Amina Masood Janjua

Continuing her struggle she organized third day/night protest camp in front of Parliament House Islamabad which started on 15 February 2012 and continued for 75 days until 30 April 2012. She along with families of more than 500 missing persons stayed on the road side, garnering huge support and attention of media and civil society.

On 16 March 2011 she along with her daughter and 40 other women, children and old men was arrested and remained detained overnight by the authorities while the congregation was on its way to present flowers to then Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on the anniversary of restoration of Judiciary. This was the day infamous Raymond Davis was set free.

Anguished by the time wasted by the commission of inquiry and Supreme Courts dwindling interest in the missing persons issue, she organized a second day/night protest in front of parliament house Islamabad on 31 Oct 2011. She wrapped up this camp very next day on the appearance of Justice (r) Javaid Iqbal at the scene who is heading the commission of inquiry. The Judge announced in front of media that he, in his official capacity, promise to divulge a final solution for the recovery of the missing persons within two weeks time. But he did not keep his promise.

In 2010, Under Supreme Court's directions, government formed a commission of inquiry to resolve the missing persons cases which was headed by Justice (r) Mansoor Alam. Amina fully cooperated with this commission, worked day and night, and submitted cases of forced disappeared persons for investigation and accompanied every complainant for the proceedings. The commission concluded its finding and issued a report at the end of __________ months period. But government neither published the report nor acted upon its recommendations.

Her engagement with forced disappeared and secretly detained persons led her to realize the difficulties faced by persons who are detained in foreign lands. In 2010 she managed to repatriate 22 Pakistanis from Thailand who had been facing life imprisonments for minor crimes under royal laws of the country. Her present projects involves repatriation of 52 foreign prisoners detained in Pakistani jails to their respective countries and repatriation of more than 300 Pakistanis who are detained in China.

In 2007 earlier on 9 March and later on 3 November Gen Perwaiz Musharaf sacked Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry along with rest of the judiciary and put all the judges under house arrest. Pakistan's civil society in general and lawyer's community in particular were outraged and started an historical movement for the restoration of judiciary. The movement was popularly known as "Lawyers' Movement". Missing person families under Amina's leadership stepped out and joined this movement. She participated with full force in every endeavour for the rule of law. At last the deposed Chief Justice and rest of the judges were restored on 16 March 2009.

Amina, whose only hope had been the judiciary, was heavily disappointed when the missing persons case could not appear on Supreme Court's docket for many months. Sad but undaunted, she decided to jolt the Court. She set up a protest camp in a small tent right outside Supreme Court's gate. She stayed in that tent for 12 days and 12 nights from 2 November 2009 to 13 November 2009.

At last her efforts bore fruit and the Registrar of Supreme Court called Amina Masood Janjua in his office on 13 November 2009 and promised for immediate hearing and asked to call off her sit-in. Resultantly hearing of cases of missing persons resumed on 23 November 2009 once again.

In 2008 she was invited by Amnesty International for a visit to Europe and USA. She addressed various conferences in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Lausanne, Lucerne, Bern, Geneva, Zurich, Berlin, Hannover, Oslo, Stockholm. She also met with the high government official of many countries during her visit.

In 2008 her US visa was cancelled two hours before she was to fly for USA. US embassy never disclosed the reasons behind the refusal.

Very early in her struggle she came to know that there are countless other people who are victims of enforced disappearance but do not have a remedy for their malady. Victim families were forced to remain silent for fear of persecution under military rule. She started campaigning among the victims families Co-Founding The Activist group named Defense of Human Rights Alongside Lal Masjid's Abdul Rashid Ghazi. Under the banner of Defence of Human Rights, she organized her activities to trace not only her own husband but all the others who had disappeared. After disappointment from all quarters she got out of her home and staged her first road protest on 4 September 2006. This first protest was not the last because she continued this protest on daily basis for next two months.

After two months protest it was on 9 Oct 2006 that proceedings of Suo Moto case of Masood Janjua along with some other missing persons started in Supreme Court of Pakistan. Her campaigning brought results and by the end of 2006 DHR had registered and submitted 100 cases of disappearances into Supreme Court.

On 28 Dec 2006 in a bid to deliver a letter at GHQ gate Amina was set on marching along with her kids and other families. But the authorities subjected them to a brutal crackdown in front of Flashman's hotel Rawalpindi. Children of Amina Masood Janjua were particularly targeted. Ali, 14, and Muhammad, 15, were beaten mercilessly and 9-year-old daughter was fainted. Muhammad was carried away forcefully by police.

In Nov 2006 she filed her 1st independent petition in Supreme Court for 16 missing persons. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry allowed her to plead for the other missing persons as an advocate. Since then she is continually appearing in the cases of missing persons in the Supreme Court. Presently she alone is representing more than 700 cases of enforced disappearance.

Her husband, Masood Ahmed janjua, who was a successful business man and ran multiple business concerns, left home to go to Peshawar on 30 July 2005 along with his friend Faisal Faraz but did not return home neither he reached his destination. His mysterious disappearance could not be accounted for initially but later on certain evidences convinced her that he had been picked up by an intelligence agency of the country. It was further established through the statement of one Dr Imran Munir who remained in the custody of military, was court martialed though released later on by the orders of Supreme Court of Pakistan. Dr Imran in an official statement given to the government functionaries testified that he has seen and met Masood Ahmed Janjua in a secret detention centre.

Amina Masood Janjua, (Urdu: آمنہ مسعود جنجوعہ ‎): born 28 April 1964, originally a painter and a poet, is known for her struggle against enforced disappearance in Pakistan. She is the chairperson of rights group Defence of Human Rights Pakistan. Her career in activism started when her husband Masood Ahmed Janjua was disappeared on 30 July 2005. Apart from enforced disappearance her work include providing legal support to prisoners in foreign countries, arranging financial support to the families of victims of enforced disappearance and eradication of torture from jails and detention centers. She appears regularly on local and foreign media as the spokesperson of missing persons and occasionally contribute articles in Urdu and English dailies of the country.