Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Wednesday insisted that trials under army laws meet the “internationally acknowledged minimum requirements” that form the basis of a fair trial. The minister expressed his views while speaking to the media after a meeting of the Supreme Judicial Council in Islamabad, around a month after the government decided to try the suspects accused of attacking military installations on May 9 under army laws.
To lend strength to his argument, he particularly cited Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 regarding a fair trial, which he said gave the right to appoint a counsel of choice, reduce defence evidence, have access to the relevant record and seek a judicial review. The army laws “covered all these [aspects] and that is why it is said that they meet the internationally acknowledged minimum requirements pertaining to the procedure and law”, he added.
When asked whether any “special considerations” were being mulled regarding the trial of women under army laws, the minister replied: “Matters [pertaining to military trials] will be decided according to the operation of the law. It is not the choice of the federal government or any institution.
“The relevant institution will proceed on this in line with how they are satisfied with the [available] material.”
However, he continued, no case of woman had been referred to the military court till now. The minister’s remarks come amid concerns over its decision to try May 9 suspects under army laws.
On May 9, countrywide protests had erupted after the paramilitary Rangers had whisked away PTI chief Imran Khan from the Islamabad High Court in a corruption case. While the protests were under way, public and private properties, including military installations, were attacked and vandalised. Subsequently, the army termed the day a “dark chapter” and announced around a week after the incidents its intent to try the rioters under relevant laws, including two military laws – the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.
The decision was endorsed by the National Security Committee – the country’s principal decision-making forum on foreign policy and national security – a day later amid opposition by rights organisations and activists. The PTI has also approached the Supreme Court against the federal government’s decision to prosecute civilians under the Army Act while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif clarified last month that only those accused of vandalising civilian infrastructures would be tried under the anti-terrorism law while those accused of vandalising military property would be put on trial under military laws.
So far, an Lahore anti-terrorism court has sanctioned the handing over of 16 May 9 suspects to the military and a Rawalpindi court has approved the handing over of another eight suspects – both developments having taken place within the span of a week in May. During the gap between the two hearings, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah had announced that 33 suspects – 19 in Punjab and 14 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – had been handed over to the military until then, following attacks on army installations during protests on May 9.
