Just two days after the Supreme Court upheld the establishment of military courts to try terror suspects in a majority ruling, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has termed the verdict a blow to human rights and the rule of law. The ICJ is a network composed of 60 judges and lawyers from around the world dedicated to the promotion and protection of human rights through the rule of law. In a statement issued by the body on Friday, ICJ’s Asia Director Sam Zarifi said “This judgment squarely puts Pakistan at odds with its international obligations and weakens the Supreme Court’s hard won reputation as the last resort for protecting the rights of Pakistani people.” The body lamented that the apex court has “missed an important opportunity to reverse the militarization of justice in progress under the guise of combatting terrorism and to reinforce independence of the judiciary in the country.” ICJ said the trial of civilians in military courts for terrorism-related offences is incompatible with international standards, which require that those accused of any criminal offence are guaranteed a fair trial by an independent, impartial and competent tribunal. In fact, a parallel judicial system has come into being and the process of fair trial has become doubtful. Questions are being raised at the national and international levels about the future of the judicial system in the country. How will the state intervene to stop civil, military judicial clashes in many upcoming controversial cases? Who will decide the admissibility of the cases and jurisdiction of the courts? After the ruling, the father of a death row convict Haider Ali, who received the death sentence from a military court, challenged the ruling in the SC on August 8. It might be a test case for the top court as well as set a precedent for the future working of both judicial systems.
The military trial of civilians accused of heinous crimes has put a question mark on the sovereignty of democratic institutions and the credibility of the existing judicial system. In fact, the foundation of a parallel judicial system has been laid that will result in more chaos in the country regarding the dissemination of justice to those civilians who cannot prove their innocence under the arbitrary procedures of the military courts. Regrettably, the purpose of the establishment of military courts was to try terrorists. However, after the lifting of the moratorium on executions, many civilians on death row are being hanged in a quickfire manner, raising concerns about innocents being sent to the gallows because of the justice system being skewed against the poor unable to mount an adequate defence, which is a mockery of justice.
pk.shafaqna.com
