Every few years, Pakistan finds itself defending the same accusations before the same audience. Yet the real question is no longer whether Pakistan must improve. Every responsible state has an obligation to protect the rights of all its citizens. The real question is whether those judging Pakistan are willing to apply the same standards to themselves. The European Union’s latest GSP assessment has once again brought this debate into focus. While it acknowledges Pakistan’s legislative and institutional progress, it continues to place significant emphasis on minority rights, raising an important question: Are human rights truly being assessed through one universal yardstick?

The report itself presents a more balanced picture than many of the headlines it generated. It recognises Pakistan’s continued engagement with the GSP monitoring process and its commitment to the international conventions attached to the trade arrangement. It also acknowledges progress in labour protections, environmental governance, prison reforms, anti-torture measures, women’s rights,........

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