flashbacks. If there is insight into the genesis of symptoms, the person, once free, can get over it with or without psychological support,” he adds.
Explaining how a torture victim could resist brainwashing, Prof. Ahmed, who is also an educationist, says: “Torture is really breaking the person and getting information." Asked if there was any data on torture victims in Pakistan and if the answer was no how could they be rehabilitated, he replies: “There is no data! If there is no facility there is no problem. If there is no facility to treat or rehabilitate such patients there is no awareness and therefore, no problem. One is not able to connect their physical and psychological symptoms to the process of torture.”
In an article entitled “Health implications of torture in Pakistan”, published in the Journal of Medical Ethics in 1991, Dr. Mahboob Mehdi, Medical Director of RAHAT-VAT wrote: “Torture is endemic in Pakistan but it reaches epidemic proportions from time to time.” Sadly enough doctors too become accomplices in torturing prisoners. “There are two aspects to this issue in Pakistan: the involvement of health professionals in the process of torture, and care rendered to the torture victims by health professionals.
As far as the involvement of health professionals in the torture process is concerned, it is a very serious problem in Pakistan. The doctors who facilitate torture in Pakistan usually: a) advise the torturers about the actual condition of the victim's health, b) revive the victims sufficiently to undergo further torture,” writes Dr. Mehdi.
Ironically, “The code of ethics of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council does not mention anything about torture. Doctors who take part in the process do not face any disciplinary action by the Council.”
Progressive leaders and activists such as Baba Jan Iftikhar Hussian, Amir Khan, Rasheed Hasan Khan, Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, Javed Shakoor, Lal Bux Rind, Nazeer Abbasi, Shahid Rizvi, Jam Saqi, Sohail Sanghi, Shahid Husain, and several other Baloch activists, including Gul Khan Nasir, Ataullah Mengal, Khair Bakhsh Marri and Nawab Akbar Bugti, to name a few, were tortured but the torturers were never punished. Right-wing leaders such as Javed Hashmi were brutally tortured. Nazeer Abbasi, a student leader hailing from Sindh National Students Federation, was tortured to death during the despotic rule of military dictator Gen. Ziaul Haq. Earlier prominent communist leader Hasan Nasir was tortured to death in the infamous Lahore Fort and even his dead body was not found.
In recent years, mutilated bodies of Baloch and Sindhi nationalists have been found in jungles and desolate locations. No wonder the phenomenon has triggered separatism in Balochistan and Sindh.
In an exclusive interview with this scribe in 2005, Baloch nationalist leader Sardar Ataullah Mengal said the military government of late Gen. Yahya Khan pushed the people of former East Pakistan towards secession by carrying out a genocide in that impoverished province in 1971 and the government of President Pervez Musharraf adopted a similar policy in Balochistan.
Thousands of political prisoners in Pakistan who were tortured by police or other security agencies have been suffering from trauma even if they have been released. “Psychological trauma of victims of torture can be acute or chronic. The acute are usually easily treatable but if they remain untreated they are difficult to treat,” notes psychiatrist and president, Pakistan Association for Mental Health (PAMH) Prof. Haroon Ahmed.
“Besides specialised psychological help, the patients themselves can adopt certain attitudes and behaviour while going through torture and later on when they are out of it,” he says. “The first principle to understand is the torturer is bent upon breaking the personality of the individual, which includes life-threatening ways of scaring. Second, the individual should keep himself mentally occupied in an optimistic future of her/his belief,” Prof Ahmed says.
“The third is depression-lack of interest in life and flashbacks. If there is insight into the genesis of symptoms, the person, once free, can get over it with or without psychological support,” he adds.
Explaining how a torture victim could resist brainwashing, Prof. Ahmed, who is also an educationist, says: “Torture is really breaking the person and getting information." Asked if there was any data on torture victims in Pakistan and if the answer was no how could they be rehabilitated, he replies: “There is no data! If there is no facility there is no problem. If there is no facility to treat or rehabilitate such patients there is no awareness and therefore, no problem. One is not able to connect their physical and psychological symptoms to the process of torture.”
In an article entitled “Health implications of torture in Pakistan”, published in the Journal of Medical Ethics in 1991, Dr. Mahboob Mehdi, Medical Director of RAHAT-VAT wrote: “Torture is endemic in Pakistan but it reaches epidemic proportions from time to time.” Sadly enough doctors too become accomplices in torturing prisoners. “There are two aspects to this issue in Pakistan: the involvement of health professionals in the process of torture, and care rendered to the torture victims by health professionals.
As far as the involvement of health professionals in the torture process is concerned, it is a very serious problem in Pakistan. The doctors who facilitate torture in Pakistan usually: a) advise the torturers about the actual condition of the victim's health, b) revive the victims sufficiently to undergo further torture,” writes Dr. Mehdi.
Ironically, “The code of ethics of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council does not mention anything about torture. Doctors who take part in the process do not face any disciplinary action by the Council.”
Progressive leaders and activists such as Baba Jan Iftikhar Hussian, Amir Khan, Rasheed Hasan Khan, Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, Javed Shakoor, Lal Bux Rind, Nazeer Abbasi, Shahid Rizvi, Jam Saqi, Sohail Sanghi, Shahid Husain, and several other Baloch activists, including Gul Khan Nasir, Ataullah Mengal, Khair Bakhsh Marri and Nawab Akbar Bugti, to name a few, were tortured but the torturers were never punished. Right-wing leaders such as Javed Hashmi were brutally tortured. Nazeer Abbasi, a student leader hailing from Sindh National Students Federation, was tortured to death during the despotic rule of military dictator Gen. Ziaul Haq. Earlier prominent communist leader Hasan Nasir was tortured to death in the infamous Lahore Fort and even his dead body was not found.
In recent years, mutilated bodies of Baloch and Sindhi nationalists have been found in jungles and desolate locations. No wonder the phenomenon has triggered separatism in Balochistan and Sindh.
In an exclusive interview with this scribe in 2005, Baloch nationalist leader Sardar Ataullah Mengal said the military government of late Gen. Yahya Khan pushed the people of former East Pakistan towards secession by carrying out a genocide in that impoverished province in 1971 and the government of President Pervez Musharraf adopted a similar policy in Balochistan.
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